CEDAR CITY, Utah -- Following up a big win at home that secured a winning non-conference season for the T-Birds, the Southern Utah men's basketball team will be back out on the road this week for their final contest outside of the Big Sky when they take on the USC Trojans in Los Angeles.
Last Time Out
The Thunderbirds secured a victory in their first overtime contest of the season last week, as they knocked off the Pepperdine Waves in Cedar City 78-69.
SUU forced overtime when Cameron Oluyitan hit a layup with just one second remaining on the clock to tie the contest at 64-64.
The overtime period belonged to the T-Birds, as they outscored their West Coast Conference foe 14-5 in the five minute period.
Brandon Better led the T-Birds with 17 points, hitting five shots from behind the three-point line.
X2 Player of the Week
For the second time this season, Oluyitan has been named Big Sky Ready Nutrition Men's Basketball Player of the Week following his performance against Pepperdine.
Oluyitan is currently SUU's leading scorer, averaging 13.6 points per contest. Playing an average of 29 minutes per game, he's shooting 48 percent from the field and 81 percent from the free throw line. He also leads the team in assists (24) and steals (15).
He was the first player in the Big Sky Conference this season to receive the recognition more than once.
Opponent Preview: USC (5-6)
The Trojans of USC will host the T-Birds following a loss to the Santa Clara Broncos in double overtime. They are currently riding a four-game losing streak that started against No. 6 Nevada on December 1, which was followed by losses to TCU and Oklahoma, who are both receiving votes in the major Division I polls.
USC currently has five players averaging in double-figures, led by Nick Rakocevic who is averaging 14.5 ppg and leads the team in rebounding with an average of 10.9 rpg.
Senior Bennie Boatwright has averaged 14.2 ppg for USC this season, and has drilled 20 shots from behind the three-point line.
Andy Enfield has been the head coach of the Trojans since the 2013-14 season, and has secured five consecutive top-30 recruiting classes to Los Angeles.
Words From The T-Birds
Todd Simon on preparing for the Trojans...
"They're obviously extremely talented," he said. "That's a very good Pac-12 team. They're going to have some different looks, and they have tremendous size at multiple positions. We're going to have to play a solid, clean basketball game. We can't do anything to be ourselves if you want a chance to beat a team of that caliber."
Brandon Better on USC…
"We've just got to control ourselves," he said. "We'll just make sure we stick to our game plan, and other people will be surprised at the result, but we won't."
Where To Watch / Listen / Follow Along
Friday night's contest will be aired nationally on the Pac-12 Networks.
Links to a live stream, live audio and live stats are all available on www.suutbirds.com.
Follow Us
Follow the Thunderbirds all season @SUUBasketball on Twitter and Instagram and by liking the Southern Utah Basketball page on Facebook.
Read all about the Thunderbirds on www.suutbirds.com.
Tickets
Individual game tickets for the 2018-19 Season are available at www.tbirdtickets.com or at the America First Event Center Ticket Office.
