Ryan Brimley had 14 points and Ramell Taylor scored the go-ahead basket as Southern Utah defeated Cal State Bakersfield 63-59 Wednesday night.
Taylor's dunk with 1:33 left gave the Thunderbirds (7-15) a 58-56 lead. Taylor scored 11 points, Matt Massey had 10 and Ray Jones added six assists.
Stephon Carter led the Roadrunners (9-13) with 14 points. Rashad Savage added 13 and Alex Johnson 10 for Bakersfield, an independent that has lost eight of its last nine. Donald Johnson grabbed nine rebounds as the Roadrunners piled up a 42-33 edge on the boards.
Southern Utah ended a three-game losing streak by shooting 51.2 percent (22 of 43).
Southern Utah led 56-51 with 3:55 left, but the Roadrunners got a free throw from Carter and consecutive baskets from Savage to tie it at 56 with 1:54 to go.
Then Taylor scored, and the Thunderbirds had the lead for good.
