The Dixie State men's basketball team fell in heartbreaking fashion to San Francisco State Saturday, losing a 10-point lead in the final five minutes and dropping a 79-75 decision to the Gators.
 
The Storm (1-3) looked to bounce back from a rough outing the night before and stayed with the Gators throughout the first half, taking a seven-point lead at 27-20 after senior forward Mark Ogden recorded a thunderous two-handed dunk with 5:39 remaining in the half.

SFSU responded with a 13-4 run and looked to take a 33-31 lead into the halftime break, but senior guard Mason Sawyer (West Jordan, Utah/West Jordan HS) had other plans. Sawyer took a pass from sophomore guard Trevor Hill (Sandy, Utah/Alta HS), dribbled to the left wing and drilled a trey as time expired in the first half to give the Storm a 34-33 lead at the break.

DSU and SFSU traded baskets through the first eight minutes of the second half and neither team led by more than three points throughout the eight-minute span. Sophomore guard Brandon Simister (St. George, Utah/Desert Hills HS) provided the breakthrough basket with 11:14 remaining in the game, burying a trey that sparked a run that saw the Storm push the lead to 10 points at 66-56. With five minutes remaining, DSU seemed poised to wrap up the win.

However, the Gators had other plans, rattling off a 15-2 run that included three 3-pointers over the next two and half minutes. SFSU took the lead at 71-68 with 2:06 to play and held off DSU the rest of the way for the 79-75 victory.

"We challenge our guys every day to get better," Head Coach Jon Judkins said. "I thought tonight we did play better. We just need to learn how to finish games. Give San Francisco State credit, they crashed the boards late and hit big-time shots. Our effort was there, we just didn't make plays late in the game that we should have."

Dixie State shot 47 percent (24-of-51) from the field, 29 percent (5-of-17) from behind the 3-point line, and 81 percent (22-of-27) from the free throw line. Ogden led four DSU players in double figures, finishing with a season-high 16 points and six rebounds, while Sawyer finished 13 points and Hill finished with 11 points.

Simister was named to the Ron Logsdon Basketball Classic All-Tournament Team, finishing the night with 14 points and two assists. Through two games in Rohnert Park, Simister totaled 33 points and connected on 6-of-12 3-pointers in 56 minutes of play.

The Storm return to action next week in Billings, Mont., with games against Alaska Fairbanks on Friday and Montana State-Billings on Saturday.