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BYU Basketball: What we learned from another foul-filled win

By Shaun Gordon

RENO, NV - NOVEMBER 06: Connor Harding #44 of the Brigham Young Cougars shoots a free throw during the game between the Nevada Wolf Pack and the Brigham Young Cougars at Lawlor Events Center on November 6, 2018 in Reno, Nevada. (Photo by Jonathan Devich/Getty Images)
RENO, NV - NOVEMBER 06: Connor Harding #44 of the Brigham Young Cougars shoots a free throw during the game between the Nevada Wolf Pack and the Brigham Young Cougars at Lawlor Events Center on November 6, 2018 in Reno, Nevada. (Photo by Jonathan Devich/Getty Images) /
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In another game filled with whistles, BYU Basketball picked up their second road win in West Coast Conference play with an 87-76 victory over Pepperdine.

West Coast Conference officials certainly don’t read Lawless Republic.

In a game that featured 53 fouls and 68 free throws, BYU Basketball picked up an 87-76 road win at Pepperdine.

It wasn’t pretty, and the number of whistles completely destroyed any semblance of an offensive rhythm, but overall it was a solid outing from the Cougars.

Here are the biggest takeaways from the game:

Career Best

TJ Haws had a monster night, setting a career high with 34 points. He did it on 7-14 shooting and got to the free throw line 22 times.

He also added eight assists, including two nice alley-oops to Gavin Baxter, but also had six turnovers.

30-20

Not only did Haws finish with 34, but Yoeli Childs reached 20. The two teammates both made at least half of their shots, and when the two can combine for 50+ points on 50% shooting or better, this team won’t easily be stopped on offense.

Stingy Defense

The Cougars played arguably their best road defense of the season on Thursday night. They held the Waves to just 37.7% shooting, including a mere 30.8% from distance.

Yes, Pepperdine managed to score 76 points, but 22 of those came from the charity stripe thanks to the myriad of whistles.

Early Giveaways

BYU turned the ball over way too much early in the game. They gave it away on two of their first three possessions, and had 11 turnovers before halftime.

Fortunately they settled in and only gave it away five times after the break.

Dual Waves

Pepperdine’s high-scoring duo of Colbey Ross and Kameron Edwards combined for 46 of the Waves’ points (24 and 22 points respectively).

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Bench Production

The Cougar bench had one of their best games of the season. Zac Seljaas scored nine points, all in the first half, and Gavin Baxter added 13 points, six rebounds, and three blocks on perfect shooting.

In all, BYU’s bench outscored Pepperdine’s 26-9.

Right Back In It

The Cougars still struggle to hold onto leads, though. They let the Waves open the second half on a 15-5 run, completely erasing BYU’s cushion and taking the lead before the Cougars could settle down and retake the edge.

Five-Minute Mark

BYU is now 12-0 this season when leading at the five-minute mark of the second half. An interesting threshold to pay attention to as the season continues.

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