Southern Utah (8-2) at Arizona (3-4) | McKale Center | Noon Saturday | CBS Sports Network | 1290-AM
Arizona guard KJ Lewis (5) scans the court as he’s defended by Duke guard Sion James (14) in the first half during a game at McKale Center on Nov. 22, 2024.
PROBABLE STARTERS
ARIZONA
G Jaden Bradley (6-3 junior)
G Caleb Love (6-4 senior)
F KJ Lewis (6-4 soph.)
F Trey Townsend (6-6 senior)
C Tobe Awaka (6-8 junior)
SOUTHERN UTAH
G Tavi Jackson (6-2 junior)
G Dominique Ford (6-5 senior)
F Jamir Simpson (6-5 senior)
F Jamari Sibley (6-8 senior)
C Brock Felder (6-8 soph.)
How they match up
The series: Arizona has never played Southern Utah, a Division I program from Cedar City that has played in the Mid-Continent, Summit, Big Sky and, since 2022-23, the WAC.
Southern Utah overview: After taking Milwaukee to two NCAA Tournament appearances in 11 seasons, then spending three years at Western Illinois, coach Rob Jeter had a rough debut season at Southern Utah in 2023-24. With an almost completely overhauled roster, the Thunderbirds won only 10 games, losing eight straight in February and finishing second-to-last in the WAC. But the Thunderbirds are showing signs of a turnaround so far this season, going 8-2 overall and 5-2 against Division I opponents. Southern Utah lost road games to UCLA 88-43 and to Loyola Chicago 76-72 but has beaten FIU, Nebraska-Omaha, San Diego, Idaho and Cal State Bakersfield.
It helped SUU to return two key starters from last season, guard Dominique Ford and forward Jamari Sibley, while a redshirt last season, Division II transfer forward Jamir Simpson has become their leading scorer. A transfer from Idaho, Ford was the WAC’s fourth-leading scorer last season with an average of 16.0 points a game. His scoring average has dipped to 13.8, but with more help around him this season, his shooting percentages from 2-point (44.9) and 3-point range (37.5) has improved. Southern Utah local Brock Felder is a rim-protecting center while two other transfers, center Jeffrey Langston (Rider) and point guard Tavi Jackson (Colorado State) have played big roles. Master P’s son, guard Hercy Miller, is among the key reserves.
In their seven games against Division I teams, the Thunderbirds have proven especially productive inside and getting to the line. They have the 22nd-highest ratio of free throws attempted to field goals attempted (45.4) in Division I. They hit all those free throws at a 72.9% rate and also shoot 2-pointers at a 54.4% rate. With all that aggressiveness, Utah does struggle to take care of the ball, with 22.4% of its possessions ending in a turnover, including 10.5% that aren’t stolen from the opponent.
He said it: “They really want to get to the paint and create off-dribble penetration. Their three guards do a good job of pushing their pace and looking for themselves off the dribble. They're really aggressive to get downhill and they can get you in foul trouble. If they have a (favorable) matchup, you're going to get them going at you. So you’ve got to be built for that, which is something that you got to build for the Big 12 anyway.
"They've played a lot of lineups, and a lot of guys have missed two or three games with injuries, so it's hard to know exactly what their rotation is, but they play nine or so guys consistently. The guards have been the most consistent.
"(Simpson) is a really crafty lefty, a strong body, who's just got a knack for creating fouls once he gets into the paint. He's definitely more of a driver and scorer than anything. You’ve got to guard his dribble penetration, keep him out of the paint as best you can. He'll take tough shots but you’ve got to make his game a long one because he's a really good scorer.”
“Dominique Ford has had some games where he gets going with shooting. He makes 3s, he's a really good creator off the dribble, and he's got size.”
"(Fielder) is a defensive anchor for them. On offense, he moves the ball and plays within their system. But defensively, he's really good around the rim at blocking shots and deterring shots. He's one of those bigs that spends a lot of time around the rim and vertical contests, and I think he really takes pride in blocking shots. We've gotta be smart with how we attack him and make good, simple decisions." — UA assistant coach Rem Bakamus, who scouted Southern Utah
Key players
Southern Utah — Jamir Simpson
The son of a key player at Ohio State and West Virginia, Simpson has moved slowly up the college basketball ladder, becoming a second-team all-league pick at Division II Wisconsin-Parkside before redshirting at Southern Utah last season. But he’s now leading the Thunderbirds in scoring (16.2) while excelling at getting to the line (7.3 fouls drawn per 40 minutes) and hitting free throws (80.8%)
SUU forward Jamir Simpson is a physical player with a knack for picking up fouls on drives to the basket.
Arizona — KJ Lewis
Stopping the Thunderbirds’ determined drivers is an assignment tailor-made for the physical Lewis. But Lewis' aggressive style of play on both ends of the court has been marred by two technical fouls over UA’s past four games. It’s a fine line he’ll need to stop crossing to maximize his effectiveness.
Sidelines
Fridgegate
Having the son of hip hop icon Master P, guard Hercy Miller, on its roster may have brought some cachet to Southern Utah, an upwardly mobile mid-major program located in the shadows of Zion National Park.
But recently, the Thunderbirds have found fame can work both ways.
Miller, along with SUU teammates Brock Felder and Peter Dadson, were arrested last month on suspicion of stealing two refrigerators from the school worth about $1,500 each. While the school has not announced any disciplinary action, and all three players have continued to play, the incident drew headlines from TMZ and People.com, among other sites.
“Master P’s son, two other Southern Utah University Basketball Players Arrested for Allegedly Stealing Refrigerators,” read the People.com headline.
“Coach Addresses Fridge Theft SAYS IT’S A HUGE MISUNDERSTANDING” read a TMZ headline that was topped with a kicker saying simply “Hercy Miller.”
According to a probable cause affidavit cited in an Associated Press story posted on KUTV.com, the three players took the refrigerators from a loading dock outside the SUU Bookstore and drove them away in their own vehicles.
The story said Miller told SUU police that they believed the refrigerators were going to be thrown away and that it was OK to take them. It also said Dadson told police he had seen the refrigerators on the dock for “almost a month” and assumed they were being disposed of.
While SUU has not issued any comment, coach Rob Jeter told TMZ that he was confident it was an innocent mix-up and that “the university is working to get this thing resolved quickly." Jeter also told TMZ the incident was “a huge misunderstanding.”
Hip hop hooper
Louisville guard Hercy Miller (15) defends against Duke, Feb. 20, 2023, in Durham, N.C.
During a college basketball journey that has taken Hercy Miller to Tennessee State, Xavier, Louisville and Southern Utah — though he never played a game at Xavier in 2021-22, leaving after Sean Miller was re-named coach there in March 2022 — Hercy Miller once sat down at Louisville’s preseason media day before the 2023-24 season.
While being interviewed by KySports.TV, Hercy Miller was asked what kind of game it would be if he faced his father one-on-one in his basketball prime.
“Personally, if I was playing anyone one-on-one, I would have myself winning,” Miller said. “I know my dad could hoop back in the day but I think I got him.”
Scout opportunity
After NCAA rules allowed two additional assistant coaches on basketball staffs last season, Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd promoted basketball support staffers Rem Bakamus and Ken Nakagawa into assistant roles, where they join Jack Murphy, Steve Robinson and TJ Benson.
Now, Lloyd is giving both Bakamus and Nakagawa a chance to become lead game scouts, assigning Bakamus to Saturday’s game and Nakagawa to UA’s Dec. 21 game with Central Michigan.
“It's a great honor and a great privilege,” Bakamus said. “I had the exhibition game for Point Loma, but this one's a little more pressure.
“I know it's a big responsibility to be at Arizona delivering scouts. But I've been trying not to make it about my own nerves or anything like that.”
Bakamus is no stranger to compiling scouting reports, just not in a head role. He has assisted Murphy in his scouts — often for UA’s biggest matchups — and spent countless hours cutting up video for assistant coaches at Baylor, where he was a graduate assistant before arriving at UA in 2021.
Bakamus also picked up knowledge of Gonzaga’s scouting style as a Zags walk-on player from 2012-17, when Lloyd was an assistant coach at Gonzaga.
“Those guys have been around it forever, and they've done way more behind the scenes than anybody will know,” Lloyd said of Bakamus and Nakagawa. “It's just a great opportunity for them to scout. They're fully capable and we always are preparing as a staff anyways, so they just kind of take the lead.”
Numbers game
2: Dollars being asked per ticket for several pairs of upper-level seats to Saturday’s UA-SUU game on SeatGeek as of Friday afternoon ($15.16 total for two tickets, including fees).
5: 3-pointers in nine attempts that UCLA’s Lazar Stefanovic hit against the Thunderbirds on Nov. 26 at Pauley Pavilion.
235: Arizona’s Division I ranking in 3-point shooting percentage (31.0)
— Bruce Pascoe
