San Diego, Calif. • Southern Utah University claimed a 76-75 victory over UC Davis in the BTI Classic Friday night.

The Thunderbirds hit seven of their first 14 field-goal attempts to jump out to a 16-7 lead near the 11-minute mark. UC Davis answered by scoring seven straight points to cut the deficit to a single basket. The Thunderbirds and Aggies then alternated baskets until a 3-pointer by junior guard Ryan Sypkens put UC Davis up by two. On the next T-Bird possession, a short-range jumper by Matt Massey pulled the score even at 22.

SUU was able to create some breathing room in the score in the second period after Jackson Stevenett and Ramell Taylor opened the half with back-to-back baskets to put SUU up 34-28. Near the 10-minute mark, two consecutive baskets by Wade Collie put the T-Birds up by a count of 53-45. UC Davis was able to cut the deficit to four after scoring six of the game's next eight points, but SUU responded with a 13-7 run to extend its lead to the largest of the game at 68-58.

The Aggies refused to go quietly. After the shot clocks were turned off with 34 seconds remaining, UC Davis was able to trim the SUU lead from seven points down to just one after a pair of 3-pointers from Tyrell Corbin and a last-second long ball by Josh Ritchart. However, it wasn't enough as Taylor, Collie and Stevenett each converted key free throws over that same stretch to secure the Southern Utah victory.

Collie turned in a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Ray Jones Jr. also had 10 boards from the guard line to go along with his six points and seven assists. Taylor led SUU with 19 points in the game, while Stevenett was a close second at 18. As a team, the Thunderbirds were able to outrebound the Aggies by a final tally of 43-23.

Sypkens led UC Davis with 19 points, 12 of which came from behind the arc. Ritchart put up 16 for the Aggies, while Corbin had 15.