CORVALLIS, OREGON -- The SUU Men's basketball team trailed by as many as 22 points in the first half and ultimately battled back to make it a single-digit deficit, but couldn't come up with enough stops and fell to the Beavers 81-70.

Head Coach Rob Jeter said

"We can't put ourselves in that big of a hole to start the game. I am proud of the way the guys battled and competed, but we have to play that way for 40 minutes if we want to be successful."

Top T-Birds

• Jaiden Feroah had himself a career-high night, stuffing the stat sheet with 27 points (career-high), four rebounds, five assists (career-high), one block, and four steals.
• Elijah Duval scored 11 points, led the team with six rebounds, dished four assists, and added a steal.
• Tanner Hayhurst also scored 11 points to go along with two rebounds, three assists, and one steal.

HIGHLIGHTS

Game Recap

The Thunderbirds have gotten off to slow starts many times this season, and that trend continued early on in the first half against Oregon State.

OSU jumped out to a 20-10 lead in the first eight minutes of action. The Thunderbirds responded with a 6-0 run of their own, and the Beavers answered immediately.

After cutting the lead to four points, the Beavers responded by going on a 16-2 run that was aided by three-straight three-pointers. And with five and a half minutes remaining in the first half, Oregon State led 36-18.

Another three-pointer from Oregon State pushed the lead to 22 points, but the Thunderbirds ended the half on a 7-0 run and went into the break trailing 45-30.

The second half was a lot of back and forth, and the Thunderbirds were finally able to force some missed three-point attempts. OSU was just 1-9 from deep in the second half compared to 7-10 in the first half.

With nine minutes remaining in the game, the Beavers had a 14-point lead. The Thunderbirds went on a 6-1 run to make it just a nine-point game. OSU was able to score a couple of buckets after that, but a deep three-pointer from Feroah, followed by two made free throws from Feroah, and the T-Birds had the deficit at eight with four minutes remaining.

A key offensive rebound from the Beavers and made free throws down the stretch saw the game come to a close at 81-70.

Statistical Recap

The Thunderbirds finished the game with 45/30/64 percent shooting splits. SUU was just 2-10 from deep in the first half, and only three Thunderbirds made a deep ball.

Jaiden Feroah was fairly efficient on the night, scoring a career-high 27 points on 8-15 from the field and 5-9 from three. The five assists are also a new career-high for Feroah. He was 6-6 from the free-throw line, which means he has now made his last 23 free-throw attempts. He hasn't missed a free-throw since the second game of the season when the Thunderbirds hosted UTRGV. Feroah is shooting 97% from the free-throw line.

SUU had nine turnovers in the first half, and just four in the second 20 minutes of play. They continued to distribute the ball well, racking up 18 assists on 27 made field goals.

Up Next

The Thundebirds will continue their brutal non-conference schedule next Saturday, heading to Seattle, Washington, on December 13 to take on the University of Washington at 4:00 p.m.

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