CEDAR CITY, Utah -- With just six games remaining on the regular season schedule for the Thunderbird men's basketball team, the T-Birds are headed back out on the road to take on North Dakota (February 15) and Northern Colorado (February 17).

Last Time Out

The Thunderbirds picked up their second victory in a row, and fifth straight over their Grand Canyon rival last Saturday when they knocked off the Lumberjacks of Northern Arizona 63-54.

It was balanced scoring and defense that won the game for the Thunderbirds in Flagstaff. Brandon Better (13), Jamal Aytes (12), James McGee (12) and Dwayne Morgan (10) all finished in double figures for the Thunderbirds, and they held NAU to 27 percent shooting from the field and just seven percent shooting from behind the three point line.  

Record Book Watch

As the weeks continue to roll on, McGee continues to move closer and closer to passing another former Thunderbird on the all-time scoring list.

McGee has scored 1,234 career points, and is closing in on Robert Lee, who scored 1,249 points for the Thunderbirds between 1974-1977.

If he's able to reach that target, next on the list would be Jackson Stevenett who scored 1,273 points for SUU between 2010-2013. Skip Mead is slightly ahead of Stevenett, who has 1,275.

Opponent Preview: North Dakota Fighting Hawks (8-17, 3-10 Big Sky)

When the Thunderbirds travel to North Dakota on Thursday, the Fighting Hawks will be looking to stop a three game slide. UND has fallen in their last three contests, losing to Montana, Weber State and Idaho State.  

The Fighting Hawks look to Geno Crandall for the majority of their scoring. Crandall averages 16 points a game, and has started every contest for North Dakota. He also leads the team in steals and minutes played.

This will be the first time the Thunderbirds and the Fighting Hawks have matched up this season.

The Fighting Hawks are coached by Brian Jones, who is in his 12th season with the program. Jones led the Fighting Hawks to their first ever NCAA Tournament appearance last season after they knocked off Weber State in overtime of the Big Sky Championship game. He was also named Big Sky Coach of the Year and NABC District 6 Coach of the Year for his team's success.  

Opponent Preview: Northern Colorado Bears (16-10, 7-6)

The Bears of Northern Colorado have a winning conference record, and will host the Lumberjacks of Northern Arizona before playing host to Southern Utah.

UNC was riding a two game winning streak before making their way to Ogden, where they fell to the Weber State Wildcats 71-66 in overtime.

Through 26 starts Andre Spight has been the main scorer for the Bears, averaging 20.7 ppg. His season total puts him at 537 points. He also leads the team in assists and steals.

UNC head coach Jeff Linder is in his second season as the head coach for the Bears of Northern Colorado, after spending time at Boise State as their associate head coach.  

Big Sky At A Glance

Another week has come and gone, and the Montana Grizzlies have remained undefeated in Big Sky Conference play. The Grizz are now 13-0 in league play, and 20-5 overall on the season.

Right behind them is Weber State, who sits with a 10-2 Big Sky record. Idaho is third in the conference at 9-3.

The Thunderbirds currently sit ninth out of the 12 teams in the league with a 4-8 Big Sky record. Portland State is directly ahead of them at 5-7.  

Words From Coach Simon

On what the key to success against NAU has been...

"Every game is different, but I think for whatever reason we've been on the right side of it," SUU head coach Todd Simon said. "Jack (Murphy) does a good job with his team, and I just think it's one of those things where we've just been playing well on those days."  

On what the focus of the team will be as they head back on the road...

"We're going to have to keep progressing, keep getting better," he said. "Defense travels, and were going to need to bring that with us and keep doing what we've been doing on that end of the floor. We can clean up our miscues a little bit and hopefully play a complete game."

On helping Dwayne Morgan avoid foul trouble...

"He's an aggressive player, we want him to get two being aggressive on the glass and two being aggressive defensively and take the rest of them out," Simon said. "But he's such a good and aggressive player that he's always going to have some, but if we can manage it and keep him on the floor for 30 minutes it'll be much better for us."

Tip Time

Thursday's game with North Dakota will tip off at 6 p.m. MT and Saturday's contest with Northern Colorado will tip at 7 p.m. MT.

Where To Watch / Listen / Follow Along

Both games can be streamed on the PlutoTV App or WatchBigSky.com.

A link to live stats will be available on www.suutbirds.com prior to tip off.

All games will be broadcast over the airwaves locally on KSUB 590 AM with legendary Thunderbird athletics broadcaster Art Challis on the call.

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.

Ticket Information

Tickets for the contest in Flagstaff can be purchased at www.nauathletics.com/tickets.  

Single game tickets for the 2017-18 SUU men's basketball campaign can be purchased at www.tbirdtickets.com or at the America First Event Center Ticket Office.   

Road To Reno

Tickets for the Big Sky Men's and Women's Basketball Championships can be purchased at www.RoadtoReno.com.