Men's Basketball 11/13/2011 11:53:00 PM SUU Strategic Communication

Heuir?s 33 Lead SUU to Victory at BTI Classic

SAN DIEGO, Calif. Nov. 13 – The Southern Utah Basketball shot over 66 percent from the floor Sunday to take a 95-78 victory over Bryant University and finish 2-1 in the BTI Classic held at San Diego State University.

Both teams shot the ball well in the opening minutes as the Bulldogs made four of their first five shots from the floor, including going three for three from behind the three-point line, while the Thunderbirds converted seven of their first 11 field goal attempts to jump out to 16-12 lead. Southern Utah then ran off eight straight points to increase its advantage to 24-12 near the 13-minute mark. Bryant would answer with a 10-4 run to cut the deficit to 28-22.

Damon Heuir would spark another run with a pair of threes extend the SUU lead into double figures at 36-25. Bryant came back behind two treys from Frankie Dobbs to pull the Bulldogs within four with just over three minutes remaining in the half. The Thunderbirds were then able to increase their lead back to seven thanks to four points from Wade Collie in the final 90 seconds before the break to take a 52-45 advantage into the locker room.

Southern Utah held the lead throughout the first half but every time the Thunderbirds looked to pull away the Bulldogs were able to stick around as they started the game 7-10 from the three-point line and 17-26 overall. SUU matched Bryant shooting the ball as both teams shot over 65 percent from the floor in the opening period. The difference for the T-Birds came from their defensive pressure, as they were able to turn 12 Bryant turnovers into 21 points.

The Thunderbirds stretched the lead back to 10 early in the second half after six straight points from Heuir put SUU up 65-55. A 14-6 run by Bryant pulled them within two near the nine-minute mark, but that is as close as they would get as Southern Utah outscored the Bulldogs 24-9 down the stretch for the 17-point victory and a final score of 95-78.

Bryant was 26-46 shooting the ball in the game for a field goal percentage better than 56 percent. The Bulldogs couldn't keep pace with the Thunderibirds however who finished the night 39-59 from the floor to top 66 percent. The T-Birds also held a 26-22 advantage on the glass and forced the Bulldogs to commit 19 turnovers.

Heuir had a career night for SUU, finishing with 33 points and five three-pointers. Matt Massey scored 16 for the Thunderbirds and Ray Jones Jr. turned in a double-double with 18 points and 10 assists for a new personal best.

Bryant was led by Alex Francis who scored 29 to go along with his eight rebounds and Frankie Dobbs had 24 points, 15 of which came from behind the arc.

With the loss Bryant finished the tournament 1-2 and carries the same record on the season. Southern Utah improves to 2-1 and will bring its winning record home to Cedar City next week when they face Montana State-Billings on Thursday, Nov. 17 at 7:00 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

#34 Matt Massey: C; 6' 9"; Redshirt Sophomore

#3 Damon Heuir: G; 6' 2"; Freshman

#5 Ray Jones, Jr.: PG; 6' 2"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#34 Matt Massey
: 6' 9"; Redshirt Sophomore
: C

#3 Damon Heuir
: 6' 2"; Freshman
: G

#5 Ray Jones, Jr.
: 6' 2"; Junior
: PG

Players Mentioned

#34 Matt Massey

#3 Damon Heuir

#5 Ray Jones, Jr.

Players Mentioned

#34 Matt Massey

#3 Damon Heuir

#5 Ray Jones, Jr.