Women's Basketball off to a Bumpy Start in 64-44 Loss to UC Davis

CEDAR CITY, Utah - Nov. 14 - Southern Utah women's basketball committed 28 turnovers, leading to 19 UC Davis points as the Thunderbirds lost a 64-44 decision at home on Friday night. The defeat sets the T-Birds at 0-1 on the year while the Aggies begin the season with a 1-0 mark.

"We knew we would be in trouble tonight if we committed too many turnovers," interim head coach Kit Janes said. "It's something we know we need to work on, but we're young and learning and we're going to get better."

Neither team leapt out of the gate very quickly with a combined 29 points between the two teams with five minutes to play in the first half. UC Davis ultimately took a 32-13 lead into the intermission, forcing SUU into a total of 16 turnovers during the first 20 minutes.

Southern Utah struggled to find its stroke against a stiff Aggie defense in the first half, shooting just 16 percent and surrendering 12 steals.

In the second half, SUU rebounded the ball more aggressively and collected 13 offensive rebounds to give the T-Birds more looks towards the basket. Those opportunities coupled with some defensive stops led to 31 Thunderbird points, including ten points for Anne Higbee. Higbee led the team with a team-high 12 points while also grabbing eight rebounds.

In the end, UC Davis did not relent and held onto a double-digit lead throughout the second half for the 64-44 victory. UCD's Lisa Peterson led all scorers with 14 points and was joined in double figures by Paige Mintun (11) and Genevieve Costello (10).

Sophomore Challis Pascucci turned in the most efficient performance for the Thunderbirds during the night with eight points on 4-of-4 shooting and a game-high ten rebounds in 14 minutes.

Southern Utah will take its first road trip of the season when the Thunderbirds travel to Las Vegas on Tuesday, Nov. 18 for a match-up with UNLV. Tip-off for that game is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. (PT)

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Players Mentioned

#24 Challis Pascucci: F; 6' 2"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#24 Challis Pascucci
: 6' 2"; Freshman
: F

Players Mentioned

#24 Challis Pascucci

Players Mentioned

#24 Challis Pascucci