Cowboys basketball can't keep up against Brigham Young
Dec. 31—LARAMIE — The University of Wyoming men's basketball team dropped its 175th all-time meeting with Brigham Young University 94-68 on Saturday.
No. 14-ranked BYU started fast using an 18-0 run to lead 27-12 in the first 10 minutes of play. The Cougars went 7-of-18 from 3-point range in the half while the Pokes average just 7.8 makes per game according to the ESPN broadcast.
The Cougars (12-1) entered play tied for the most 3-point makes in the nation (12.8) and the highest assist-to-turnover ratio of all qualified teams (2.25).
The Cowboys (7-5) were plagued by six turnovers in the half allowing BYU to use its team speed in transition. The high-tempo pace of play got UW out of sorts and led to open looks for the Cougars' shooters.
Two timeouts later, the Pokes started getting to the free-throw line and slowing down the pace set by BYU. To this point, UW attempted just five free throws after making 17 per game.
The Cougars lead evaporated from as much as 39-22 to a 44-33 halftime advantage. In the second half, UW failed to keep any momentum it gained at the end of the first half and suffered another 14-0 Cougars' run.
Junior Trevin Knell cashed in on two 3-pointers in the early moments of the half thanks to two offensive rebounds. The Pokes were outrebounded 46-30 and were hurt by BYU's 22 second-chance points.
Sam Griffin continued to be a bright spot in the Cowboys rotation scoring 25 points to go with five rebounds and five assists. He entered play as the No. 2 leading scorer in the Mountain West at 17.8 points per game.
Graduate transfer Mason Walters scored 12 points. It's the third time in as many games he's scored double-digit points after returning from a torn thumb ligament he suffered before the season. UW was just 11-of-15 from the free throw like as they average 17 makes a game.
The loss was the final game in the nonconference portion of the Pokes' schedule. The road through the MW won't get easier as there are four Mountain West programs programs (Colorado State, Nevada, San Diego State and Colorado State) in Joe Lunardi's NCAA tournament bracketology.
Putting into perspective how deep the MW is, last season's NCAA championship runner-up San Diego State has been the fifth-best team heading into 2024. Utah State is in Lunardi's "first four out" but sits at 12-1 on the season compared to SDSU's 11-2.
The Cowboys have a short layoff before returning to the court at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday to open league action against San Jose State in Laramie.
BYU 94, WYOMING 68
Brigham Young: Khalifa 3-5 1-2 9, Robinson 5-14 00-00 10, Johnson 1-6 1-3 3, Knell 7-10 -0 17, Waterman 6-11 0-0 17, Saunders 4-6 0-0 9, Hall 3-5 0-0 7, Baker 2-4 0-0 4, Ally Atiki 7-10 0-0 14, Stewart 1-2 1-2 4. Totals: 39-73 2-4 94.
Wyoming: Wenzel 2-0 0-0 4, Griffin 10-14 2-2 25, Kot 4-7 0-0 10, Walters 4-17 3-4 12, Newton 1-4 0-0 3, Manyawu 0-1 0-0 0, Kojenets 2-7 0-0 4, Powell 2-3 6-8 10, Combs 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 25-63 11-15 68.
Halftime: BYU 44-33 3-pointers: BYU 14-32 (Waterman 5-10, Johnson 1-3, Knell 3-5, Hall 1-2, Khalifa 2-3, Saunders 1-3, Stewart 1-2); UW 7-20 (Griffin 3-3, Kot 2-2, Walters 1-7, Newton 1-4). Rebounds: UW 30 (Three with 5), BYU 46 (Waterman 8). Assists: UW 12 (Griffin 5), BYU 27 (Khalifa 8). Turnovers: UW 11 (Walters 3), BYU 9 (Johnson 2). Blocked shots: BYU 3 (Stewart 2), UW 1 (Kojenets 1). Steals: BYU 9 (Robinson 4); UW 6 (Griffin 3). Team fouls: BYU 17, UW 9.
Austin Edmonds covers Laramie High, University of Wyoming and community athletics for WyoSports. He can be reached at aedmonds@wyosports.net. Follow him on X at @_austinedmonds.
