CEDAR CITY, Utah – Southern Utah tied the school scoring record, set new program marks for assists and margin of victory, and beat Bethesda 143-49 on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2026, at the America First Event Center.
The Thunderbirds (3-0) matched the 143 points they scored against Westminster on Feb. 17, 1970 (143-106). Their 43 assists broke the school record of 36, set against New Mexico Highlands in 1980-81 and matched against South Alabama in 1994-95. The 94-point margin broke the record of 86 from a 126-40 win against West Coast Baptist on Nov. 29, 2019.
DJ Smith's dunk off a Jalik Nicholls feed with 39 seconds left produced all three at once: the 143rd point, the 43rd assist and a 96-point lead, the largest of the night. It also gave the freshman his first career double-double, 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Anthony Breland led seven double-figure scorers with 20 points, his most as a Thunderbird. Freshman DeZhon Hall scored a career-high 17 without missing a shot, Jalik Nicholls had 13, Jaiden Feroah 12, and Rashaad Davis and Jajuan Nicholls 11 apiece. All 15 Thunderbirds scored, and none played more than 15 minutes.
School Records
- 143 points (ties school record): Matches 143 against Westminster on Feb. 17, 1970 (143-106). It is the most since at least 2000-01, topping the 134 SUU scored against West Coast Baptist on Monday (134-69).
- 43 assists (new school record): Breaks 36, set against New Mexico Highlands in 1980-81 and matched against South Alabama in 1994-95. The most since at least 2000-01 had been 33 against University of the Southwest on Nov. 19, 2009 (111-51).
- 94-point margin (new school record): Breaks 86 from the 126-40 win against West Coast Baptist on Nov. 29, 2019. SUU led by as many as 96.
Near-Records and Top-10 Marks
- 18 3-pointers: Third-most in school history, behind 23 against West Coast Baptist on Dec. 1, 2025 (124-59) and 20 against NMSU on Jan. 19, 2023 (111-76).
- 54 field goals: Second-most since at least 2000-01, behind the 56 against West Coast Baptist on Monday. The school record is 58 against South Alabama on Dec. 10, 1994 (140-72).
- 66 rebounds: Second-most since at least 2000-01, behind 72 against Bethesda on Nov. 9, 2021 (116-74).
- Plus-49 on the glass (66-17): The largest rebounding margin since at least 2000-01, topping plus-39 against Bethesda on Nov. 11, 2025 (118-60).
- 73 first-half points: The most in a first half since at least 2000-01, topping 71 against West Coast Baptist on Monday. Before this season, the high was 68 against Bethesda on Nov. 14, 2022 (126-67).
- 49-point halftime lead (73-24): The largest since at least 2000-01, topping 37 against West Coast Baptist on Nov. 29, 2019.
- 70 second-half points: Second-most after halftime since at least 2000-01. SUU scored 80 after halftime against Montana State on March 7, 2017 (109-105), but that total included three overtimes.
- 101 bench points: The most since bench scoring began appearing in SUU box scores in 2019-20, topping 85 against West Coast Baptist on Monday. The Thunderbirds' reserves outscored Bethesda by 52 on their own.
- 43 assists, five turnovers: The plus-38 assist-to-turnover margin is the best since at least 2000-01, topping plus-24 (30 assists, six turnovers) against West Coast Baptist on Monday. The five turnovers are SUU's fewest since it had three against Middle Tennessee on Dec. 22, 2023 (69-63).
- 24.2 percent opponent shooting (15 of 62): Third-lowest by an SUU opponent since at least 2000-01, behind West Coast Baptist (22.6 percent) on Nov. 29, 2019, and Abilene Christian (23.8 percent) on Jan. 17, 2026 (74-52).
- 17 opponent rebounds: Tied for the second-fewest since at least 2000-01, matching West Coast Baptist on Nov. 29, 2019, and Abilene Christian on Jan. 31, 2026. UMKC had 14 on Dec. 30, 2011 (91-77).
- 70-10 in the paint: Bethesda's 10 paint points tie the fewest by an SUU opponent since 2019-20, matching Idaho State on Jan. 22, 2022 (86-74). SUU's 70 are third-most in that span, behind 98 against West Coast Baptist on Monday and 82 against Bethesda on Nov. 14, 2022.
- 15 scorers: Ties the most Thunderbirds to score in a game since at least 2000-01, matching St. Katherine on Dec. 6, 2014 (92-45) and Bethesda on Nov. 12, 2024 (107-54).
- Seven double-figure scorers: Tied for second-most since at least 2000-01, behind the nine against West Coast Baptist on Monday. The last time SUU had seven was against West Coast Baptist on Dec. 1, 2025.
- No one over 15 minutes: Breland's 15 minutes led the team, the lowest team-high minutes total since at least 2000-01. The previous low was 17, against St. Katherine on Dec. 6, 2014, and against Grace (Calif.) on Thursday.
Season Marks
- 374 points through three games: The most in a season's first three games since at least 2000-01, topping 289 in 2022-23 (81 against New Mexico, 117 against La Verne and 91 against St. Katherine).
- Three straight 95-point games: A first since at least 2000-01. SUU has scored 134, 97 and 143.
- Two 130-point games in six days: Before this season, SUU had not scored 130 in a game since at least 2000-01 (the high was 126, twice).
- Three straight 40-point wins: The first since Nov. 10-14, 2022, when SUU beat La Verne (117-55), St. Katherine (91-48) and Bethesda (126-67).
- 3-0 start: The third since at least 2000-01, joining 2018-19 and 2024-25. The 2024-25 team also got its third win against Bethesda (107-54).
Career Highs
- Breland: 20 points, five 3-pointers and seven field goals, all his highs as a Thunderbird (previous: 15 points, three 3-pointers and six field goals against Grace).
- Hall: A career-high 17 points (previous 11) on 5-of-5 shooting, 1 of 1 from 3-point range and 6 of 6 at the line. The 3-pointer was the first of his college career, and he tied his career highs in field goals (five) and free throws (six).
- Smith: First career double-double (10 points, 10 rebounds), with a career-high 10 rebounds (previous eight) and four offensive rebounds, plus two blocks.
- Jalik Nicholls: 13 points, three 3-pointers, five field goals, four rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block, all his highs as a Thunderbird.
- Davis: A career-high 11 points (previous seven) and a career-high-tying six assists, with four field goals and two free throws, also career highs.
- Jordan Brown: Career highs of eight rebounds (previous four), six assists (previous two) and two 3-pointers, in 13 minutes.
- Cale Barclay: A career-high seven assists (previous five) and a career-high-tying three steals, with no turnovers.
- Mikhail Protsenko: A career-high three blocks, plus career highs in rebounds (three) and minutes (14).
- Juok Riak: Four offensive rebounds and two free throws, both his highs as a Thunderbird.
- Brayden Johnson: Five points and two steals, both his highs as a Thunderbird.
Game Flow
A fast start
Feroah's steal set up Barclay's layup 48 seconds in, and Barclay's steal led to a Jajuan Nicholls fast-break dunk for a 4-0 lead. Alex Pagan's 3-pointer pulled Bethesda within 8-6 at 17:15, the closest the Lion Angels got the rest of the night.
The first 12-0 run
Feroah hit a 3-pointer, Dylan Sanders scored a fast-break layup, Chase Degraffenried hit a 3-pointer and Sanders scored on another fast break off a Barclay steal. Barclay's layup at 15:06 capped a 12-0 run for a 20-6 lead.
Steals become dunks
Degraffenried's layup started a 10-0 run. Sanders dunked off a Degraffenried steal, Jajuan Nicholls turned a Barclay steal into a three-point play, and Hall made three free throws at 11:50 for a 35-12 lead.
The bench takes over
Davis assisted on a Hall layup, a Brown 3-pointer and a Protsenko dunk, then scored four points himself for a 46-16 lead at 8:27. Hall's 3-pointer at 6:41 made it 51-19.
Closing the half on a 13-0 run
Breland hit a 3-pointer at 4:22, set up a Jalik Nicholls 3-pointer and hit another off a Johnson assist. Jalik Nicholls finished the run with a steal and a dunk at 2:16 for a 68-22 lead. Johnson's 3-pointer and a Jalik Nicholls layup at 0:50 made it 73-24 at halftime. SUU shot 61.9 percent (26 of 42) in the half, made 9 of 20 3-pointers and had 19 assists with two turnovers. Bethesda shot 23.3 percent (7 of 30).
Barclay feeds the bigs
Barclay assisted on three baskets in the first 1:48 of the second half, two Jajuan Nicholls dunks and a Feroah layup, and Jajuan Nicholls' layup at 16:36 made it 81-29.
Breland's burst
Riak scored on a layup and a 3-pointer to start a 14-0 run. Breland then scored 11 straight SUU points in 86 seconds: a 3-pointer at 10:43 for the 100th point, another at 10:27, a fast-break dunk at 9:50 after a Protsenko steal and a 3-pointer at 9:17 for a 109-38 lead. Brown assisted on the first three.
The record chase
Hall's free throws at 6:21 started a 19-0 run. Smith tipped one in and dunked off a Jalik Nicholls steal, and Jalik Nicholls' assist on that dunk at 5:18 was SUU's 36th, tying the school record. Smith returned the favor 41 seconds later, feeding Jalik Nicholls for a 3-pointer at 4:37 and assist No. 37. Hall's three-point play made it 129-45, Smith's jumper at 3:49 pushed the lead to 86, and Hall's layup at 3:12 made it 133-45, the first lead larger than the old record margin. Zeplin Kidd's 3-pointer at 2:40 made it 136-45 and passed Monday's 134.
The final points
Jalik Nicholls hit a 3-pointer at 1:31 off a Kidd assist. Johnson's steal led to a Hall dunk at 1:12, and Smith's dunk at 0:39 made it 143-47. Zeke Bennett's layup with 12 seconds left set the final.
Thunderbird Notes
- Unselfish to the end: SUU assisted on 43 of its 54 field goals (79.6 percent). Barclay had seven assists, Davis and Brown six each and Breland four. Eleven Thunderbirds had at least two assists.
- Shooting: SUU shot 63.5 percent (54 of 85) from the field, 50.0 percent (18 of 36) from 3-point range and 85.0 percent (17 of 20) at the line.
- Owning every phase: The Thunderbirds held edges of 30-1 in fast-break points, 25-1 in points off turnovers and 19-5 in second-chance points. They forced 12 turnovers and had 11 steals, with Barclay getting three.
- Defense: SUU blocked seven shots, three by Protsenko and two by Smith. Bethesda made 6 of 26 shots inside the arc.
- Perfect so far: Protsenko went 2 of 2 and is 11 of 11 from the field this season. Barclay made his first 11 shots of the season before missing a 3-pointer early in the second half; he is 11 of 12 with 13 assists and no turnovers. Jajuan Nicholls went 5 of 5 and is 18 of 21 (85.7 percent).
- Breland leads the way: Breland leads SUU with 47 points in three games (15.7 per game) and has made 8 of 16 3-pointers.
- Hall: The freshman has 38 points in three games on 12-of-18 shooting and 13 of 15 at the line. He scored nine of his 17 in the last 6:21.
- Feroah: The graduate forward has 56 career blocks at SUU and needs 12 more to pass Cal Hanks (67) for 10th on the school's career list.
- Series: SUU is 9-0 against Bethesda since at least 2000-01, all in Cedar City, and has outscored the Lion Angels 1,022-583. The previous largest margin in the series was 59 (126-67) on Nov. 14, 2022.
Postgame Interview
Next Up
Southern Utah opens a six-game road trip at High Point on Thursday, Nov. 12, at 5 p.m. MT. It is the first meeting between the schools since at least 2000-01. The Thunderbirds then play at Wake Forest on Saturday, Nov. 14, at 2 p.m. MT before heading to Austin to take on the Texas Longhorns on Thursday, Nov. 19, at 6 p.m. MT. SUU then travels to Miami for the Florida International multi-team event Nov. 23-25.
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