STEPHENVILLE, TEXAS -- The SUU Men's Basketball team led by as many as 11 in the first half, and trailed by as many as 10 in the second half, but ultimately came up short at Tarleton State, losing 74-78.

Head Coach Rob Jeter said

"We know exactly who that team is, and we still can't take care of the basketball. We know they are going to play extremely physical and we did not match that physicality."

Top T-Birds

• Elijah Duval was called a lot in the contest, and he delivered. Scoring 23 points, grabbing seven rebounds, and dishing three assists.
• Senior forward Isaiah Cottrell struggled a bit from the field, but was still dominant on the offensive and defensive glass. Cottrell logged 13 points and corralled a career-high 16 rebounds, including seven offensive. He also had a block and a steal.
• Tanner Hayhurst played the entire 40 minutes, and scored 11 points on 2-3 from deep, grabbed three rebounds and dished four assists.

HIGHLIGHTS

Game Recap

The T-Birds were on fire to start the game. Making their first four shots from the field that included three three-pointers. 

The Thunderbirds got out to a 23-12 lead with just over 12 minutes left in the first half, but then the tide switched.

Over the final eight minutes of the first half, the Texans put together a 20-4 run. SUU was 1-11 from the field in the stretch.

The Texans took an eight-point lead into the halftime break.

SUU put together a quality 10-4 run to start the second half, cutting the deficit to just two points, but again, TSU responded.

The teams exchanged baskets over the next eight minutes until the Texans went on a 6-1 run and led by 10 points with 7:22 remaining.

SUU was able to score the basketball, but stringing together multiple stops was the challenge.

The lead reached double figures again with just under five minutes to play, and then Jaiden Feroah and Isaiah Cottrell hit back-to-back three-pointers that suddenly made it a four-point ballgame.

But again, Tarleton responded with a 5-0 run, and with under two minutes to play, the Texans led by nine.

Missed free throws from the Texans down the stretch gave the T-Birds the chance to make it a three-point game after a couple of Duval free throws, but time ran out on the T-Birds' comeback attempt.

Statistical Recap

SUU shot just 39% from the field on the game, but a scorching 52% from three. As Tarleton State always does, the Texans forced 15 SUU turnovers that led to 18 points.

The most significant statistical difference was points in the paint. TSU scored 60 of its 78 points in the paint, compared to just 18 paint points for the Thunderbirds.

Up Next

SUU will play one final road game in the 2025-26 season at Abilene Christian on Saturday, February 21. The game will tipoff at 2:00 p.m.

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