CEDAR CITY, Utah - Dec. 8 - Southern Utah fell victim to 14 long-range
bombs by IPFW over the course of the evening and shot only 50 percent
from the charity stripe en route to a 67-69 loss to the Mastodons on
Monday night. Both teams moved to 2-6 overall and 1-1 in conference
with the decision.
IPFW rained shots from deep throughout the entire game, accumulating 34 attempts from beyond the 3-point line. Of the 11 field goals for the Mastodons in the first half, eight were from long range. Despite the barrage, the two teams swapped the lead throughout the opening stanza until IPFW closed out the final seven minutes of the half on a 14-6 run, including four 3-pointers. The stretch put the score at 24-32 going into the intermission.
Coming out of the break, Southern Utah began to slowly erode the Mastodon lead to take a 49-48 lead with 12:09 on the clock. The Thunderbirds shot 73.9 percent from the field over the final 20 minutes, but three successive turnovers by Kaila Goff propelled IPFW to a 10-0 run over the stretch of two minutes late in the half.
However, Southern Utah countered and cut the lead to 64-67 with just under three minutes to play. Anne Westwood-Higbee stepped up to the free throw line with 2:16 on the clock, but missed the front end of a one-and-one. That was followed by a second mishap in the waning minutes as freshman Cassi Platt held the ball too long and was called for a five-second violation on the in-bound play, coming out of a timeout with 1:34 to play.
The Thundebirds were still close, following a basket by IPFW's Chelsey Jackson, as Platt fired a three with under a minute to play to bring the game to within two points. The Mastodons were called for a shot clock violation on the ensuing possession, giving the ball to the T-Birds with 26 seconds on the clock. However, Caitlyn Sears' 3-point attempt as time expired was too long, allowing IPFW to escape Cedar City with the 69-67 victory.
SUU had five players record double figures with Platt leading the way with 12 and Higbee, Cassi Jones, Kaila Goff and Challis Pascucci each recording 11 points. Pascucci finished the game with a double-double with a season-high 10 rebounds.
IPFW also had five players with double-digit scoring numbers led by Jordan Zuppe with a game-high 15 points, followed by Jackson and Tina Moen with 13 and Sarah Haluska and Courtney Reed with 11.
Southern Utah will be back on the court on Saturday night when the Thunderbirds host Northern Arizona in the Centrum Arena. Tip-off for that game is scheduled for 5:00 p.m.
