SAN DIEGO, Calif. Nov. 11 – Southern Utah University opened the regular season with a win Friday, claiming a 76-75 victory over UC Davis in the BTI Classic. The Thunderbirds held the lead throughout the majority of the game and held off a late Aggie rally for the one-point win.
Southern Utah had success shooting the ball early on, converting seven of its first 14 field goal attempts to jump out to 16-7 lead near the 11 minute mark. UC Davis answered by scoring seven straight points to cut the deficit to a single basket. The Thunderbirds and Aggies would then alternate baskets until a three-pointer by Ryan Sypkens put UC Davis up by two. On the next T-Bird possession a short-range jumper by Matt Massey pulled the score even at 22.
The final six points of the half for SUU would come from the bench as Wade Collie scored a jumper and a pair of free throws and Jaren Jeffrey sank a turnaround shot in the key to give the Thunderbirds a 30-28 advantage at the break.
Southern Utah was able to double-up UC Davis in the paint during the first half, outscoring the Aggies 20-10 from close range. The T-Birds also won the battle on the boards with 24 rebounds to their opponent's 15.
The Thunderbirds were able to create some breathing room in the score in the second period after Jackson Stevenett and Ramell Taylor opened the half with back-to-back baskets to put SUU up 34-28. The Aggies battled back to tie the game several times, even taking the lead a couple of times, but they never led by more than a single point in final half and never held more than a two-point advantage in the game.
Near the 10-minute mark two consecutive baskets by Collie would put the T-Birds up by a count of 53-45. UC Davis was able to cut the deficit to four after scoring six of the game's next eight points, but SUU responded with a 13-7 run to extend its lead to the largest of the ball game at 68-58.
Although the Thunderbirds held a double-digit advantage with under four minutes remaining in the ball game, the Aggies refused to go quietly. After the shot clocks were turned off with 34 seconds remaining UC Davis was able to trim the SUU lead from seven points down to just one after a pair of threes from Tyrell Corbin and a last second long ball by Josh Ritchart. It wouldn't be enough however as Taylor, Collie and Stevenett each converted key free throws over that same stretch to secure the Southern Utah victory.
Collie had a strong performance off the bench for the Thunderbirds, turning in a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Ray Jones Jr. also had 10 boards from the guard line to go along with his six points and seven assists. Ramell Taylor led SUU with 19 points in the game while Jackson Stevenett was a close second at 18. As a team the Thunderbirds were able to outrebound the Aggies by a final tally of 43-23.
Junior guard Ryan Sypkens led UC Davis with 19 points, 12 of which came from behind the arc. Ritchart put up 16 for the Aggies while Corbin had 15.
The two teams will both be back in action in the Basketball Travelers Classic tomorrow as UC Davis takes on Bryant University in the afternoon and Southern Utah is set to face tournament host San Diego State later in the evening. The game between the Aztecs and the Thunderbirds is set to tip-off at 8:30 p.m. (MST). A live audio broadcast of the game will be available on Power 91 or at www.SUUTBIRDS.com.
