Southern Utah University’s men’s basketball team will attempt to complete a season sweep of Abilene Christian University on Saturday, February 21. The game is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. at Moody Coliseum in Abilene, Texas and will be broadcast on ESPN+.
The Thunderbirds have already defeated the Wildcats twice this season. On January 17, Southern Utah won 74-52 in Cedar City with Jaiden Feroah and Isaiah Cottrell both recording double-doubles. In their most recent matchup on January 31 in Abilene, Elijah Duval led the Thunderbirds to a narrow 79-76 victory by scoring 27 points and collecting seven rebounds.
Southern Utah enters the contest with a record of 9-18 overall and 5-9 in Western Athletic Conference play. The team is coming off a loss to Tarleton State, despite holding an early lead by as much as 11 points before trailing by ten in the second half. Elijah Duval continues to lead SUU with an average of 14.3 points per game after his recent performance where he scored a game-high 23 points along with seven rebounds and three assists.
Five Thunderbirds are averaging over nine points per game: Duval (14.3), Jaiden Feroah (13.2), Tanner Hayhurst (9.9), Isaiah Cottrell (9.2), and Dylan Jones (9.1). While Southern Utah has been efficient offensively, they have struggled defensively to keep opponents under 75 points.
Abilene Christian holds a record of 12-14 overall and is currently at 4-9 in conference play following an overtime loss to Tarleton State by a score of 65-62. Bradyn Hubbard leads ACU with an average of 16 points per game on shooting splits of .400 from the field, .320 from three-point range, and .780 from the free throw line; no other player on the team averages double figures in scoring.
Rich Smith is second for ACU at 9.6 points per game while also leading the team with 118 assists and recording 46 steals this season. Cbo Newton has increased his contributions recently, averaging just over nine points per contest while shooting nearly one-third from beyond the arc.
Defensively, ACU forces nearly seventeen turnovers per game and averages just under ten steals each outing.
Tickets for Saturday’s matchup are available through tbirdtickets.com.
