CEDAR CITY, Utah — Sam Houston fought to the final buzzer but Southern Utah made a clutch shot when it counted the most to come away with a 60-55 victory at the America First Event Center on Saturday.
The Thunderbirds (9-7 overall, 5-0 WAC) grabbed their biggest lead of the game at 54-42 with 5:45 left in the fourth quarter. That's when the Bearkats (6-9, 2-3) went on a run.
Chyna Allen started it with a layup and
Mikayla Woods turned a steal into a layup.
Sydnee Kemp then got a steal and scored to cut the advantage to 54-47.
Madelyn Batista knocked down a jumper before Southern Utah finally scored.
Kaylee Jefferson followed with a 3-pointer to make it a two-possession game at 56-52.
The Thunderbirds answered with a 3, but Jefferson connected again from long range to make it 58-55 with 30 seconds left in the game. Southern Utah was able to run out the clock and scored with two seconds left to seal it.
Kemp led the Bearkats with 17 points, Batista finished with 13 points and seven rebounds. Jefferson had 10 points and five boards, and
Adriana Djokovic and Allen finished with six and five points respectively.
Sam Houston stays on the road to face Tarleton on Jan. 19.
