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Utah Tech University Athletics

Brandon Simister
Stan Plewe/Utah Tech Athletics
64
Dixie State DX-MBB 1-2
72
Winner Sonoma State SSU 3-1
Dixie State DX-MBB
1-2
64
Final
72
Sonoma State SSU
3-1
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Dixie State DX-MBB 13 51 64
Sonoma State SSU 29 43 72

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | by DSU Athletic Media Relations

Storm Falls in Road Opener at Sonoma State

Late rally comes up just short


A long first-half scoring drought, coupled with a hot-shooting opponent, spelled doom for Dixie State as the Storm dropped their road opener at Sonoma State, 72-64, Friday night in Rohnert Park, Calif. The game was the nightcap of the opening night of the SSU-hosted Ron Logsdon Classic.

Both teams struggled to get anything going offensively in the earlier going as both teams combined for just 11 points through the first eight minutes of the game. DSU (1-2) had an early 5-2 lead on two quick buckets from senior Mark Ogden Jr. (Spring Valley, Calif./Steele Canyon HS) and Trevor Hill (Sandy, Utah/Alta HS) in the game's first minute. However after a Josh Fuller (Rexburg, Idaho/Madison HS) free throw at the 16:13 mark of the stanza, the Storm went ice cold from the field as DSU went over 11 minutes without a point before Fuller hit a jumper to break the drought.

Meanwhile, the Seawolves (3-1) took advantage of the Storm dry spell by scoring 16-unanswered points to lead 18-5 before the Fuller basket. DSU would get to as close as 10 points at 20-10 with 3:18 left before halftime on a Ogden Jr. offensive board and put back, but the Seawolves closed the half with a 9-3 run to take a 29-13 lead into the locker room.

Dixie State tried to battle back, getting as close as 14 points in the early moments of the second half. However Sonoma came out of the break on fire, hitting on seven of its first 10 shots of the frame with four 3-pointers, en route to its biggest lead of the game at 62-36 with 7:47 to play.

The Storm finally shook off the doldrums and mounted a furious rally, outscoring the Seawolves 26-5 over the next six minutes of play, including 20-straight points over a span of three-plus minutes, to cut the deficit to five at 67-62 with 1:22 to play.

Hill and sophomore Brandon Simister (St. George, Utah/Desert Hills HS) combined for 24 of DSU's 26 points during the run, with Hill scoring eight-straight to start the rally. Simister hit three clutch 3-pointers, but it was his lay-in off a Hill assist that made it a two-possession game with 82 ticks on the clock.

DSU had a chance to get to within a basket after Simister steal, but the Storm could not take advantage. Sonoma then hit a pair of free throws and converted a three-point play to salt away the victory.

"We've got to get everybody playing better than we are, " Head Coach Jon Judkins said. "It's like we're waiting for somebody else to do it. We've got to do it as a team. If we don't play together it's going to make for a long night. You've got to give Sonoma State a lot of credit. They played really hard and got after us."

Simister led all scorers with a career-high 19 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including 4-of-6 from beyond the arc, while Hill finished with 16 points. Despite the late rally, DSU was done in by 13 first-half turnovers (17 for the game), while shooting just 20% (5-of-25) in the frame.

Dixie State wound up hitting on 35.6 percent from the floor (21-of-59), but was just 5-of-16 (.313) from the perimeter. The Storm also struggled from the line, connecting of 17-of-32 (.531) from the charity stripe. DSU outrebounded the Seawolves, 41-34, including a 21-5 edge on the offensive end, with Fuller pulling down a game-high 12 boards and Ogden Jr. finishing with 10 caroms.

Sonoma State hit 12 3-pointers on the night (12-of-22 .545) and shot 49.1% from the floor (26-of-53). David Ahern led three Seawolves in double figures with 16 points.
 
In the other game on Friday, San Francisco State defeated PacWest member Academy of Art, 72-53. Dixie State will close out play at the Classic Saturday with a match-up vs. SFSU at 5:30 p.m (PT).
 
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