ARLINGTON, Texas - The Southern Utah University women's basketball team opened their game against a talented University of Texas Arlington Mavericks team with a great first quarter but couldn't hold on, losing the Jan. 11 matchup 78-54 in Arlington. Southern Utah dropped to 0-3 in the WAC and 2-14 overall.
Head Coach Tracy Mason Said:
"I think we started the game better. We have to have more resiliency when things get hard. We also have to finish shots and turn the ball over way less than we are right now. "
Top T-Birds
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Daylani Ballena led the scoring with 11 points, chipping in three assists.
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Leading the team in rebounding, Lexi Bull brought down nine boards.
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Samantha Johnston scored nine points on three first-half triples.
Game Recap
First Half
The Thunderbirds burst out to a strong start, with Johnston and Ballena draining early threes. Closing out the first quarter, Jaeden Brown scored back-to-back layups to put SUU up 14-12.
While Southern Utah continued to excel offensively, strong scoring from UTA gave them a lead for most of the second quarter. Two more threes from Johnston and two layups from Sierra Chambers kept the Thunderbirds in range, with the Mavericks leading 42-32 at halftime.
Second Half
UTA continued to pull away in the third quarter. Despite bench points from freshmen Kortney Doman and Chambers, the Mavericks led 67-45 with one quarter to go.
The fourth quarter offered valuable minutes to Mason's bench, with scores from freshmen Olivia Malafu and Bella Hasan leading Southern Utah's push for ten more points before the final buzzer.
Highlights
Up Next
The Thunderbirds will return home to face Seattle University on Saturday, Jan. 18, at 2:00 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
Tickets
Season tickets, mini packages, and single-game tickets are now available! Get yours today by visiting tbirdtickets.com.
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