N. Colorado 79, S. Utah 68

Jan 25, 2019, 06:38 pm

GREELEY, Colo. -- Jordan Davis scored a career-high 36 points and surpassed 2,000 for his career to lead Northern Colorado to a 79-68 win over Southern Utah on Thursday night.

Davis, the Big Sky's leading scorer, finished 14 of 17 from the field and added six rebounds for the Bears (13-7, 7-2 Big Sky), who shot 51 percent. The senior guard joined Mike Higgins as the only players in school history to eclipse 2,000 points when he beat the first-half buzzer with a 3-pointer that gave Northern Colorado a 37-22 lead at the break.

Northern Colorado extended the lead to 54-34 with 14:31 left, but Southern Utah (9-8, 4-4) outscored the Bears 22-9 over the next 10-plus minutes to close within 63-56 with 4:17 remaining. Northern Colorado countered with a 9-3 run, capped by Davis' three-point play, to restore a double-digit margin with under two minutes left.

Brandon Better had 22 points and Harrison Butler added 15 for the Thunderbirds, who had a season-high four-game winning streak snapped.