CEDAR CITY, Utah - Daylani Ballena scored a career-high 26 points as the Southern Utah University women's basketball team fell to Stephen F. Austin 81-74 on Thursday night at the America First Event Center. The Thunderbirds move to 7-21 on the season and 5-14 in Western Athletic Conference play, while the Ladyjacks improve to 20-10 overall and 14-5 in WAC play.
HEAD COACH TRACY MASON SAYS
"Obviously disappointed with the outcome. I thought we played hard tonight. We went up by quite a bit in the first half, we were shooting the ball really well and had lots of momentum. We didn't have a great second half shooting and we got in foul trouble."
Link to Full Post-Game Interview
T-BIRD TIDBITS
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Daylani Ballena paced the 'Birds with 26 points, five rebounds, and four assists.
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Samantha Johnston added 14 points, four rebounds, four assists, and a team-high four blocks.
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Ava Uhrich notched her seventh double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
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Shiho Isono was the fourth T-Bird to reach double figure scoring, recording 11 points in 23 minutes off the bench.
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Southern Utah shot the ball efficiently from beyond the arc, knocking down a season-high 11 three pointers.
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The Thunderbirds won the rebounding battle 39-37.
GAME RECAP
First Half
After Stephen F. Austin connected on a jumper on the opening possession, Ava Uhrich and Samantha Johnston knocked down three pointers on back-to-back possessions to push SUU in front 6-2 with 8:23 on the clock. The two squads traded baskets for the next several minutes, as the Thunderbirds led 16-10 midway through the first quarter. Then, Southern Utah caught fire, ending the quarter with a 14-0 burst, highlighted by a pair of three pointers by Ballena. The Thunderbirds connected on eight of their nine attempts from behind the arc in the period as they held a 30-10 advantage at the end of the first.
The Thunderbirds stayed hot to begin the second quarter, using a 16-10 push to go up 46-20 with 3:31 left in the half. The Ladyjacks scored the next nine points as Southern Utah took a 46-29 lead at the break.
Second Half
Ballena led the 'Birds attack with six points in the third quarter. SFA outscored Southern Utah 25-12 in the period to cut the Thunderbirds lead to 58-54 heading into the final frame.
The two squads battled to begin the fourth period, as the score was tied at 66-66 with 5:05 left in the game. However, the Ladyjacks would go on to claim a 81-74 victory.
NOTABLE PLAYS
UP NEXT
The Thunderbirds will host UTRGV in the regular season finale on Senior Day on Saturday, Mar. 9. The game is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. MT.
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