CEDAR CITY, Utah - The Southern Utah University women's basketball team will hit the road for the first time this season as the Thunderbirds are set to take on the University of California Santa Barbara on Sunday, Nov. 19 at 3 p.m. MT.
GAME INFO
Southern Utah vs UC Santa Barbara
Date: Sunday, Nov. 19
Tip-off: 3 p.m. MT
Live Steam | Live Stats
HEAD COACH TRACY MASON SAYS
"We are excited for our first road trip of the season. UCSB is a tough opponent with some great veteran players. We need to improve from our last three outings and put together four solid quarters."
T-BIRD TIDBITS
-
Megan Smith scorches the net with 18.3 points per game on a highly efficient 67 percent shooting from the field.
-
Daylani Ballena (17.3) and Ava Uhrich (11.3) each score over 10 points per game to help power the offense.
-
Uhrich leads the team in rebounds, corralling 5.3 each game.
-
Samantha Johnston serves as the team's primary distributor with 4.0 assists each game.
-
Shiho Isono has added tremendous defense as she leads the squad with 2.3 steals per contest.
LAST TIME OUT
Southern Utah vs. Alaska Fairbanks
First Half
Megan Smith dominated offensively to start the game, scoring 10 of the T-Bird's first 14 points to give SUU a 14-10 advantage midway through the opening quarter. A pair of layups by Alexa Lord gave the Thunderbirds an 18-10 lead with 1:13 on the clock. Alaska Fairbanks managed to trim the lead to five, 20-15, at the end of the period.
Southern Utah came out strong to begin the second quarter, using an 8-2 run to claim a double-digit lead (28-17) with 5:03 remaining. The Nanooks answered with a 9-4 sprint to close the gap to only six, 32-26, with 1:04 left in the first half. Daylani Ballena earned two points at the charity stripe to push SUU in front 34-26 at the break.
Second Half
Alaska Fairbanks used a 15-10 burst to get within three points, 44-41 midway through the third quarter. The Thunderbirds responded, with Shiho Isono adding a pair of buckets to fuel a 6-2 run that put SUU in front 50-42 approaching the final period.
Smith and Ballena were electric in the fourth quarter, combining for 18 points to earn a 72-58 victory for Southern Utah.
SCOUTING REPORT: UC SANTA BARBARA GAUCHOS
-
UC Santa Barbara is currently 1-1 on the season. The Gauchos are coming off a narrow loss to Idaho State earlier in the week.
-
The Gauchos score 75.5 points per game while holding their opponents to 72.5.
-
Alexis Whitfield leads the way for the Gauchos with a team-high 20.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game.
-
Alyssa Marin averages 5.0 assists each game.
HISTORY
UC Santa Barbara and SUU have only faced once all-time, with the Gauchos taking a narrow 102-96 victory in triple overtime last season in Cedar City.
FOLLOW US
For all the latest on Southern Utah women's basketball, follow @SUUWBasketball on Twitter and Instagram and like the Southern Utah Women's Basketball Facebook page.
DONATE
To help support Thunderbird athletics consider making a donation today! To learn more about how you can support click here.
