While most Dixie State University students were busy spending time with loved ones, the Red Storm men’s and women’s basketball teams were competing to excel during Thanksgiving break.
The DSU women spent the weekend in Colorado and played two games while the men enjoyed home court advantage for one exhibition.
DSU Women vs. Western State Colorado
After suffering two losses, the Dixie State University women’s basketball team won its first game over the Thanksgiving break.
The Red Storm were invited to play in the Holiday Inn Airport Thanksgiving Classic in Grand Junction, Colo. The Red Storm gained their first victory over Western State Colorado University, 69-59 Friday afternoon.
Senior guard Haley Holmstead led the team in points and rebounds. She scored 24 points and pulled down eight rebounds. Junior guard Kaylah Miller added 23 more points in the victory.
Rebounds, free throws and fouls were the biggest differences from previous games, which helped the Red Storm claim their first victory. DSU grabbed 57 missed shots to Western State’s 38. Western State committed 23 fouls and allowed DSU to shoot 26 shots from the charity stripe, while the Red Storm committed 12 fouls and gave Western State nine attempts at the foul line.
DSU Women vs. Colorado Mesa
The winning feeling didn’t last long for Dixie State as it fell in the second game of the tournament Saturday night to No. 7 Colorado Mesa University, 87-53.
The Red Storm women were severely over matched against the No. 7 team in the country for Division II.
DSU was out-rebounded 60-37 in the game. The Red Storm didn’t pass the ball well as they only had six assists, while Colorado Mesa had 22 assists.
DSU only had two players in double figures throughout the game. Miller led the Red Storm in points with 19, and Holmstead wasn’t far behind as she added 13 more. Junior center Haileigh Emerine collected a team-high of 10 rebounds.
The next home game for Dixie State is Dec. 14 against Point Loma Nazarene University.
The Red Storm begin their conference season this week against Notre Dame de Namur University Dec. 5 and Fresno Pacific University Dec. 7. Both games will be played in California.
DSU Men vs. Pacifica College
The Dixie State men’s team showed no ill effects of Thanksgiving dinner Saturday night, running past Pacifica College 107-44.
DSU utilized great shooting and a strong defensive performance to dominate its over-matched opponent to earn the exhibition victory.
Junior center Zach Robbins led the No. 12 ranked Red Storm with 20 points in only 18 minutes of work. He shot 10-of-11 from the field and enjoyed the majority of the second half from the bench.
Dixie blew the game open midway through the first half, using a 19-0 run to put the game out of reach.
The Red Storm held the Gladiators to 25 percent shooting for the game, while shooting 61 percent themselves.
Junior guard DeQuan Thompson added 14 points, including a couple of fast break dunks that ignited the Burns Arena crowd.
Dixie State opens Pacific West conference play Thursday against Notre Dame de Namur University in Belmont, Calif. The team will then face Fresno Pacific University Saturday before returning to St. George Dec. 14 to square off against Point Loma Nazarene University.
