Seattle University scored eight unanswered points to pull into a 54-54 tie with 10:53 remaining in the second half. The lead seesawed over the next couple of minutes until Ricky Berry (Phoenix, Ariz.) hit a three-pointer with 8:11 left to give the Redhawks a 63-61 advantage.
The Utes erased a four-point lead with a jumper by Marshall Henderson and two free throws from Carlon Brown to create the tenth tie of the game at 65-65. Cervante Burrell (Sacramento, Calif.) hit a jumper and Charles Garcia (Los Angeles, Calif.) made two free throws to put SeattleU back on top, 69-65, with less than five minutes remaining.
The game developed into a free throw shooting contest, with SeattleU going 6-for-6 and Utah hitting 7-for-8 foul shots in the home stretch. A layup by Aaron Broussard (Federal Way, Wash.) with 1:07 showing on the clock extended the SeattleU advantage to five at 77-72, but two more Brown free throws and a SeattleU missed shot allowed Utah one final chance to tie the game. Shawn Glover tossed up a contested three-point attempt, and Burrell grabbed the rebound that clinched SeattleU's biggest victory since the beginning of the transition back to Division I.
Garcia went 13-of-15 from the free throw line in leading all players with 24 points, plus he pulled down eight rebounds, blocked a shot, and earned two steals. Burrell collected 12 points, six rebounds, and four assists, and Chris Gweth (Beaverton, Ore.) put up another solid effort with 12 points and five rebounds.
Earlier in the game, Utah (2-2) took a ten-point lead with a 14-2 run over a three-and-a-half minute span in the first half. Down by nine with seven minutes remaining before halftime, SeattleU outscored Utah, 12-2, over the next three minutes, with Garcia scoring the first seven points of the run, followed by a three-pointer by Gweth and a jumper from Alex Jones (Phoenix, Ariz.).
After Burrell hit two free throws to pull SeattleU into a 33-33 tie, Utah scored the last eight points of the first half, highlighted by a steal and a dunk by Jordan Cyphers and a three-pointer from point guard Luka Drca. Although they enjoyed a 21-12 rebounding edge in the first half, the Redhawks hurt their cause with 17 turnovers before halftime.
For the game, SeattleU shot 43.1 percent from the field (22-of-51), including 5-of-11 from the three-point line, and 70.0 percent from the free throw line (28-of-40). The Redhawks won the rebounding battle, 45-32, and earned 24 second chance points while holding the Utes to 11 second chance points.
Brown shot only 5-of-17 from the field, but was a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line in leading Utah with 22 points and seven rebounds. Kim Tillie and Cyphers each scored 12 points, and Drca finished with 10 points. After making 6-of-10 shots from the three-point line before halftime, the Utes hit only 1-of-12 three-point attempts in the second half.
Seattle University (3-2) heads to Las Vegas for the final two games of the HoopTV Las Vegas Invitational, facing Presbyterian Friday, Nov. 27, and Wofford Saturday, Nov. 28, with both games beginning at 2:30 p.m. at the Orleans Arena. Dave Grosby and Gary Hill, Jr., will bring all the action from courtside on 710 ESPN Seattle.