MOSCOW, Idaho -- The Southern Utah University men's basketball team took down the Idaho Vandals Saturday afternoon, 81-75, in a tight contest that saw 10 lead changes before SUU secured the victory late.

The win pushed the Thunderbirds' record to 5-3 overall and 2-0 in the Big Sky Conference as Idaho lost the first of their conference matchups with a 1-6 record overall.

"This was a great 2-0 road trip to start conference play," said SUU head coach Todd Simon. "We know every conference game will be a battle this year. I'm proud of our fight in our third-straight week on the road. These types of stretches will prepare us for tournament time. The keys for us today were getting stops down the stretch and pulling down 15 offensive rebounds. We also took care of the ball with only six turnovers. We are excited to head home for a big game against UVU on Wednesday."

Idaho took the opening tip-off, but John Knight III recorded the first points of the game with a dunk off an assist from Jason Spurgin. SUU recorded two more buckets before the Vandals got on the board with a Mikey Dixon jumper. 

Six minutes into the ball game, Southern Utah continued to stretch its lead to make it an 11-4 game before Idaho started its comeback, tying the game at the 11-minute mark, 13-13. 

SUU took a three-point lead into halftime, coming off five 3-pointers and three free throws. The Vandals only led for 41 seconds of the half.

Idaho heated up in the second half, starting out with a layup from Tanner Christensen 18 seconds into the half. The Vandals kept the rest of the game close as Idaho owned the lead for 10:10 in the second half but could only stretch its lead to six.

The Thunderbirds grabbed the lead once and for all with just under seven minutes left in the contest with a Maizen Fausett 3-pointer, followed by buckets from Harrison Butler and Nick Fleming. SUU would close out the game on a 17-10 run with six trips to the free-throw line and two 3-pointers.

Dre Marin finished the contest as the T-Birds' top scorer with 19 points coming off a .500 field goal percentage in 38 minutes. Tevian Jones and Fausett added double-digit scores with 17 and 15 points, respectively. Fausett also recorded 10 rebounds to ensure the double-double. 

Southern Utah returns to Cedar City for a midweek matchup with future Western Athletic Conference rival Utah Valley Wednesday, December 8. The game tips off at 7 p.m. MST inside the America First Event Center. Streaming will be available on ESPN+ with live stats at suutbirds.com.

Stay up to date during the 2021-22 Southern Utah Men's Basketball season by following @SUUBasketball on Twitter and Instagram and by liking the Southern Utah Basketball page on Facebook.