This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Cedar City • Southern Utah opens its first-ever men's basketball season in the Big Sky Conference on Monday night, when the Thunderbirds play North Dakota at the Centrum.

Under new head coach Nick Robinson, SUU owns a 2-6 record, including wins over Carroll College (68-58) and San Diego Christian (95-65).

Robinson is a former assistant at LSU and Stanford. He replaced Roger Reid, who went 54-97 in five years at Southern Utah, including 14-17 last season.

Robinson and his team have played a difficult schedule so far, starting with a 103-65 loss at nationally ranked Gonzaga.

The Thunderbirds have also lost at Nevada (79-61) and TCU (61-52). They come off a 67-53 home loss to San Diego of the West Coast Conference, which led by only three midway through the second half.

Southern Utah is led by seniors Damon Heuir and Jackson Stevenett.

Heuir, who is from Queensland, Australia, averages 14 points a game. He scored 25 against TCU.

Stevenett, a Davis High School product, averages 13.4 points. He scored 29 at Gonzaga.

As a team, however, the Thunderbirds have struggled to score. They average only 64.6 points per game and shoot 42.9 percent from the field.