CEDAR CITY, Utah – Southern Utah (10-19, 7-11) was unable to play its way into the Big Sky Tournament Saturday night, losing to Portland State (15-13, 9-9), 86-73. The Thunderbirds cold shooting in the second half did not match the hot shooting of Portland State, as the Vikings used a 61.5 percent shooting in the second half to put the game out of reach.
Although, the Thunderbirds shots started falling late, but SUU was not able to stop the Vikings on the defensive end of the floor, as Portland State converted free throws during the final five minutes of the game to sustain its lead. The Thunderbirds fought until the end, but unfortunately came up short.
SUU looked to be ready for a challenge early in the game, starting 9-18 from the field in the first ten minutes and grabbing a lead at 22-19. Junior guard, A.J. Hess and senior, Cal Hanks started the Thunderbirds off on the right foot combining for 4-8 from the field for ten points and five rebounds early.
During the last ten minutes of the first half, forward Casey Oliverson and guard, Race Parsons got hot from the field, combining for 12 points. Gary Winston scored netted 12 points on 5-9 shooting, while forward Tiegbe Bamba added nine points and seven rebounds. The Thunderbirds used solid team play to enter the half with a 36-32 lead.
Hess led all SUU scorers at the half with nine points and five rebounds. Oliverson and Parsons each ended the half with six and three Thunderbirds players added four. The points in the paint were close at halftime with Portland State leading 12-10 and the Thunderbirds out rebounded the Vikings 19-16 in the first 20 minutes.
SUU seemed to play with a little less intensity to start the second half, as Portland State took a quick 40-37 lead over the Thunderbirds just a minute into the half. SUU battled back and grabbed a 52-50 lead with just over 12 minutes left in the half, but Hess picked up his fourth foul and went to the bench and the Vikings saw an opportunity.
Portland State went on a 16-6 run after Hess went to the bench to grab an eight-point lead. Bamba, who finished with 21 points and 14 rebounds, led the charge for the Vikings. Winston and DaShaun Wiggins each contributed double-digit points and Portland State punched their ticket to the Big Sky Tournament with the win.
SUU finished minus-five in the rebound column and the biggest difference in the second half was points in the paint, where PSU ended up beating the Thunderbirds 36-16. SUU's bench played great, contributing 38 points as the Thunderbirds had four players finish with double-digit points.
