The SUU basketball teams took the court on Saturday to battle in-state rival Utah Valley in the regular season’s penultimate game.
The women’s team hosted the Wolverines for Senior Night, with their late comeback effort falling short in a 53-48 defeat.
Southern Utah’s men’s team traveled to Orem to face the first-place Wolverines, suffering a 100-59 blowout loss.
Here are recaps of both games, beginning with women’s basketball defeat.
Women’s basketball
The Thunderbirds started the game slowly, which would prove costly down the stretch in a five-point defeat.
SUU scored only six points in the opening quarter but trailed by just four (10-6). The second period did not feature any more offense for the T-birds, as they mustered just five points and headed to halftime down 26-11.
Quarter number three was closer than the first two, with UVU edging SUU 14-12 to make it a 17-point game (40-23). Despite the deficit, the T-birds fought back in the fourth, making it a one-point game with 16 seconds to play (49-48). Southern Utah was unable to score any points, however, as Utah Valley would make four free throws in the final seconds to hang on for the 53-48 win.
Even with the late rally, the Thunderbirds struggled on offense against the Wolverines. SUU converted on just 36 percent of their shot attempts, including just a 20 percent clip from three.
The loss snaps a four-game winning streak for the T-birds, who are now 8-20 on the season. With a 6-9 WAC record, SUU is locked into the No. 7 seed for the upcoming WAC Tournament.
Sydney Gandy led Southern Utah in the loss, scoring 13 points.
Coach Mason postgame
Up next
SUU (8-20, 6-9 WAC) will wrap up the regular season with a road trip to Seattle U on Thursday, March 6.
The game is set to tip off at 7 p.m. MT and can be seen on ESPN+.
Men’s basketball
Going up against the WAC’s top team, SUU men’s basketball struggled from beginning to end, suffering its worst-ever defeat against Utah Valley.
The Thunderbirds went scoreless from the field for the first five and a half minutes, trailing 11-4 by the time they made their first bucket. Just over seven minutes later the Wolverines led by 20 (31-11), pushing their advantage to 28 at the halftime break (52-24).
Utah Valley would take its first 30-point lead with its first basket of the second half, and the T-birds would never get closer than 27. The Wolverines would push their advantage to 43 with 1:15 to play before closing out a 100-59 win.
SUU shot a mere 34.4 percent from the field in the blowout loss (21-61), including just 3-of-18 from three (16.7 percent). On the other hand, UVU made 60 percent of its shot attempts while winning the points in the paint battle (56-30) and totaling more bench points (49-20).
The loss moves SUU to 12-17 on the season, including 4-11 in conference play. The T-birds are now locked into an eighth-place finish, meaning they will face rival Utah Tech in the opening round of the WAC Tournament.
Up next
Southern Utah (12-17, 4-11 WAC) hosts the Seattle Redhawks for Senior Night on Thursday, March 6.
The game will begin at 6:30 p.m. MT and can be seen on ESPN+.
