MOSCOW, Idaho -- The Thunderbird men's basketball team bounced back in a big way on Monday evening, knocking off the Idaho Vandals 73-45 on the road.
With the victory the Thunderbirds move to 12-7 on the season, sitting with a 5-3 record in the Big Sky Conference.
"We wanted to get back to defending," SUU head coach Todd Simon said. "We had a bad taste in our mouth after Saturday's result, and I thought we came out with a lot of purpose so that was good."
The contest was never really in doubt for SUU, as they jumped out to a 13-2 lead before the first media timeout.
Southern Utah didn't slow down in the opening 20 minutes either, holding a 43-24 lead heading into the halftime break.
In the second half the T-Birds weren't able to score at the same pace, but still held the Vandals to only 21 points to leave the state of Idaho with a 73-45 victory.
The scoring was very balanced for the Thunderbirds on Monday, as four different players scored in double figures.
Cameron Oluyitan was the leading scorer for SUU, dropping in 15 points of 6-of-11 shooting.
Andre Adams finished the night with a double-double, scoring 14 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. He got to that point total by hitting 7-of-8 shots from the field.
Maizen Fausett finished with 13 points and eight rebounds in just 19 minutes on the floor, while Dre Marin finished with 11 points and three made triples.
The T-Birds held Idaho to 26 percent shooting on the night, and 17 percent shooting from behind the three-point line.
"We wanted to hold them under 30 percent," Simon said. "And the guys put their mind to it, and we were able to attain that goal."
Southern Utah pulled in 11 more defensive rebounds than their counterpart, and dished out eight more assists. SUU also had a lot of production in the paint, outscoring Idaho 36-24.
The Thunderbirds will be back on the floor in the America First Event Center on Thursday evening, as they play host to in-state rival Weber State. Start time in Cedar City is set for 7 p.m. MT.
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