Recap: BYU 76, Pepperdine 51

Photo Credit: BYU Photo

On a snowy night in Provo, BYU trailed an inferior Pepperdine team by 5 points at halftime. The Cougars won the game by 25. And that pretty much tells the whole story of Thursday's West Coast Conference matchup at the Marriott Center.

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.

Report Card: BYU 77, Pepperdine 64

Brigham Young Cougars

77

Final

64

Pepperdine Waves

STARTERS

	Matt Carlino, PG 0-4 FG | 0-1 3PT | 0-0 FT | 1 REB | 2 AST | 0 PTS If Carlino was playing with the steely resolve of an experienced senior before, he's definitely looking his age now. Another really bad game for Matt, marred by immature decision-making and — as a result — decreased playing time. He took far too many ill-advised jumpers very early in the shot clock, and that just isn't going to fly on this team. At least he didn't turn the ball over.
	Brock Zylstra, SG 1-6 FG | 0-4 3PT | 3-5 FT | 7 REB | 1 AST | 5 PTS The Cougar guard line turned in another disgustingly unproductive shooting performance on Saturday, and Brockzylla (h/t Brett Hein of VTF) was part of the problem. He couldn't find his stroke yet again, but thankfully — unlike Carlino — Zylstra doesn't force bad shots when he's off. Despite his offensive struggles, Brock rebounded and defended well — and that goes a long way on a tough night.
	Charles Abouo, SF 5-8 FG | 2-4 3PT | 3-4 FT | 9 REB | 4 AST | 15 PTS A great first half for Charles, followed by a relatively quiet second. He scored the ball efficiently, hitting from all over the court, and he attacked the glass with his typical ferocity. Finishing with 15-9-4, it was just a very solid all-around performance by Abouo — exactly the kind of night BYU needs from him on a more consistent basis if they want to seriously challenge for a tournament bid.
	Noah Hartsock, PF 8-14 FG | 0-1 3PT | 4-4 FT | 3 REB | 1 AST | 20 PTS Noah did what Noah always does — and that means scoring 20 points like clockwork. He didn't shoot as efficiently against the Waves as he normally does, but he put his head down and went to work nonetheless. I am surprised that he only wound up with 3 rebounds though. It seems like he should be pulling down a few more at his size.
	Brandon Davies, C 7-14 FG | 0-0 3PT | 15-18 FT | 6 REB | 4 AST | 29 PTS Pure domination. That's what Brandon Davies did to Pepperdine — and generally what he has done to every WCC team this year. Nobody has been able to stop him yet, and the only way he doesn't go berserk offensively is if BYU doesn't get him enough touches. The Waves couldn't even begin to handle him — they sent #0 to the foul line 18 times. This is what a legitimate NBA prospect looks like.