CEDAR CITY, Utah – The Idaho men's basketball team wasn't able to bounce back from hot shooting by the Southern Utah offense in the first half, as the Vandals fell to SUU 59-75 on Thursday night at the America First Event Center.

"The fact that we somehow got them to shoot 45 (percent) and 29 (percent) from the field after them (Southern Utah) making 11 out of 12 baskets shows the best of it - as far as what we did throughout the rest of the game and how bad it was to start," Head Coach Zac Claus said. "We simply didn't have the competitive juice. We didn't have the toughness to get stops when we needed to early. It was great to see our guys rebound and get back and get it under 10. We took a couple of right hooks and an uppercut in the first round and it was hard to come back from that."

Three Vandals scored in double figures on the night, including a team-high 17 points from Mikey Dixon. Junior guard Trevante Anderson and Rashad Smith both pitched in 11 points each to help lead the offense.

The Thunderbirds got off to a hot start to begin action, making their first 11 of 12 shots to hold an early 26-11 lead with 12:07 remaining. SUU went up by as many as 18 at one point but the Vandals went on an 8-4 run to end the half down, 42-28.  

Idaho shot 40 percent from the field and went a perfect 5 for 5 from the foul line. Dixon scored 10 of his 17 points in the opening 20 minutes.

Anderson gave the Vandals hope after starting an 8-0 run that included a driving layup inside and a three from behind the arc. Nolan Bertain finished off the run with a three of his own to cut the deficit to seven points (48-41) with 13:40 left to go in the second period. That would be the closest the Vandals could come, as Southern Utah would close out the Vandals, 75-59.  

The Vandals held Southern Utah to 36 percent shooting that included a 1 for 10 mark from behind the arc in the second half.

Idaho falls to 5-17 (2-10 BSC) on the season while Southern Utah moves to 14-6 (8-2 BSC) overall.

NEXT UP – The Vandals will make a return to ICCU Arena for a four-game homestand next week when they first square off against in-state rival Idaho State on Jan. 10. The matchup is scheduled for a 6 p.m. start time.

"We are very hopeful, knock on wood that when we get back, some guys are testing negative and are still feeling good so we can have good preparation Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday for what is in store for us with this homestand coming up," Claus said. 

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