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| Photo Credit: BYU Photo |
The home team came out flatter than flat in the first half, struggling to solve the Waves' zone defense on one end and failing to play much defense of their own on the other. BYU finished the first half shooting 28 percent from the field overall, including a ghastly 2-for-11 from deep, while Pepperdine shot 50 percent from the floor and a red-hot 5-for-9 from beyond the arc. There was no fire. There was no focus. BYU was just going through the motions. That's not usually a recipe for a great deal of success, and it wasn't on this night either — the Cougars trailed the usually hapless Waves 35-30 at the break.
I don't know what Dave Rose said in the locker room during halftime, but it certainly worked — the team that emerged for the second half was completely different than the one that had entered. This team had energy and it played with a purpose, especially on the defensive end. BYU employed an aggressive half-court trap that Pepperdine was never really able to solve, allowing the Cougars to score 15 points off turnovers alone while holding the Waves to just 16 total in the closing period.
Once BYU got rolling on the defensive end and started getting easy baskets in transition, the floodgates opened and everything fell into place. Tyler Haws, who finished with 24 points on 8-for-14 shooting, started getting open looks, Craig Cusick made the most of his minutes by repeatedly attacking the paint for easy baskets, and Brandon Davies used his quickness to create opportunities against the Waves' plodding bigs. The Cougars shot a scorching 58 percent from the field in the second half, largely because they used their defense to increase the tempo and get themselves easier shots rather than standing around the perimeter launching threes.
But as good as Haws, Davies, and Cusick were after the break, there was one real catalyst to BYU's transformation — Matt Carlino. The UCLA transfer picked up two quick fouls that sent him to the bench early in the first half, therefore limiting his effectiveness, but he certainly came to play in the second. Carlino was everywhere, particularly on defense. While he was only officially credited with 2 steals on the evening, he produced many more for his teammates by using his active hands in the half-court trap to deflect passes that eventually careened into the Cougars' possession. After being largely absent during the opening stanza, he single-handedly set the tone for BYU's intensity after halftime.
Carlino also got it done on the offensive end, taking smart shots and directing the offense with great efficiency. He continued his recent hot streak from downtown, connecting on three of his four three-point attempts en route to a 50 percent shooting performance from the floor. He finished with 13 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, and zero turnovers in his 25 minutes of play — exactly what you want from your sophomore point guard.
I may sound like a broken record sometimes, but Thursday shows why: As great as Haws and Davies are — and they are absolutely the foundation of everything the Cougars do — this BYU team will only go as far as Matt Carlino takes them. When he is defending, scoring, and distributing at a high level, as he has been for the last five or six games now, BYU has the ability to shift into another gear that not many teams can handle. That's finally happening with greater consistency now, and that's good because they will need it, especially with tough games against Santa Clara and Saint Mary's coming up in the next week.
Stray Thoughts:
• My offer still stands: If Brandon Davies ever dropsteps and scores with his left-hand, I will give him $5. It's the simplest post move in the book, but he refuses to do it for some reason, even though teams deliberately leave it open for him now. They watch film, so they know he's never going to do it.
• Aside from that, Davies had a pretty nice game — 19 points and 9 rebounds is never a shabby evening. I would still like to see him be a little more assertive with his moves, but that should come as his ankle continues to heal.
• Tyler Haws is a robot from the future, built for the sole purpose of scoring the basketball with ruthless efficiency. That is all.
• At first glance, it looks like Josh Sharp had a pretty lackluster game. He didn't score, going 0-for-3, and grabbed only 5 rebounds. But if you look a little closer, you'll see that four of those rebounds were offensive. Offensive rebounds and extra possessions were the only reason BYU was able to keep it close in the first half, and Sharp played a big role in that. So even though this wasn't his strongest effort, he stil found a way to contribute.
• Nate Austin is a similar situation. He grabbed 6 boards and scored 2 points in 15 minutes — not bad, but not great. However, if you watched the game, you saw how effective Nate's length was in the half-court trap. He anchored the back line, protecting the basket while still managing to get his long arms into the path of multiple Pepperdine passes. It was a really solid performance.
• Rose is clearly still trying to juggle his rotation to spread out the minutes and keep everyone happy. Twelve players got more than five minutes on Thursday, which is all well and good, but that probably won't happen much as we get closer to March. A few people's minutes are going to get cut, and it appears most likely to be Cory Calvert (who was the beneficiary of Carlino's foul trouble), Anson Winder, and Raul Delgado. Those three will probably compete for time going forward.
• That steal by Carlino and then the no-look, over-the-shoulder pass to Cusick on the break? Gorgeous.
• Cusick had been seeing fewer opportunities recently, but he made the most of his time against Pepperdine, playing his way into 20 minutes. He deserved it. Craig was active defensively and aggressive on offense, continually getting into the lane for lay-ups and floaters. He finished with 8 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steal — perfect production for a bench option.
• I know it worked out in this one, but something needs to be said about the slow starts. This is two games in a row now where BYU has limped out of the gates and gotten themselves in a hole. That's fine against the San Franciscos and Pepperdines of the world, because the Cougars possess the superior talent to come from behind and get the win, but it certainly won't work against Santa Clara or Saint Mary's this next week. If they come out flat in either of those games, they will lose by 20. It's high time to break that bad habit.
UP NEXT: BYU at Santa Clara, Saturday, 2:30 p.m. MST
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