CEDAR CITY, Utah. The Southern Utah men's basketball team returns home to the America First Event Center as it hosts Utah Tech on Friday, Feb. 17 at 7 p.m. MT.
GAME INFO
Southern Utah vs. Utah Tech
Date: Friday, Feb. 17
Tipoff: 7 p.m. MT
WAC Standings
The Western Athletic Conference looks at overall standings a bit differently than other conferences as non-conference strength of schedule is factored into where the league will seed its teams heading into the conference championship at the end of the regular season.
The Thunderbirds are currently seeded fourth heading into Las Vegas.
This week, SUU faces 10th-seeded Utah Tech.
2022-23 WAC MBB Resume Seeding System (as of Jan. 29)
Rank Team W L CW CL WACPts
1. Utah Valley 20 6 11 2 5.55
2. Sam Houston 18 6 8 4 4.55
3. Seattle 18 8 9 4 3.34
4. Southern Utah 17 9 9 4 2.64
5. Grand Canyon 16 9 8 5 2.52
6. Stephen F. Austin 16 9 8 4 1.44
7. Tarleton 14 12 8 6 0.47
8. Abilene Christian 13 12 7 7 -1.21
9. California Baptist 14 12 6 7 -1.74
10. Utah Tech 11 15 3 10 -2.94
11. UTRGV 12 14 4 10 -3.20
12. UT Arlington 9 16 4 8 -4.79
13. NM State DQ
PREVIEW
SOUTHERN UTAH (17-9, 9-4 WAC)
National Rankings!
Southern Utah ranks amongst the elite in the country in several statistical categories.
Points Per Game - Team
1, Gonzaga, 86.3
2, Oral Roberts, 85.5
T3, Toledo, 84.3
T3, Southern Utah, 84.3
5, Cornell, 84.0
Rebounds Per Game - Team
1, Alabama, 44.44
22, Southern Utah, 39.04
Defensive Rebounds Per Game - Team
1, Alabama, 31.76
14, Southern Utah, 28.08
Fast Break Points - Team
1, TCU, 20.00
27, Southern Utah, 13.65
Scoring Margin - Team
1, Houston, 20
T24, Southern Utah, 10
NCAA Men's Basketball NET Rankings
The NET Rankings include more components than just winning percentage. They take into account game results, strength of schedule, game location, scoring margin, net offensive, and defensive efficiency, and the quality of wins and losses.
WAC NET Rankings
Current, Team, Previous, SUU Win/Loss
58, Sam Houston, 61, W
79, Utah Valley, 77, WL
109, Southern Utah, 109
113, Grand Canyon, 114
118, Stephen F. Austin, 126, W
129, Seattle, 130, L
176, Tarleton State, 184, LW
180, California Baptist, 179, W
187, Utah Tech, 177, L
187, New Mexico State, 191, WW
193, Abilene Christian, 188
260, UT Arlington, 265
262, UTRGV, 261, W
T-Bird Tidbits
Southern Utah, currently the fourth-highest scoring offense in the nation, maintains a margin of victory of 10.6 points per game. Overall, SUU scores 84.3 points per contest, while opponents score just 73.7 points per event.
The T-Birds shoot 47.5 percent from the field, 34.6 percent from three-point range, and 71.9 percent from the free-throw line.
Additionally, Southern Utah averages 39.0 rebounds, 13.2 assists, 7.8 steals, and 3.4 blocks per game.
Individual Leaders
Five Thunderbirds average double-figure scoring with senior Tevian Jones on top with 18.2 points a contest.
Senior forward Maizen Fausett (11.8), senior guard Harrison Butler (11.2), sophomore guard Drake Allen (10.8) and sophomore center Jason Spurgin (10.2) also score in double digits.
Butler (6.9) and Fausett (6.6) lead the way in rebounds with Spurgin a close third with 5.5 boards a game.
Allen paces the team with 3.2 assists a game, while Spurgin averages 1.6 blocks a contest.
Career-Scoring Charts
Senior guard Tevian Jones increased his career Thunderbird scoring tally to 1,266 with 15 points against Utah Valley. Jones is now just seven points behind Jackson Stevenett's eighth-ranked 1,273 points from 2010-13. Overall, Jones ran his career total to 1,364 including some time at Illinois.
Senior forward Maizen Fausett (7) and senior guard Harrison Butler (2) moved a bit closer to Dre Marin's third-ranked career tally of 1,434 scored from 2017-22.
Points
1,710; Davor Marcelic (1989-1992)
1,568; Jeff Monaco (1997-2001)
1,434; Dre Marin (2017-2022)
1,426; Maizen Fausett (ACTIVE)
1,350; Harrison Butler (ACTIVE)
1,300; James McGee (2014-2018)
1,297; Richard Barton (1989-1993)
1,273; Jackson Stevenett (2010-2013)
1,266; Tevian Jones (ACTIVE) (1,364 overall)
1,223; John Knight III (2019-2022)
1,205; Davis Baker (2007-2010)
Spurgin Single-Season Stats Tracker
Sophomore center Jason Spurgin has just the sixth 40-plus block season in Thunderbird history as he currently has 41 to his credit. He also currently stands fourth in SUU's single-season field goal percentage charts with a 59.8-percent clip from the field thanks to a 101-169 effort thus far.
Blocks
64 Matt Hodgson (2009-2010)
60 Jayson Cheesman (2012-2013)
60 Sean Allen (1994-1995)
53 Sean Allen (1993-1994)
48 Kenyatta Clyde (1998-1999)
41 Jason Spurgin (2022-2023)
39 Kenyatta Clyde (1997-1998)
FG % 150 Attempts min.
0.624 John Clifford (2008-2009)
0.613 Casey Oliverson (2014-2015)
0.603 Bcott Brown (1978-1979)
0.598 Jason Spurgin (2022-2023)
0.584 Butch Douglas (1978-1979)
0.579 March Wilson (1978-1979)
0.577 Scott Brown (1977-1978)
0.575 Andre Adams (2018-19)
0.575 Dana Achtzehn (1991-1992)
0.574 Dean O'Driscoll (1980-1981)
0.573 Monte Middison (1977-1978)
0.571 Drian Devincenzi (1982-1983)
0.570 John Knight III (2020-2021)
Non-Conference Success!
Southern Utah had an amazing non-conference slate, ranking in the top 10 in the nation in multiple categories as well as posting a school-record sixth-straight winning non-conference schedule.
For more on that, let's hear from head coach Todd Simon!
LAST TIME OUT
OREM, Utah. The Southern Utah men's basketball squad fell to Utah Valley, 90-83, on Saturday, Feb. 11 as a frenzied second-half surge came up short for the Thunderbirds.
Southern Utah's record moved to 17-9 overall and 9-4 in the Western Athletic Conference, while Utah Valley improved to 20-6 and 11-2 in WAC play.
T-Bird Tidbits
- Sophomore guard Drake Allen and sophomore center Jason Spurgin had strong nights with 17 points each as they led four Thunderbirds in double-digit scoring.
- Graduate guard Cameron Healy also scored in double figures with 12 points.
- Senior forward Maizen Fausett led the T-Birds with 11 rebounds.
- The in-state rivalry was on full display with five players combined fouling out of the contest as a total of 53 fouls were called in the game.
First Half
Utah Valley opened the contest with a quick 4-0 run before Maizen Fausett cracked into the scoring column on the box score with a layup to move SUU to within 4-2 with 17:30 on the clock. Drake Allen followed with a circus layup to knot the game up at 4-4 with 16:30 to go.
Jason Spurgin pushed the SUU run to 6-0 with a layup of his own at 15:58 as the 'Birds went up, 6-4. UVU responded with a layup as both squads went into the first media timeout at 15:22 with a tied 6-6 score.
The Wolverines converted the old-fashioned three-point play coming out of the break, while Spurgin turned in another layup to put SUU up 8-7 with 15:07 to go. Following a three-pointer from Utah Valley, Allen sank a jumper with 14:40 on the clock to tie the contest again at 10-10.
UVU responded with a 4-0 burst to take a 14-10 lead before Spurgin turned in another layup to cut the lead to 14-12 with 13:16 to go. The Wolverines then drained another trifecta to take a 17-12 advantage into the next media timeout with 11:43 on the clock.
Utah Valley sank a pair from the charity stripe coming out of the timeout to take a 19-12 lead before Harrison Butler countered with a pair of made free throws of his own to shave the gap to 19-14 at the 11:27 mark.
The Wolverines split a pair of free throws before Dee Barnes drove the lane and banked a shot in as SUU moved to within 20-16 with 10:50 on the clock. Parsa Fallah pushed it to a 4-0 run for the 'Birds as they closed to within 20-18 at the 10:10 mark.
After an old-fashioned three-point play from UVU, Barnes drained a deep trifecta to pull SUU back to within 23-21 with 9:18 to go. The Wolverines then made four straight free throws to extend their lead to 27-21 heading into a media timeout with 7:26 on the clock.
Southern Utah answered out of the break as Tevian Jones drilled a trey to move SUU to within 27-24 with 7:14 to go. The Wolverines stretched their lead back to seven before Spurgin split a pair at the line to cut the gap to 31-25 with 6:01 on the clock.
Utah Valley stretched its lead to double digits, 35-25, with 4:51 before Spurgin drove the lane again and converted both from the charity stripe to pull back to within 35-27 with 4:36 to go. UVU replied with another trey to grab a 38-27 lead heading into another media timeout with 3:59 on the clock.
Martel Williams put back a missed SUU three-pointer to cut the lead to 40-29 with 3:13 to go. After another 4-0 UVU run, Allen picked off a pass en route to a dunk with 1:39 to close to within 44-31. With UVU up 46-31, Jones managed to draw a foul and then canned a pair from the charity stripe as the 'Birds pulled to within 46-33 with 36 seconds on the clock. UVU sank a final jumper to grab a 48-33 lead heading into halftime.
Second Half
Tevian Jones started the second half quickly with a jumper to cut the advantage to 48-35 with 19:13 to go. Following a UVU layup, Jason Spurgin scored a layup of his own as the 'Birds moved to within 50-37 with 18:40 on the clock.
Maizen Fausett then drained a trifecta as part of a 5-0 run to quickly cut the lead to 50-40 with 18:03 to go. Spurgin split a pair at the charity stripe as SUU closed to within 50-41 at the 17:39 mark. Spurgin remained aggressive, drawing another foul down low, as he went 1-for-2 at the line as the 'Birds moved within 50-42 with 16:53 on the clock.
Following multiple missed point-blank shots by Utah Valley, Drake Allen extended the streak to 10-0 with a trifecta to cut the deficit to 50-45 with 15:55 to go. Jones answered with a three-pointer of his own as the Thunderbird run moved to 13-0 and SUU closed to within 50-48 at the 15:00 mark. That induced a Utah Valley timeout.
The timeout proved fruitful for the Wolverines with a three-pointer out of the break to push their lead back to 53-48 with 14:38 to go. Allen countered with a reverse layup at the 13:36 mark to pull SUU within 53-50 with 13:36 on the clock.
After four consecutive made free throws by UVU, Allen raced his way to a layup to pull SUU to within 57-52 with 12:31 to go. Fausett responded to a Utah Valley dunk with a put-back tip-in as the 'Birds closed to within 59-54 with 11:18 on the clock heading into a media timeout.
With UVU up 62-54 following three straight free throws, Cameron Healy drained a three-pointer to cut the deficit to 62-57 with 9:30 on the clock. Spurgin followed a UVU turnover with a thunderous dunk at the 8:56 mark to pull to within 62-59, forcing another Utah Valley timeout.
Utah Valley responded with a 5-0 run out of the break to find some breathing room with a 67-59 lead with 7:52 on the clock. Jones responded with a pair of free throws with 7:38 to go as the 'Birds cut the gap to 67-61.
With UVU up 68-61 thanks to a made free throw, Healy sank a jumper to pull the 'Birds to within 68-63 with 5:16 on the clock. After a UVU jumper, Jones connected on a pair of free throws to cut the gap to 70-65. UVU went on another 5-0 run to extend the lead back to 75-65 with 4:17 to go before Spurgin scored a layup as SUU moved to within 75-67 with 3:51 on the clock.
After the game came to a screeching halt following replay reviews as Utah Valley led 80-68, Allen drained a deep trifecta to chop the deficit to 80-71 with 1:54 on the clock.
Utah Valley, however, closed the door down the stretch at the line to win, 90-83
OPPONENT
UTAH TECH TRAILBLAZERS (11-15, 3-10 WAC)
Utah Tech currently owns an 11-15 record with a 3-10 mark in WAC play.
UTU scores 75.3 points per contest while opponents score 73.4 points a game for a paltry 1.9-point average scoring margin.
Three Trailblazers score in double digits with Cameron Gooden (16.1), Isaiah Pope (12.5) and Tanner Christensen (10.0) all clearing 10 points a game.
Christensen paces the team in rebounds with 7.0, while Gooden has the most assists with 3.6 per game.
HISTORY
Southern Utah is 2-2 against Utah Tech since first competing against the Trailblazers with an 85-78 win on Dec. 17, 2020. SUU will be looking to avenge an 86-79 loss on Feb. 4 of this year.
FOLLOW US
Stay up to date during the 2022-23 Southern Utah Men's Basketball season by following @SUUBasketball on Twitter and Instagram and by liking the Southern Utah Basketball page on Facebook.
TICKETS
Head on over to our online ticket store (https://www.ticketreturn.com/prod2new/team.asp?SponsorID=16319) to purchase season, package and single-game tickets!
