ST. GEORGE, Utah – In a Saturday night Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference the Mavs fell 73-80 to Dixie State. With this loss the Mavericks' record falls to 15-8 and 10-7 in conference. Dixie States' record improves to 13-8 and 11-6 in conference.
The Mavericks shot 41.4 percent (24-of-58) from the field and 35.0 percent from the three point line (7-of-20). They struggled from the free-throw line going 18-of-28 for a 64.3 shot percentage. Connor Nichols led the Mavericks with 28 points and eight rebounds. Off the bench Kenzo Nudo was the Mavs second best scorer with 15 points.
Dixie State shot 40.4 percent (23-of-57) from the field and just 27.3 from the three-point line. From the charity stripe the Trailblazers shot 72.1 percent and made 31-of-43 free throws. The Trailblazers had five scorers in double-digits.
The Mavericks were out rebounded 43-35 by the Trailblazers big lineup.
The Mavericks battled with Dixie the entire first half and were only down 40-41 after the first twenty minutes. Nichols recorded 20 of his points in the first half alone, while only one other player for Dixie scored double digits.
Coming out of the locker room the Mavericks continued to battle but never could get within reach before Dixie extended their lead 54-46 at the 13:57 mark.
Starting at the 7:48 mark of the second half the Mavericks went on an 8-0 run and tied the game 60-60 with 6:38 remaining. During this run Jess Spivey and Kenzo Nudo hit back-to-back three-pointers to tie the game. The Mavericks run was ended shortly after Dixie pushed out to a 70-62 lead. Under three minutes Dixie State saw a lead as large as eleven until the Mavericks inched back and Nichols hit a three-pointer to get the Mavs within four points at 73-77 with under a minute remaining. The Mavericks full court pressed until being forced to foul but Dixie State converted from the line to close out the game 80-73.
Next Up
The Mavericks will face Colorado Christian and Regis University next weekend in the Denver area. First they will face CCU on Friday night at 7 pm in the Events Center. The following day the Mavericks will play Regis University at 7:30 pm at the Fieldhouse.
