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Feb 24 | 10:00 PM
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Anonymous
| Posted: 25 Feb 2003 | Updated: 8 Nov 2020
SALT LAKE -- In a match-up of the two top teams in the Mountain West Conference on ESPN's Big Monday, Utah (No. 23 ESPN/USA Today, No. 22 AP) got 44 points from Tim Frost and Nick Jacobson to continue its streaking play with a 71-64 win over BYU at the Huntsman Center. The loss drops the Cougars to 18-7 overall and 7-3 in the MWC, while Utah improves to 21-4 and 9-1 with a two game lead over BYU and Wyoming.
"It's never nice to lose, but I like the fact that we put ourselves in a position to win tonight," BYU coach Steve Cleveland said. "We had three or four opportunities to tie or win the game, but we didn't execute when we needed to."
Held to a 42 percent from the field and 26 percent from behind the arc, the Cougars stayed in the game by forcing the Runnin' Utes into 20 turnovers, one off their season high. BYU scored 23 points off the Utah turnovers, but Utah's stifling defense held the Cougar triumvirate of Rafael Araujo, Travis Hansen and Mark Bigelow to 38 points on 13-of-34 shooting.
After Utah scored first to take a 2-0 lead, BYU reeled off a 7-0 run to take its largest lead of the game, but the Utes turned around with a quick 6-0 run of their own to retake the lead at 8-7.
The two teams would battle for the lead as the first half unfolded, but the Utes started to pull away on threes by Frost, Richard Chaney and Nick Jacobson. The shot by Jacobson with 2:04 remaining in the first half saw the Utes lead bulge to nine points, 31-22. BYU would clamp down on the final four Utah possessions of the half, though, and went into the locker room on a 4-0 run to trail at the break 31-26.
"I was proud of our effort defensively and offensively, especially in the second half," Cleveland said. "We didn't have our best offensive night, but it wasn't for a lack of effort."
Utah, which improved to 64-2 in home conference games over the past nine seasons, came out in the second half with a 12-4 run to enjoy its largest margin at 43-30. BYU would chip away with timely baskets, but the Utes would seemingly answer almost every Cougar challenge. Bigelow hit a trey at 12:26 to draw the Cougars within eight at 43-35, but Jacobson would answer with his own three at 12:04.
After a Frost jump hook put the Utes up 51-40, the Cougars stormed back with a 7-0 run, behind two free throws by Hansen, a free throw by Kevin Woodberry and baskets from Araujo and Luiz Lemes to narrow the gap to four at 51-47 and forcing the Utes into a timeout.
Utah would then extend its lead back up to nine at 60-51, but a triple by Woodberry would draw the Cougars to within four again at 63-59. On the ensuing Utes possession Woodberry and Ricky Bower teamed up to strip Jacobson of the ball. Woodberry had a clear path to the basket but was fouled by Jacobson, sending him to the line where he made 1-of-2 free throws. The Ute lead was cut to three, but the Cougars couldn't get any closer as Utah sealed the game by making free throws down the stretch.
With the win Utah extended its MWC record by winning its ninth consecutive conference game, and also extended its home winning streak to 16 games. The Utes shot 44 percent from the field and three-point line as well as 92 percent from the free-throw line.
"We can't dwell on this loss, because we've got the biggest weekend of the year coming up," Cleveland said.
The Cougars finished the month of February 5-2, and will travel to play at Air Force Saturday at 4 p.m., and New Mexico next Monday at 7 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on KSL-TV by Sportswest Productions.
Official Basketball Box Score -- GAME TOTALS -- FINAL STATISTICS
Brigham Young vs Utah
02/24/03 10:00 pm at Salt Lake City, Utah (Huntsman Center)
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VISITORS: Brigham Young 18-7, 7-3 MWC
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
02 HANSEN, Travis...... f 3-12 1-5 6-6 0 2 2 3 13 3 2 0 1 36
03 BIGELOW, Mark....... f 4-10 2-4 2-2 2 2 4 2 12 2 3 0 3 37
55 ARAUJO, Rafael...... c 6-12 0-1 1-2 2 4 6 5 13 1 1 0 1 25
14 BOWER, Ricky........ g 0-0 0-0 2-2 0 0 0 3 2 1 3 0 0 22
24 WOODBERRY, Kevin.... g 2-8 2-7 2-4 0 4 4 1 8 1 1 0 1 31
04 LEMES, Luiz......... 1-3 0-1 0-0 0 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 1 7
05 SHOFF, Jake......... 1-1 0-0 2-3 1 1 2 1 4 0 0 0 1 8
10 NASHIF, Terry....... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 1 0 0 2 0 0 7
12 ROBERTS, Marc....... 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 6
40 HOWARD, Dan......... 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 1 4
52 JENSEN, Jared....... 4-5 0-0 0-0 3 0 3 4 8 0 0 0 0 17
TEAM................ 2 1 3
Totals.............. 22-53 5-19 15-19 10 17 27 22 64 8 13 0 9 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 10-26 38.5% 2nd Half: 12-27 44.4% Game: 41.5% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 2-9 22.2% 2nd Half: 3-10 30.0% Game: 26.3% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 4-5 80.0% 2nd Half: 11-14 78.6% Game: 78.9% 3
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HOME TEAM: Utah 21-4, 9-1 MWC
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
21 CATON, Trace........ f 1-5 1-4 2-2 1 0 1 3 5 1 2 0 0 33
31 JOHNSEN, Britton.... f 3-7 0-1 3-4 1 3 4 3 9 2 3 0 0 22
54 FROST, Tim.......... c 7-10 1-2 6-6 1 5 6 1 21 0 1 1 0 29
11 DRISDOM, Tim........ g 0-1 0-1 1-2 0 4 4 2 1 3 2 0 0 15
15 JACOBSON, Nick...... g 7-12 4-7 5-5 1 1 2 3 23 0 3 0 2 32
02 JACKSON, Marc....... 1-5 1-2 6-6 1 2 3 3 9 3 4 0 2 26
13 CHANEY, Richard..... 1-3 1-1 0-0 0 2 2 4 3 1 1 0 0 22
20 MARKSON, Bryant..... 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 5
30 JACKSON, Chris...... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 4
42 KOFORD, Cameron..... 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 2 0 1 1 2 1 12
TEAM................ 4 4 8 2
Totals.............. 20-45 8-18 23-25 9 22 31 21 71 12 20 4 5 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 10-19 52.6% 2nd Half: 10-26 38.5% Game: 44.4% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 6-9 66.7% 2nd Half: 2-9 22.2% Game: 44.4% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 5-5 100 % 2nd Half: 18-20 90.0% Game: 92.0% 1
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Officials: David Hall, Scott Thornley, Randy McCall
Technical fouls: Brigham Young-None. Utah-None.
Attendance: 15148
Score by Periods 1st 2nd Total
Brigham Young................. 26 38 - 64
Utah.......................... 31 40 - 71
Points in the paint-BY 26,UT 14. Points off turnovers-BY 23,UT 14.
2nd chance points-BY 19,UT 6. Fast break points-BY 0,UT 0.
Bench points-BY 16,UT 12. Score tied-2 times. Lead changes-8 times.
Brett Pyne
| Posted: 20 Feb 2003 | Updated: 28 Apr 2011
Brett Pyne
BYU (18-6, 7-2 MWC) faces No. 23 Utah (20-4, 8-1 MWC) Monday at 10 p.m. MST in the featured Mountain West Conference game on ESPN's Big Monday. The first-place Utes and second-place Cougars will do battle in the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City. The radio broadcast can be heard on KSL Newsradio 1160 and the Cougar Sports Network, beginning with a one-hour pregame show. KSL's Greg Wrubell will call the play-by-play action with Mark Durrant providing analysis. Live audio is available on the basketball page of the official BYU athletics website, byucougars.com, and on KSL.com and via BYU Radio on the Dish Network and at byuradio.org.
The Cougars look to move into a first-place tie by avenging a 79-75 loss at home this year to the Utes. That loss ended BYU's nation-leading 44-game homecourt victory streak. BYU is 4-1 at home and 3-1 on the road in league play. Utah sits atop the league standings with a perfect 4-0 home record along with a 4-1 mark on the road. Utah has won eight straight games since suffering it's lone loss (58-56) at San Diego State in its conference opener.
BYU ON ESPN
BYU's last appearance on ESPN Big Monday was Jan. 28, 2002, in last year's BYU-Utah game in Salt Lake City. The Cougars fell to the Utes 71-66. BYU has won four of its last five games on ESPN. BYU was 1-1 last year on ESPN including its victory over No. 13 Stanford at the Las Vegas Showdown. In 2001, BYU went 3-0 on ESPN, including two home wins over Utah and UNLV before defeating New Mexico, 69-65, in the Mountain West Conference Championship title game in Las Vegas to earn the MWC automatic berth to the 2001 NCAA tournament. This is BYU's second national television appearance this year. BYU played Oklahoma State on ESPN2 on Jan. 4, losing to the Cowboys at the Touchstone Energy All-College Classic in Oklahoma City.
GAME #25 FAST FACTS (MWC GAME #10)
BYU (18-6, 7-2 MWC) @ UTAH (20-4, 8-1 MWC)
MONDAY, FEB. 24, 2003
HUNTSMAN CENTER (15,000)
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH
10 p.m. MST
Coaches:
BYU, Steve Cleveland (103-75 in sixth year; same overall)
Utah, Rick Majerus (303-86 in 14th year; 402-138 in 19th year overall)
Series:
Utah leads, 117-116; Last: Utah won 79-75 in Provo on Jan. 25, 2003
TV:
ESPN
Play-by-Play: Bob Carpenter
Game Analyst: Jimmy Dykes
Radio:
KSL Newsradio 1160 AM (Cougar Sports Network)
Pregame Air Times: 9 p.m. MST
Play-by-Play: Greg Wrubell
Game Analyst: Mark Durrant
Web:
Live audio links are available at byucougars.com/basketball_m/ (select 2002-03 schedule) and on KSL.com and byuradio.org or via BYU Radio on Dish Network.
BYU's Probable Starters:
Pos. # Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PPG RPG
F 3 Mark Bigelow 6-7 195 Jr. 13.7 3.9
F 52 Jared Jensen 6-9 250 So. 8.3 3.6
C 55 Rafael Araujo 6-11 265 Jr. 10.8 8.7
G 2 Travis Hansen 6-6 210 Sr. 16.6 4.9 2.7 apg
G 24 Kevin Woodberry 6-0 170 Jr. 6.0 2.1 2.3 apg
BYU Reserves:
Pos. # Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PPG RPG
G 14 Ricky Bower 6-4 185 Jr. 6.3 1.7
F 5 Jake Shoff 6-9 265 Jr. 2.5 2.6
G 10 Terry Nashif 5-10 165 So. 2.4 1.6 2.2 apg
F 15 John Allen 6-7 215 So. 3.0 1.5
G 12 Marc Roberts 6-3 205 So. 2.8 1.5
G 4 Luiz Lemes 6-3 180 Jr. 1.5 0.7
C 40 Dan Howard 7-0 225 Jr. 1.3 0.7
F 32 Bart Jepsen 6-9 235 Jr. 1.2 0.9
UTAH UTES
The Runnin' Utes (20-4, 8-1 MWC) have won eight straight games entering Monday's contest with BYU. Utah's eight-game winning streak is the longest in Mountain West Conference history. Utah had won six in a row each of the last three years. UNLV and Wyoming also won six straight conference games in 2000 and 2001, respectively. Ranked No. 23 in the AP poll, Utah has won 15 of its last 16 and lost only once since Dec. 17. The Utes are in sole possession of first place in the Mountain West, leading second-place BYU by one game. Last weekend in Salt Lake City, Utah defeated San Diego State 76-62 on Saturday night and went into overtime to outlast UNLV 86-80 on Monday. The Utes had a season-best effort from the free throw line to salt away their overtime win against UNLV. Utah shot 92.3 percent, hitting 24-of-26. The Utes hit all 10 free throws in the overtime period and 10-of-11 in the second half. Utah scored a season-high 86 points against the Rebels. Utah is 13-0 at home this season, 6-2 on the road and 1-2 on neutral courts. The Utes have won 132 of their last 139 games in the Jon M. Huntsman Center, including a 14-2 mark last season and a 13-0 start this season. Utah's current home court winning streak is 15 games.The Runnin' Utes ranked sixth in the NCAA in scoring defense (59.5 ppg) and 29th in three-point percentage (38.7) as of Feb. 18. Three Utes are averaging double figures in scoring. Junior center Tim Frost (6-10, 236) has the lead in scoring (12.9 ppg) and is second in rebounding (4.6 rpg). Junior guard Nick Jacobson (6-4, 200) is second in scoring (12.8 ppg) and is shooting 43.3 percent from three-point range (58-for-134). Senior forward Britton Johnsen (6-10, 210) is third in scoring (12.3 ppg) and leads the effort in rebounding (7.0 rpg). Freshman point guard Tim Drisdom (6-3, 203) leads the Utes in assists (3.4 apg). Sophomore guard Marc Jackson (6-1, 177) is Utah's top scorer in MWC play (15.4 ppg) and is the team's most accurate shooter across the board, hitting 54.7 percent from the field, 52.6 percent from three-point range and 86.4 percent from the free throw line. In 11 of the 20 wins, Utah has held its opponent to under 40 percent shooting from the field. The Utes have outshot their opponents 47.5 to 40.0 percent in their wins. In their four losses, the Utes have been outshoot 44.5 to 42.9 percent. The Utes have held 15 teams under 60 points this season and four teams under 50 points. In conference home games over the last nine years, Utah is 63-2 (.969), which is the best record in the nation over that time span. With its No. 23 ranking, Utah is ranked in the top 25 for the first time since early in the 2000-01 season.
UTAH'S PROBABLE STARTERS
POS. # NAME HT. WT. YR. PPG RPG
F 21 Trace Caton 6-4 211 Sr. 4.7 2.8
F 31 Britton Johnsen 6-10 210 Sr. 12.3 7.0
C 54 Tim Frost 6-10 236 Jr. 12.9 4.6
G 15 Nick Jacobson 6-4 200 Jr. 12.8 2.8
G 11 Tim Drisdom 6-3 203 Fr. 5.0 2.9 3.4 apg
SERIES TIDBITS
BYU and Utah will meet for the 234th time Monday. The series ranks 10th in the NCAA record book in terms of most games in a rivalry and is the 11th longest running rivalry dating back to 1909. With its win in Provo on Jan. 25, Utah now has a one-game edge in the series at 117-116. This is the third time Utah has ever led in the series. Utah swept the regular season series in 2000 to take its first lead (114-113)in the overall series since it began in 1909 and again held a one-game edge (116-115) last year with its win in Salt Lake City before the Cougars staged second-half comeback from 21 points down to even the series again at 116-116. Prior to Utah's breakthrough in Provo this year, the two teams had split with home wins the prior two seasons. With BYU's 58-54 win at the 2000 MWC tournament semifinals, the two teams are 3-3 over the last six games. BYU's 2000 MWC Tournament win ended a string of 12 straight Utah wins, its longest in the series. Utah. The Utes have won eight straight at the Huntsman Center. BYU's last win at Utah was a 64-62 victory on Jan. 8, 1994. That win started a four-game BYU winning streak that preceded Utah's 12-game streak. BYU has a 46-68 record in Salt Lake City. Utah is the opponent BYU has played the most in its history (233 games) and is BYU's second longest running series (Utah State series began in 1905 and includes 219 games). BYU won the inaugural game, 32-9 in Provo, on Jan. 23, 1909, and won again on March 5 of that year, 40-27, in SLC on its way to winning the first eight games against the Utes.
SERIES BREAKDOWN
Overall Series Record: Utah leads, 117-116
BYU Record in Provo: 64-46
BYU Record in Salt Lake City: 46-68
BYU Record at Neutral Sites: 6-3
BYU Record under Steve Cleveland: 3-10
BYU Record in OT Games: 4-7* (1-1 Rd, 2-5 Hm, 1-1 Ntrl)
*1-0 in 2OT, 0-2 in 3OT - all in Provo (83-85)
Last Overtime Game: 1991, won v. Utah @ WAC, 51-49
Longest BYU Win Streak: 8 (1909-12)
Longest Utah Win Streak: 12 (1995-2000)
Largest BYU Margin of Victory: 31 two times (1965, 94)
Largest Utah Margin of Victory: 36, 85-49 (1997)
Most Points Scored by BYU: 115 (1966)
Most Points Scored by Utah: 106 two times (1962, 1963)
LAST MEETING -- HOME VICTORY STREAK ENDS AS UTES PREVAIL
PROVO -- BYU fell to the University of Utah at home last Saturday, 79-75, snapping the nation's longest homecourt winning streak at 44 games. On hand was the Cougars' largest crowd of the year -- 21,412. BYU's last loss in the Marriott Center was a 78-74 victory by New Mexico on Feb. 17, 2000. Utah guard Mark Jackson hit four free throws in the final 18.7 seconds to seal the victory for the Utes, who played the game without head coach Rick Majerus. The Utah coach was attending the funeral of former Utah player Andre Miller's stepfather. Jackson led Utah in scoring with 17 points, including 13-for-13 from the free throw line. In a game so closely played, neither team held a lead of more than seven points. It came down to the free throw line where the Utes eventually put the game away. The Utes held on to a three-point lead courtesy of a Nick Jacobson trey in the final seconds. Jacobson led the way for Utah in the first half, scoring the team's last seven points of the half. The second half was as tightly played as the first. The two teams traded buckets most of the final period leading up to the dramatic finish and Jackson's four charity tosses. The Cougars cut the Utah lead to two, 77-75, on a jam by Araujo, but had to foul and Jackson knocked down two more for the Utes. Travis Hansen led BYU with his second double-double of the season with 21 points and 12 rebounds. Hansen made a career-high 14 free throws, missing only once,making many of those late in the game to counter Ute baskets. Rafael Araujo was one rebound away from a double-double performance of his own with 19 points and nine boards. Mark Bigelow added three more treys and scored 16 points while Ricky Bower added 10. Utah big man Tim Frost scored 16 points including two big threes, stretching BYU's defense. Jacobsen finished with 13 and Britton Johnsen totaled 12 points and 12 rebounds. Utah freshman forward Bryant Markson played only seven minutes but scored six points in the second half to help the Utes stay on top. With the win Utah improves to 14-4 overall and 2-1 in the MWC. Utah also takes a one-game lead in the overall series record against BYU at 117-116.
WHAT BYU COACH STEVE CLEVELAND HAD TO SAY AFTER THE FIRST MEETING THIS YEAR ...
"I've never seen Utah play better this season than they played today at both ends of the floor. I will give them full credit. I didn't feel like we played poorly at any time, I just felt like there were times late in the game when we didn't take care of the ball. You have got to do those things to win close ball games."
WHAT UTAH ASSISTANT COACH KERRY RUPP HAD TO SAY AFTER THE FIRST MEETING THIS YEAR
"It felt really good to win this game. Coach Majerus did a great job putting together a game plan and the players executed it well."
LAST GAME IN SLC - BYU TOPS STATS BUT UTES GET THE WIN
SALT LAKE -- BYU lost a hard-fought battle 71-66 to Utah at the Huntsman Center in a game that lived up to all the tradition and emotion of the rivalry. The BYU loss came despite leading the Utes in every shooting category and outrebounding Utah 36-29. The Cougars (12-6, 2-3) doubled their first half output, scoring 44 points in the second half compared to 22 in the first. That effort helped BYU pull within three, 67-64, after a Matt Montague layup with just under a minute remaining. Utah answered with four free throws while BYU did not score until another Montague layup as time expired, bringing the final score to 71-66. Montague finished the game with a season-high 13 points. BYU was able to cool off the Utes' deadly three-point shooting with aggressive perimeter defense that held Utah to 4-of-18 from beyond the arc. Utah (15-3, 5-0) led the nation in three-point field goal percentage but shot a dismal 22 percent for the game. Utah's leading scorer Nick Jacobson (15.3 ppg) and the nation's fourth-best three-point percentage, scored only 5 points on 2-of-9 shooting. Eric Nielsen provided BYU with the offensive spark it needed in the first half. Nielsen had eight of the Cougars' 15 points to give BYU a 15-13 edge with 10:25 remaining in the first half. But Nielsen got into foul trouble early with three fouls in the first half and ultimately fouled out at the 8:36 mark of the second half with only 21 minutes of game time. He finished the game with 10 points on 5-of 7 shooting. Utah looked to the Johnson brothers, Jeff and Britton, to fill the void left by the Ute's absent perimeter. The duo combined for 13 of Utah's 21 points before the rest of the team got into the act, going on a 13-2 run to end the first half up 34-22. The Utes extended their lead to 38-22 to open the second half before Travis Hansen stormed back with six points, two of them coming on an athletic fast-break spin move around Ute guard Travis Spivey. Hansen led all scorers with 22 points and all rebounders with 11. BYU freshman Jimmy Balderson made a three-pointer to make the score 46-35 and Hansen added two more with an emotional two-handed dunk that brought the Cougars within nine. Montague later made a layup to bring the score to 53-46. Hansen scored seven more points but BYU still trailed 59-52 with 5:25 remaining. A Balderson steal and layup cut the lead to five and two Mark Bigelow free throws made the score 60-56 with 3:52 left in the game. BYU shot 13-15 from the line to keep pace. Bobik's back door layup made the score 66-62 and then 67-64 on Montague's layup, but it would not be enough.
WHAT COACH STEVE CLEVELAND HAD TO SAY AT UTAH LAST YEAR ...
"We lost because we dug ourselves into a hole and had to fight back the whole game. In the bigger picture, I was significantly more pleased with the effort. We did a really solid job as far as taking away their perimeter game -- we defended well enough to win this game."
OLD OQUIRRH BUCKET
The Old Oquirrh Bucket (named after the Oquirrh Mountains to the west of Salt Lake City) is the symbol of in-state basketball supremacy in Utah. The trophy is awarded every year to the in-state college team (BYU, Utah, Utah State, Weber State and Southern Utah) which has the best win-loss record in in-state games. Utah can win the bucket with a win over BYU Monday. The Utes are 3-1 with its lone loss to Utah State. BYU is 2-2 with a loss at Weber State and to Utah in Provo. Utah State finished its in-state schedule at 2-1 with a loss at BYU, while Weber State is 1-2 and Southern Utah is 0-2. A BYU win Monday would give the Bucket to Utah State for the second consecutive year. Last year BYU came from a 21-ponit deficit in Provo to defeat the Utes and give the Aggies the Bucket. BYU claimed the in-state title in 2001 with a 4-1 recod. Utah last won the Bucket in 1999. Since the inception of the award for the 1974-75 season, Utah has won the Bucket 10 times, BYU seven times, Utah State six times and Weber State four times.
UP NEXT FOR BYU
BYU stays on the road to face Air Force Saturday in Colorado Springs before a Monday date at New Mexico. The two-game swing completes BYU's sixth road game out of the last seven outings.
BYU'S LAST OUTING -- HANSEN HELPS COUGARS EDGE AZTECS
PROVO -- Senior Travis Hansen led BYU with 19 points and eight rebounds and deflected San Diego State's last second shot to give the Cougars a 66-64 Mountain West Conference win over the Aztecs Monday night in the Marriott Center. With the win, the Cougars improve to 18-6 overall and 7-2 in conference play, while the Aztecs fall 12-10 overall and 3-6 in the MWC. "We were very fortunate in the last few minutes. We had difficulty getting the ball where it needed to be," BYU head coach Steve Cleveland said. "If it had not been for Travis's three-pointer, I don't know where we would have been." After BYU had a 14-point second-half lead dwindle to one, Hansen ended a five-minute offensive dry spell for the Cougars by hitting his second three of the game to put the Cougars up four,66-64, with 1:33 to go. Although Hansen lost the ball on BYU's possession, he came back to get a finger on San Diego State's put-back attempt at the buzzer to help BYU escape with the victory. "In the first five minutes of the game we had difficulty getting started," Cleveland said. "But the 25 minutes that followed, I thought we played well. We had good execution, and we defended well." The Cougars scored the first points in the game on a Hansen field goal, but the Aztecs went on a 15-3 run in the next six minutes to take a 15-5 lead with 13:39 to go, led by Deandre Moore with five points. Moore finished the first half with 13 points on his way to a 16-point outing. Jared Jensen started the BYU comeback with two points with 13:27 remaining in the first half, and two minutes later, Bigelow came in with a three-pointer to bring the score within three at 16-19 and start the offensive momentum. Trailing 28-23, Jensen and Hansen combined for six consecutive points to give the Cougars the lead at 29-28. BYU had its largest lead of the half at 35-28 with 2:20 left, but the got to within one at 37-36 with less than four seconds in the half before Hansen connected on a three at the buzzer to give the Cougars a 40-36 lead going into halftime. After intermission BYU went on a 20-10 run, capped by an Araujo dunk, that gave the Cougars their largest lead of the game at 60-46 with 9:33 remaining. But the Aztecs were not ready to go fold, answered back with an 8-0 run of their own until Kevin Woodberry hit a trey at the 6:44 mark. San Diego State held BYU scoreless for the next five minutes, racking up eight more points to pull within one at 63-62 before Hansen's three. "Jensen was solid in the post, and Shoff gave us some good play inside, too," Cleveland said. "Late in the game you just have to be able to execute, and I believe that contributed to us losing the 12-point lead." The Aztecs last second shot went wide left, and a follow-up attempt also missed thanks to Hansen's deflection, as the Cougars escaped with the victory.
OTHER NOTABLES
? BYU equaled its season low with 10 turnovers vs. SDSU (also vs. SUU).
? With its win vs. SDSU, BYU equaled the number of overall and conference wins it achieved last season when BYU finished 18-12 and 7-7, advancing to the second round of the NIT.
COUGAR BRIEFING
Led by senior guard Travis Hansen, junior swingman Mark Bigelow and junior center Rafael Araujo, the Cougars (18-6) earned an 11-4 non-conference record and are in second place behind No. 23 Utah in the MWC standings at 7-2. Hansen leads the team in scoring (16.6) and assists (2.7) and is second in rebounding (4.9); Bigelow is second in scoring (13.7), third in rebounding (3.9) and the team's top three-point shooter (53-118); while Araujo is the third-leading scorer (10.8) and top rebounder (8.7). Sophomore forward Jared Jensen adds 8.4 points and 3.6 rebounds while the point has been shared between JC transfer Kevin Woodberry, who has started in 18 games and averages 6.0 points and 2.3 assists, and sophomore Terry Nashif, who has started six games, including five in league play, and averages 2.4 points and 2.2 assists. Coach Cleveland has more talent on the bench this year. Wisconsin transfer junior guard Ricky Bower leads the reserves, averaging 6.3 points and shooting 44 percent from behind the arc. The Cougars shoot .469 from the floor, .409 on threes and an MWC-best .745 from the line. BYU is among the top MWC defensive teams, allowing .404 shooting, including .306 on threes. BYU scores 72.9 ppg while allowing 64.6. BYU is 11-1 at home and 7-5 away, including a 3-1 neutral record and 4-4 road mark. Cleveland has used five starting lineups. Sophomore guard Marc Roberts came out of a possible redshirt season after 13 games, playing at Weber State. Freshmen guards Austin Ainge and Jermaine Odjegba will redshirt.
LONE SENIOR HANSEN LEADS ON BOTH ENDS OF THE COURT
Senior guard Travis Hansen has excelled on both ends of the floor for BYU. In the last three games, Hansen has held the three players he was assigned to guard -- CSU's Brian Greene, UNLV's Jermaine Lewis and SDSU's Tony Bland -- to a combined 5-23 (.217) shooting and 13 total points (4.3 ppg). It is more impressive considering the trio came into each game with a combined 13.0 ppg scoring average on .454 shooting and two of the three games were played in their home gym. Meanwhile, Hansen averaged 21.3 ppg over the three games while shooting .468 from the floor. He led BYU with 19 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists vs. San Diego State Monday while holding SDSU's leading scorer Tony Bland to just 7 points on 2-7 shooting. He got his finger on a last-second SDSU put-back attempt that would have sent the game to overtime. Hansen led BYU with 18 points in a losing effort at UNLV while holding Jermaine Lewis to 4 points on 2-of-11 shooting. Hansen scored a season high 27 points while holding CSU's second-leading scorer Brian Greene to only 2 points in BYU's first win in Fort Collins since 1994. Hansen has 998 career points despite an injury-shortened first season at BYU as a sophomore. He needs just 2 points to become the 35th Cougar to reach 1,000 points. He has led BYU in scoring in six of the last seven games and has reached double figures in 20 straight games, and 23 of 24 on the year.
NATIONAL POLLS
BYU received votes in the polls released Feb. 17. In the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, BYU is is tied for 38th with 1 points while Utah is rated 27th with 60 points. In the Associated Press Poll, BYU is tied for 39th with 3 points while Utah broke into the top 25 with 180 points at No. 23. Two other BYU opponents are in the top-25 of both polls. Oklahoma State is rated 16th in both polls while Creighton is ranked 17th (AP) and 18th (ESPN/USA Today).
RPI AND SAGARIN RATINGS
BYU has been maintained a high rating as the top-rated MWC team throughout the year in the Sagarin and RPI rankings until its loss at UNLV when Utah took over as the top-rated MWC team. The Sagarin Ratings through Tuesday's results rank Utah 26th and BYU 27th. As a conference, the Mountain West has been rated as high as 6th but is currently ranked 7th, with the Pac-10 in the No. 6 ranking. In the RPI computed by CBS.Sportsline.com after Tuesday's results, BYU has a No. 16 rating whilt Utah is at 12. In the RPI compiled weekly by Collegiate Basketball News, BYU is 18th and Utah 14th in the ratings through Feb. 16.
COUGARS PLAY TOP MWC SCHEDULE, AMONG NATION'S TOUGHEST
BYU has achieved a 18-6 record playing the toughest schedule of any MWC team and among the tougest in the nation. BYU's schedule is rated 11th by Collegiate Basketball News and the 22nd toughest in the nation by CBS.Sportsline.com's computer analysis. The Sagarin Ratings rank BYU's schedule No. 49. After BYU, the next toughest MWC schedule belongs to Utah (34th by Collegiate Basketball News) or UNLV (47th by CBS Sportsline.com and 62nd by Sagarin). Of the 22 teams BYU will face on its regular season schedule this year, 15 have a winning record entering the week while six have losing records and one is at .500. Seven teams have won at least 17 games through Tuesday's results. This year's schedule features 17 games against teams who qualified for postseason play last year. Six teams earned a conference regular season or league tournament title. BYU's non-conference schedule included teams from 10 different conferences -- Pac-10, Big 12, Atlantic 10, Big Sky, Big West, Mid-American, Mid-Continent, Missouri Valley, West Coast and Western Athletic.
70-POINT BAROMETER
BYU is 17-1 this year when holding opponents below 70 points but 1-5 when the opposition reaches the 70-point mark. In the five-plus season Steve Cleveland has been BYU's coach, the Cougars are 84-16 (.840) when holding opponents below 70 points. BYU's winning percentage drops off substantially when BYU opponents have scored between 70-79 points. BYU's record is 17-34 (.333) in those games during the Cleveland era.
AT THIS POINT ...
BYU is 7-2 in league with a 4-1 home record and a 3-1 road mark. BYU was 4-5 at this point last year and had a 5-5 after 10 games. BYU started 6-3 in 2001 and was 7-3 after 10 games on the way to share a share of the regular season title at 10-4 with Wyoming and Utah. BYU was 4-5 at this point and 5-5 after 10 games in 2000.
HANSEN TO REACH SCORING MILESTONE AT UTAH MONDAY
Mark Bigelow become the 34th Cougar and only ninth junior to reach 1,000 career points vs. SUU and senior Travis Hansen needs just 2 points to become the 35th 1,000 point scorer at BYU despite an injury-shortened first season as a sophomore. Bigelow is now 20th on BYU's scoring list with 1,194 points and needs 2 points to move into 19th place, 12 points to take over 18th place and 25 points to advance to the 17th spot.
TRAVIS HANSEN EARNS NABC All-DISTRICT 13 FIRST TEAM HONORS
The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) announced Tuesday the NABC Division I All-District Teams recognizing the country's best men's collegiate basketball student-athletes. Selected and voted on by member coaches of the NABC, these student-athletes represent the finest basketball players across the country. The 150 student-athletes, from 15 districts, are now eligible for the NABC Division I All-American Team to be announced at the conclusion of the 2002-2003 NCAA men's basketball season.
BYU senior guard Travis Hansen earned District 13 First Team honors, along with New Mexico's Ruben Douglas, Utah's Britton Johnsen, Weber State's Jermaine Boyette and Colorado State's Brian Greene. Second team members include Uche Nsonwu-Amadi and Donta Richardson of Wyoming, Tony Bland of San Diego State, Carl English of Hawaii and Kirk Snyder of Nevada. Hansen earns the honor for the first time. The last Cougar to earn first-team honors was Mekeli Wesley in 2001. BYU's Terrell Lyday was a second-team selection in 2001. Other MWC players earning NABC honors this year were UNLV's Marcus Banks (first team) and Dalron Johnson (second team), who were recognized out of District 15.
BYU TO RETIRE DANNY AINGE JERSEY ON MARCH 8 AT BYU-CSU GAME
In a historic event, BYU will retire the uniform of former Cougar great Danny Ainge on March 8, 2003, during the final regular season home game against Colorado State. Ainge becomes the first BYU men's basketball player to have his jersey retired. "A tradition of retiring jerseys is long overdue at BYU," BYU Director of Men's Athletics Val Hale said. "We have had some incredible coaches and athletes represent this university in the past. It will be fun to be reminded of them each time we see their jerseys hanging from the rafters and the press box. This is one more step we are taking to try to bring the past and present together for the benefit of our fans and our former and current athletes." Many of Ainge's former coaches and teammates are expected to be in attendance at the game. During the ceremony, Ainge's No. 22 jersey will be hung from the Marriott Center rafters, where it will be on permanent display. To commemorate the event, the first 20,000 fans in attendance will receive a souvenir poster highlighting his accomplishments. Vintage Danny Ainge jerseys will also be for sale on the concourse level. Ainge's jersey, not his number, will be retired. Future players may still have the option to wear No. 22.
