Southern Utah's men's basketball team plays its final non-conference home game of the 2011 campaign Thursday when the Thunderbirds host UC Davis at 7:00 p.m. in the Centrum.

The Thunderbirds (4-6/0-1 Summit League), who are coming off an 80-72 setback at Troy on Tuesday, will be looking to snap a four-game losing streak Thursday night. The Thunderbirds have played well in the cold stretch, with two close losses to Troy and another at Oral Roberts (61-55) in their Summit League opener, and in an 84-66 setback at Big Sky favorite Weber State on Dec. 10, but they have not been able to get into the win column since a 78-58 win over Southern Virginia.

UC Davis (1-10) has lost seven straight following a 79-59 setback at San Jose State on Tuesday night. The Aggies' lone win was an 84-78 triumph over UC Santa Cruz on Nov. 15, but leading scorer Ryan Sypkens has not played since that game because of a season-ending knee injury.

Thursday's game is the second straight re-match for the Thunderbirds. SUU met the Aggies in their season-opener, and also hosted Troy on Nov. 26 before Tuesday's meeting.

The Game: Thursday, UC Davis (1-10) at SUU (4-6), 7:00 p.m. (MST) in the Centrum Arena (5,300).

Radio: All Southern Utah men's basketball games are broadcast live by KSUU (91.1 FM) as well as on the internet at www.suu.edu/ksuu. Art Challis is in his 39th season as the Thunderbirds' basketball play-by-play voice. Dr. Challis is joined on home and selected road broadcasts by former SUU standout Dean O'Driscoll.

The Series: Thursday's game will be the third between the Thunderbirds and the Aggies in men's basketball. UC Davis won the first game in the series, a 74-64 win in Davis, Calif., last season, but the Thunderbirds came out on top of a 76-75 battle earlier this season in the Basketball Travelers Classic in San Diego, Calif.

Practice Schedule: The practice schedule calls for the team to work out at 3:00 p.m. daily. Contact SUU Director of Athletic Media Relations Neil Gardner for more information.

Media Availability: Players and coaches are available for interviews on Tuesdays prior to practice, between 2:30-3:00 p.m., with occasional adjustments due to scheduling conflicts. To contact a player or coach on another day or time contact Neil Gardner at gardner@suu.edu or 435-586-7753.

Video Highlights: Video highlights of SUU's Summit League home games will be available to accredited media outlets via SUU's FTP site. For information on the schedule and obtaining those highlights contact SUU Director of Athletic Media Relations Neil Gardner.

Affiliations: Southern Utah is in its 15th and final season in The Summit League. All but two of SUU's sports compete in The Summit, with football a member of the Great West Conference and gymnastics an affiliate member of the Western Athletic Conference. Most of SUU's programs will move into the Big Sky Conference in 2012. UC Davis is a member of the Big West Conference.

Videostreaming/Live Stats at www.suutbirds.com: All of Southern Utah's 2011-12 men's basketball home games will be video-streamed on the SUU athletic website at www.suutbirds.com. Live stats for all home games and most road games will also be available. Video streams are on a pay basis but there is no cost for live stats.

Thunderbird Club Luncheons: The Thunderbird Club's weekly no-host luncheon is held Mondays at noon in the Tradition Room in the home of President Michael Benson. The public is invited to attend the luncheons where Southern Utah's in-season coaches talk about their upcoming contests and review the past week's action.

Next Up: SUU will take a six-day break from games following Thursday's match-up with UC Davis. The team returns to the road and Summit League play next week, with a three-game road swing to South Dakota (Dec. 28), UMKC (Dec. 30) and IPFW (Jan. 3).

The Coaches: 

Head Coach Roger Reid (Weber State '68) is in his fifth season on the Southern Utah bench.

Reid takes a career Division I mark of 196-162 - including a 44-86 record at SUU - into the game. His record includes six years as head coach at Brigham Young. He is 1-1 vs. UC Davis.

Coach Reid's career has spanned virtually every level of the coaching strata, including the high school, junior college, and NCAA Division I levels as well as in the NBA and international ranks. He is probably best known for his success at Brigham Young University, where he led the Cougars to five NCAA tournament berths and three Western Athletic Conference championships. He has also coached the Phoenix Suns of the NBA and the Hangzhou Horses of the Chinese Basketball Association. Reid coached Snow College to a conference title and a No. 18 national ranking in his final season on the bench there.

Reid is assisted by Ron Carling (BYU '70), a 40-year coaching veteran who is also entering his fifth season with the program; Johnny Brown (New Mexico '86), an 18-year veteran of the coaching ranks who is in his fifth year in Cedar City; and assistant Kenya Crandell (Nebraska-Kearney '96) who is entering his 15th season as a collegiate coach and his fourth year at SUU.

Captains: This year's captains are SUU's three seniors: Ray Jones, Jr., Matt Massey, and Ramell Taylor.

Thunderbird Notes:

• Heading into the week Ray Jones, Jr., ranked 29th in the nation in assists, with an average of 5.9 per game.
• As a team the Thunderbirds rank 18th in the nation and atop The Summit League with an average of 16.6 dimes per game. The team's 47.9 field goal percentage ranks 36th in the nation and is second in The League (both numbers and rankings were prior to the Troy game).
• Ramell Taylor scored 21 points to lead the team at Troy. The total was a season-high for Taylor and one off his career-high.
• Matt Massey also had a season-high in points at Troy, with 20, while Jackson Stevenett scored 16 points. It marked just the second time this season the 'Birds have had three players with 15 or more points in the same game. Against Bryant Massey scored 16 and Jones had 18 while Damon Heuir finished with a team season-high 33.
• As a team SUU hit 10-of-11 free throws at Troy, for a season-high 90.9 percent conversion rate. Prior to the Troy game the best effort was 13-of-15 at Oral Roberts (.867).
• Four T-Birds sport double-figure scoring averages: Taylor at 12.2 ppg, Stevenett at 11.6, Heuir at 11.0 and Massey at 10.9.
• Stevenett averages a team-high 5.0 rebounds per game, while Taylor averages 4.9 and Jones 4.8.

Scouting the Aggies:

UC Davis averages 63.5 points per game while giving up an average of 78.2. The Aggies have hit 40.5 percent of their field goal attempts (.363 threes) while opponents have shot at a .486 clip (.639 threes). UC Davis has converted 66.8 percent of its free throw attempts and has been out-rebounded by an average of 38.1-to-29.7 per game. The Aggies average 8.3 3-pointers per game, tops in the Big West Conference.

Three Aggies carry double-figure scoring averages, but one, Ryan Sypkens, is out with a knee injury. Swingman Josh Ritchart (6-9, 215, So) brings a 12.5 points per game average into the game, while guard Tyler Les (6-2, 185, So) is at 10.1 ppg. Guard Ryan Howley (6-5, 195, Jr) leads the team with 5.8 rebounds per game, while Ritchart averages 5.0 caroms per contest. Guard Tyrell Corbin, the son of Utah Jazz Coach Tyrone Corbin, paces the Aggies with 3.1 assists per game.

Like the Thunderbirds, the Aggies will be playing their final non-conference game (excluding a Bracket Buster match-up) of the season Thursday night.