Recap: BYU 82, Santa Clara 64

Photo Credit: Getty

It's only natural for a BYU fan like myself to be cautious in my expectations of BYU Basketball. I had high hopes for this team, but after some ugly losses to the better programs on our non-conference slate, I returned to my status quo pessimism.

So it was no surprise that I was worried about this road contest against the Broncos of Santa Clara. After all, they had played Duke down to the wire in Durham and given Gonzaga all they could handle. Also, BYU has been troubled by teams that shoot well from outside and Santa Clara's Kevin Foster is the WCC's all-time leader in three-pointers made. So factor that with BYU's slow starts in the last two conference games and you have the reasoning behind my worries.

These concerns were replaced with a new-found sense of optimism as the Cougars were able to pull away in the second half and score an 82-64 victory. I came into the game a Debbie Downer and left seeing the glass half-full. What was the reasoning behind my change of heart? It was the reminder that Dave Rose is a very good basketball coach.

Three-Man Weave: At The Halfway Point

Photo Credit: BYU Photo

BYU opened their West Coast Conference slate with a dominating win over Loyola Marymount last night, getting the final and most crucial portion of their schedule underway with a bang.  The Cougars have just 16 regular season games left and a hefty amount of work left to do to earn themselves an NCAA tournament bid.

As such, we decided this would be as a good a time as any to bring back one of my favorite Post-Jimmer features — the Three-Man Weave, in which three commentators from throughout Cougar Nation will offer their opinions and analysis on three BYU basketball-related issues for your reading pleasure. For today's installment, I am fortunate to be joined by Ben Wagner, sports director for BYU Radio and a Post-Jimmer contributor, and Scott Gower, whom you Twitter-inclined folks may know as @cougaracity.

Now, without further ado...

Recap: BYU 92, Loyola Marymount 51

Photo Credit: BYU Photo

Boy, that escalated quickly. I mean, that really got out of hand fast.

Behind their most impressive all-around performance of the season, BYU repeatedly bludgeoned Loyola Marymount right up until the final buzzer sounded on Thursday night, walking away with a dominating 41-point win in their first game of West Coast Conference play, 92-51.

It all just worked for the Cougars in this one — the offense finally started clicking on all cylinders, shots started falling for once, and the boys in home whites cranked up the defensive heat, holding the Lions to a paltry 30.8 percent from the floor. It was as in-sync and functional as I've seen the team this year, and the performance was made even more special because of the opponent.

Loyola Marymount isn't the Little Sisters of the Poor. This a good program — one that beat BYU by 14 points at the Marriott Center in their last meeting. (Think the Cougars remembered that one?) They were essentially the same team this year, with nearly all of their key personnel returning. So this wasn't the Cougars beating up on yet another cream puff D-II team.

Pre-Game Primer: BYU vs. Virginia Tech

EnergySolutions Arena

Salt Lake City, Utah

Time: Saturday, 12:00 p.m. MST

TV: ESPNU

What To Watch For:

Wherefore Art Thou, Raul? Junior college transfer Raul Delgado arrived in Provo with a lot of fanfare, highly touted as a shooter and perimeter defender. However, in the early portion of the season, it appeared that many of those skills had been lost in his transition to the faster, more physical Division I game. As a result, Delgado rarely got off the bench. But then a few games ago, searching for any answer to shake up his team's relatively poor string of performances, coach Dave Rose decided to give him a chance — and Raul has made that decision look pretty smart. After a slow start, the newcomer has posted impressive performances in his last two games, scoring 7 and 11 points, respectively. He has done it by shooting efficiently, including a blistering 57 percent from beyond the arc — something this offensively challenged BYU team desperately needs — while also showing flashes of that much-ballyhooed defensive prowess. Will Delgado's hot streak continue? We will find out on Saturday, when his recent spate of performances will almost certainly earn him a good chunk of minutes off the bench. It's up to him to continue proving Rose right.

Recap: BYU 61, Utah 58

Photo Credit: BYU Photo

The rivalry is alive again. Don't say I didn't try to warn you.

BYU edged out a tight 61-58 win over Utah on Saturday night, rallying from a sizable first half deficit to take the lead in the closing minutes. Tyler Haws and Brandon Davies both struggled to find a rhythm against the Utes' physical defense, which left the much maligned Matt Carlino to pick up the slack — and he rose to the occasion in a big way.

Carlino came to play in one of the Cougars' most intense games of the year, finally breaking out of a season-long slump (or, more accurately, a miniature ice age) to rack up 19 points and 5 assists. With Haws and Davies effectively taken out of the play for long stretches at a time, he was the only Cougar player to shoot better than 50 percent from the floor, going 5-for-10 from deep and 7-for-13 overall.

This was the game that the Carlino believers (including yours truly, the president of the Matt Carlino Fan Club) knew the sophomore guard had inside of him. To be sure, he has been terrible at times this season — the weekend in Brooklyn comes readily to mind. But he has also made huge improvements to his all-around game, adjustments that were obscured in the minds of many casual fans by his poor shooting.

Recap: BYU 85, Montana 60

Photo Credit: BYU Photo

It's amazing what happens when you play a little defense. BYU found that out first-hand Wednesday night, using their first really solid defensive outing of the season to create offensive opportunities on their way to an 85-60 victory over Montana in Salt Lake City.

If the Cougars' main problem so far has been defending the perimeter, they showed great improvement against the Grizzlies. Their closeouts were more under control, leaving them in better position to move laterally to cut off dribble penetration. With a few exceptions, BYU was able to keep Montana's guards almost entirely out of the lane, and the visitors from the north notched just 16 points in the paint on the evening as a result.

Furthermore, because the guards could not penetrate deep into the heart of the defense, the Cougars' back line did not have to rotate over to help protect the basket, allowing them to stay home and successfully challenge perimeter shooters when the ball was inevitably kicked it. Montana still got some looks from three — and even made a few of them — but they simply weren't as high quality as the Grizzlies would have preferred. As such, they shot only 37.5 percent from deep, rather than the 46.5 percent they had been averaging for the year. This was an excellent all-around effort from BYU on the defensive side of the ball.

Pre-Game Primer: BYU vs. Montana

EnergySolutions Arena

Salt Lake City, Utah

Time: Wednesday, 7:00 p.m. MST

TV: BYUtv

What To Watch For:

Guarding The Three-Point Line. Let's get this out of the way up front: Montana can flat-out shoot the basketball. End of story. The Grizzlies are currently third in the nation in three-point percentage, converting 46.5 percent of their attempts as a team. That is staggeringly good — all of which poses a problem to be solved by BYU. The Cougars have obviously struggled to guard the three-point line this season, an issue that — as I pointed out here — largely stems from an inability to stop dribble penetration, causing defenders to have to rotate and shooters to be left open. If ever there were a game where strong closeouts and solid perimeter defense were especially important, it is this one. If BYU lets Montana's guards into the paint on a regular basis, the rest of the squad will likely be knocking down open looks from deep all night long. These are good shooters, and they will make shots, which means the Cougar guards absolutely have to move their feet and stay in front of their respective men on defense. Perhaps this is the time to finally bump up Anson Winder's playing time.

Report Card: Gonzaga 74, BYU 63

Brigham Young Cougars

63

Final

74

Gonzaga Bulldogs

STARTERS

	Matt Carlino, PG 7-23 FG | 3-9 3PT | 1-3 FT | 2 REB | 3 AST | 18 PTS Carlino is definitely a freshman — and that comes with its ebbs and flows. Matt carried BYU through a dismal first half offensively. However, he also forced bad shots down the stretch when he should have been feeding the red-hot Davies. Those costly mistakes may have snuffed out any possibility of a comeback, but BYU likely wouldn't have been in the game in the first place without Carlino's efforts.
	Anson Winder, SG 2-5 FG | 1-3 3PT | 0-0 FT | 1 REB | 0 AST | 5 PTS Anson didn't light the world on fire tonight, but he was solid. He played great defense and didn't turn the ball over, which is more than we can say for some people. (coughZylstracough) Winder was inexplicably nonexistent for much of the second half before Rose reinserted him in the closing minutes — where he promptly scored five points. There is a lesson in here somewhere...
	Charles Abouo, SF 4-13 FG | 1-4 3PT | 1-3 FT | 10 REB | 0 AST | 10 PTS Abouo is often simultaneously maddening and essential. He is capable of doing some of the dumbest things imaginable — and he does them frequently — but then turning around to get a key steal or grab a big rebound the next time down the floor. He made a few too many dumb mistakes tonight, but at least he rebounded and defended well. Say what you will about him, but Charles always plays hard.
	Noah Hartsock, PF 0-0 FG | 0-0 3PT | 0-0 FT | 1 REB | 0 AST | 0 PTS A sad night. No other way to put it. Courageously, Noah tried to gut it out despite playing with what looked like an artificial leg. He only lasted 7 minutes. It was abundantly clear that he just couldn't move well and was in a state of perpetual discomfort. He couldn't be effective, and the team suffered mightily as a result. Cougar fans need to hope against hope that Hartsock's sprain heals, like, now.
	Brandon Davies, C 8-18 FG | 0-0 3PT | 7-10 FT | 10 REB | 1 AST | 23 PTS After a spotty first half, Davies really turned on the jets in the second and dominated Gonzaga in the paint. As BYU made their final run down the stretch, Brandon stepped up to the plate and took over the game. It was a true "leadership moment." Of course, the guards stopped passing him the ball shortly thereafter, but we won't dwell on that. Davies was huge. (Also, he had 6 steals. Six!)

Report Card: BYU 85, San Francisco 84

Brigham Young Cougars

85

Final

84

San Francisco Dons

STARTERS

	Matt Carlino, PG 13-19 FG | 4-7 3PT | 0-1 FT | 4 REB | 3 AST | 30 PTS Obviously the star of the evening. Carlino started off hot (and I mean Jimmer hot), matching his career high with 22 — in the first half! Matt struggled reading the defense a bit in the second half, but he played solid defense (4 steals) and showed up when it counted most. While it might get overshadowed by fan anger about clock management, Carlino's game-winner was monumentally clutch.
	Anson Winder, SG 3-5 FG | 0-0 3PT | 2-2 FT | 6 REB | 2 AST | 8 PTS Winder doesn't have to score much to be extremely valuable to the Cougars. He adds plenty of value as a excellent defender who understands the game and picks his spots wisely on offense. His coast-to-coast drive (finished with a deft Eurostep move) was a thing of beauty. The decision to swap Anson into the starting five for Zylstra may be Rose's smartest of the season.
	Charles Abouo, SF 6-11 FG | 3-6 3PT | 0-0 FT | 6 REB | 4 AST | 15 PTS Oh, Charles. You got a little excited, didn't you? With time running out quickly and BYU nursing a small lead, Abouo hoisted up a few ill-advised deep balls very early in the shot clock, giving USF the extra possessions it needed to crawl back into the game. Not so good. However, Charles actually played extremely well up to that point, so I can only justify knocking him down half a grade. But if BYU had lost...
	Noah Hartsock, PF 7-13 FG | 0-0 3PT | 2-2 FT | 2 REB | 1 AST | 16 PTS This was a tough one for Hartsock. BYU shot only 9 free throws as a team the entire night, so obviously the whistles weren't going his way down low. He also had a surprising amount of trouble anticipating double-teams in the post, which I wouldn't have expected. But at the end of the day, Noah is still Noah and he made some tough shots down the stretch, providing a huge boost to the sputtering Cougs.
	Brandon Davies, C 3-7 FG | 0-0 3PT | 0-0 FT | 5 REB | 2 AST | 6 PTS Davies very well may be the most dominating post player in the WCC, but that doesn't matter much if he can't stay on the floor. He struggled with fouls early again Thursday, and played only 21 minutes as a result. (When he was in the game, Brandon tried his best Magic Johnson impression with mixed results. It was weird.) All in all, not his best game, but not a complete disaster either. Simply below par.

Report Card: BYU 79, Portland 60

Brigham Young Cougars

79

Final

60

Portland Pilots

STARTERS

	Matt Carlino, PG 3-11 FG | 0-4 3PT | 7-8 FT | 4 REB | 4 AST | 13 PTS The Cougars' shooting woes continued on Saturday, and Carlino was no exception. For some reason, Matt just can't find his stroke. Nevertheless, he continued to do a good job attacking the rim and got himself to the free throw line for easy points. He continues to commit lazy defensive lapses occasionally, but he's getting better on that end of the floor. All in all, not bad for an off night.
	Anson Winder, SG 0-2 FG | 0-2 3PT | 0-0 FT | 0 REB | 1 AST | 0 PTS Rose went with Winder at shooting guard for the second game in a row, but didn't get the same results. It's not that Anson did anything poorly, he was just a non-factor. He's not bringing anything stupendous to the table on offense and, against a mediocre team like Portland, his lock-down defensive abilities aren't as vital. It will be interesting to see if Rose sticks with him in the starting five next week.
	Charles Abouo, SF 1-6 FG | 1-4 3PT | 4-6 FT | 7 REB | 0 AST | 7 PTS Abouo spent a large amount of the game on the bench after picking up a multitude of stupid fouls. When he was actually on the floor, Charles brought great hustle and rebounding like he always does, but he also brought some really bad shot selection. The Cougars would benefit greatly from him making smarter choices on both sides of the ball.
	Noah Hartsock, PF 0-6 FG | 0-0 3PT | 12-12 FT | 4 REB | 0 AST | 12 PTS A weird night for Noah, who didn't make a field goal for the first time in... well, as long as I can remember. A lot of that had to do with him going to the bench early after picking up two quick fouls, and the rest had to do with him drawing a foul on pretty much every touch in the second half. Still, he made all 12 of his free throws and, as is the Hartsock way, took care of business when BYU needed him.
	Brandon Davies, C 7-13 FG | 0-0 3PT | 4-10 FT | 13 REB | 4 AST | 18 PTS A standout performance for Davies, who was literally all over the place. In addition to a strong offensive showing, Brandon also racked up 8 steals — a huge number by any standard, but unheard of for a big man. There's always room for improvement (he led the team in turnovers yet again and missed a boatload of free throws), but Brandon's excellent, balanced play was the driving force behind this win.

Report Card: BYU 83, Gonzaga 73

Brigham Young Cougars

83

Final

73

Gonzaga Bulldogs

STARTERS

	Matt Carlino, PG 7-13 FG | 1-2 3PT | 3-4 FT | 0 REB | 5 AST | 18 PTS This was Carlino's best game, hands down. This is the kind of game Rose wants him to play every time out. He was a floor general on offense and he pushed (or, more accurately, sprinted) the ball up the floor on every possession, which created scoring opportunities for himself and others. In a head-to-head with Gonzaga's celebrated freshman Kevin Pangos, Carlino won this round.
	Anson Winder, SG 4-8 FG | 1-4 3PT | 1-2 FT | 4 REB | 5 AST | 10 PTS This was the surprise move of the night, with Winder getting the start over Zylstra. Anson responded with a very solid effort. Though he looked a little sloppy handling the ball at times, he still put together a solid 10-4-5 game (somehow with no turnovers!), in addition to his invaluable lock-down defense. Here's to hoping he's rewarded with more opportunities in the future.
	Charles Abouo, SF 1-4 FG | 0-1 3PT | 2-2 FT | 1 REB | 1 AST | 2 PTS This was a tough one for Charles, mostly because he picked up a few quick fouls at the hands of the whistle-happy WCC refs and was taken out of the game — both figuratively and literally —from the very beginning. He never really got into rhythm on offense, but his defensive hounding of Pangos (at least when Abouo wasn't on the bench) was critical in keeping the freshman under-wraps.
	Noah Hartsock, PF 10-19 FG | 0-0 3PT | 4-5 FT | 14 REB | 3 AST | 24 PTS Noah may not look like much, but man is he good. After all the talk about which team had the superior post play, Hartsock answered the question emphatically tonight. After a tough shooting start, he heated up at the beginning of the second half and never looked back, leaving a pile of Zags along the way. A great performance from a great player in a huge game. What more can you ask?
	Brandon Davies, C 7-12 FG | 0-0 3PT | 1-3 FT | 5 REB | 1 AST | 15 PTS Davies also struggled with foul trouble throughout the game, but he made the most of his time on the floor. When he did get post touches, Brandon absolutely abused the Zags' Robert Sacre. He made him look downright silly, while also picking up his typical 2-3 charges for the night. A strong performance, especially considering the foul situation. Now if we could just figure out how to limit his turnovers...