SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA -- The Thunderbirds played the first of back-to-back games in San Diego and were victorious on day one. Outlasting the Toreros of San Diego, 72-67. 

Head Coach Rob Jeter said

"We had a pretty sloppy first half, way too many turnovers. But we tightened things up in the second and came away with a good win. There are a few things we need to get better at, but we are competing every time on the floor, and that is a good sign."

Top T-Birds

• Jamir Simpson once again led the Thunderbirds in scoring. Finishing with 20 points on 5-14 from the field and 3-5 from three. He also had five rebounds, two assists, and two steals. 
• Dominique Ford scored 17 points on 4-11 from three. 
• Brock Felder pulled down a career-high 12 rebounds in the win. 
• Tavi Jackson dished a career-high seven assists to go along with 10 points and four rebounds.

Game Recap

SUU had the largest lead of the first half, but only by six points. Neither team was able to put together any long scoring runs. Simpson scored 10 for the Thunderbirds, and Kjay Bradley Jr. scored 10 for the Toreros in the first half. Thunderbirds would ultimately head into halftime with a 32-30 lead.

The second half started with more of the same, with teams trading baskets and defensive stops. Until the 15:06 mark when Dominique Ford hit back-to-back three-pointers to make the lead 45-37 and then Jamir Simpson wanted in on the action and cashed in a three-ball of his own to push the lead to 11, and finally, Tavi Jackson made it a 12-0 run with another triple, and within 90 seconds of game time, the Thunderbirds had a 14-point lead, and never gave it up. 

The Toreros would cut the lead to four on a four-point play from Bradley Jr. with 30 seconds left, but that was as close as it got, and the Thunderbirds started the MTE with a win. 

HIGHLIGHTS

Up Next

The Thunderbirds will have one night's rest before returning to action against the Vandals of Idaho on Saturday, November 22, at 3:00 p.m. in San Diego.

The game will not be streamed live but will have live stats broadcasting. 

Tickets

Season tickets, mini packages, and single-game tickets are now available! Get yours today by visiting tbirdtickets.com

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