After getting a road win earlier this week, the BYU Cougars will travel to Logan to take on the Utah State Aggies. Can they make it an even road sweep of local rivals?
TV schedule: Saturday, Dec. 2, 9:00 p.m. ET. Check local listings
Arena: Dee Glen Smith Spectrum in Logan, Utah
Last season was filled with disappointments for BYU basketball (5-2). One of the biggest was the 114-101 shocking upset at the hands of Utah Valley. It was the first victory for the Wolverines against the Cougars, a historical mark for a young program in Division I basketball. That made this year’s battle at a sold-out Utah Valley all the more intriguing this time around.
It took just ten minutes to deflate that intrigue, as Yoeli Childs dominant first half led the way to a Cougars blowout win, 85-58. Childs finished the game with 24 points and 11 rebounds and hit two out of 12 total made three-pointers. The big surprise (literally) was McKay Cannon, who just hours before was cleared to play this year after transferring in from Weber State. He played the role of the backup guard, scoring eight points and finishing with a team-leading six assists.
TJ Haws continues his early season struggles, going just 2/9 from distance and now shoots 30% from three-point range for this season. For a team that can be streaky in terms of shooting, Haws needs to get back on track in terms of consistency.
He’ll have a chance to do so against Utah State (4-4), a team that is coming off a loss at undefeated Valparaiso. The Aggies are likely to be without starting point guard Koby McEwen, who’s been in an out of the lineup so far this season. That leaves it up to sophomore guard Sam Merrill, who leads the team in scoring and assists with 15.5 ppg and 3.6 apg. As a team, the Aggies have been aggressive in shooting threes, including making eight in the first half against Gonzaga. The problem is the defensive issues come back to haunt them in most games.
Next: Arizona-UNLV by the position
Utah State had a roster that would’ve made things interesting in the Mountain West Conference, but key injuries have decimated their hopes. The game will be played at Utah State and BYU has looked lackluster at times to inferior competition, but it’s hard to see the Aggies having an answer for Childs on the low block.
Prediction: BYU 83 – Utah State 72