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Show T-Birds thump foe in opener By MIKE CANNON Sports Writer CEDAR CITY The high-flyng Thunderbirds of Southern Utah State sank their talons into the Antelopes of Grand Canyon Monday and dropped their arch District Seven foes with a resounding thud, winning by a 66-59 score. The win was a big one for the 'Birds as they now take to the road to face the likes of Montana State, the University of San Francisco (gulp!), Weber State and Idaho State. T-Bird fans can take comfort in the fact that SUSC won't play North Carolina and UCLA, however. Because of the stringency of their early season schedule, Monday's win was essential in getting the season off on a positive note. "Grand Canyon is traditionally one of the outstanding teams in the district," explained SU coach Tom McCracken. "It's a great victory for us." The always enthusiastic McCracken did shed some sweat during the ballgame, as did other T-Bird fans. The game was tied 13 times and was nip and tuck until the final couple of minutes. "We like to run and they took away our break," said McCracken. "They also did a good job of taking away our inside game." The coach credited the Antelopes with playing a very smart game defensively and forcing Southern Utah to do several things they don't usually do, including scoring almost exclusively from the outside. Guards Steve Hoagland, Hal Welch and Willy Hicks combined for 43 of the T-Birds 66 points. A sizzling Hoagland led the way with 24 while Welch added I 13 and Hicks 6. "That was the big key," I exclaimed McCracken, referring to the i outstanding play of his guardline. McCracken also praised forward Scott Brown for his play down the stretch. After being out of competition lor two years because of an LDS mission, Brown appeared a bit rusty I until the final minutes when he hit five I oi six crucial free throws, had two I steals and grabbed two key boards. I The game was very physical and both teams took a pounding, especially I underneath. "That's kind of what I I expected," said McCracken. The first half of the encounter was close throughout and was tied at 32 at halftime. The lead exchanged hands 1 nine times in the half to keep fans on the k edge of their seats. I Hoagland hit ten of his 24 in the first stanza and Welch added nine to keep . things close. 1 There wasn't much change at the i outset of the second half. The game was very close until the 'Birds moved up 60-55 60-55 with :57 left. The 'Lopes cut that to 60-57 on a layup with :42 remaining and then were forced to foul. Hoagland hit both ends of a one and one and Brown did the same. Pittman hit a layup with :15 left to make the score 64-59 and then "stormin" Norman .Adams provided the nightcap, a two-handed two-handed slam dunk with :04 left and at 66-59, the party was officially over. Adams contributed with nine points, four boards and three assists. In addition to his six points, Hicks added live assists and two rebounds. Brown was the leading rebounder with 11 boards and Dean O'Driscoll added . five, along with five assists and the same number of points. Gene Player added four points and one assist and Todd Christensen had three assists. Karl Anderson and Dwain Cearly both saw action and didn't score, though Anderson added a rebound. i ' " ? t Y f I - - , " f ATI -Vv! ' - . i " l' ' In ,. M 1' f V , , , ' i 1 i , k . t, ' ' '"TV''' : -fSk . .7 v & ! |