BYU basketball preps for high-octane Nevada offense in 2nd of 3 straight Mountain West matchups


Save Story
Leer en español

Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

PROVO — Dalton Nixon remembers everything surrounding the Cougars’ game at Nevada last year.

The Wolf Pack were ranked in the AP Top 10, and to play that kind of opponent on the road in the season opener was invaluable — even in a losing effort.

Nixon remembers the Martin brothers, Caleb and Cody; he remembers Jordan Caroline and the senior-heavy team. He remembers the Nevada squad freshly removed from the Sweet 16, and he remembers the stinging 86-70 loss.

This year’s return trip to Provo doesn’t have any of that Wolf Pack.

But it has Steve Alford, who replaced Eric Musselman as head coach; and it has Jazz Johnson, the high-scoring guard who transferred to Reno from Portland.

And it has the attention of BYU (7-4) as Nevada (7-3) takes a five-game winning streaking into the Marriott Center for a Tuesday night showdown (7 p.m. MST, ESPNU) for the Cougars' second of three straight Mountain West opponents.

“That team last year was a really experienced, great team,” Nixon said. “This team this year has a few returners and some guys we’ve seen before. But it will be a good challenge for us. We’re looking forward to an opportunity to play another good team.”

How to watch, stream, listen:
College Hoops: Nevada (7-3) at BYU (7-4)
When: 7 p.m. MST
TV: ESPNU
Radio: BYU Radio 107.9 FM /KSL 1160 AM, 102.7 FM
Streaming: WatchESPN

Johnson had 12 points in 24 minutes off the bench in last year's game at Lawlor Events Center, his first with the Wolf Pack after spending two years with the Pilots. He went on to reach double figures in 20 of 33 games in which he played, including one start, and returns to Nevada as the team’s leading scorer for his senior season.

But the 5-foot-10, 180-pound guard picked up right where he left off, averaging a team-best 18.3 points on 44 percent shooting per game, including a 48.1 percent mark from 3-point range. That leads a quartet of high-scoring guards in Jalen Harris (17.8 ppg), Lindsey Drew (13.4) and Nisre Zouzoua (10.7 ppg) all averaging double digits for an offense that averages 79.6 points per game.

Add to it Alford — who signed a 10-year, $11.6-million contract with Nevada after a highly successful career that took him to successful runs at Iowa, New Mexico and UCLA — and the Wolf Pack seem to return nearly as much talent as they lost.

It’s why Nevada is on a five-game winning streak, beating opponents by an average of 20 points, including Saturday’s 100-85 win over Air Force in the team’s Mountain West opener.

“He’s a great coach, man,” BYU coach Mark Pope said, repeating it for emphasis. “He’s a really, really good coach.

“It’s unbelievable what Nevada has done ever since Trent Johnson some 20 years ago. He fits into that group exactly.”

But Jazz Johnson is the motor to the Wolf Pack’s offense in the first season under Alford, the former New Mexico and UCLA coach who took over in Reno after Musselman was hired at Arkansas.

He’s also the type of guard the Cougars haven’t seen yet, and that makes Pope nervous.

His players agree.

“Someone who flies off screens like he does, and catch and shoot, is someone that we haven’t really seen,” Nixon said. “It’s gonna be a good challenge for us, and I think our guards will have a huge responsibility in stopping him. But it will definitely be a team effort to guard their guards.”

Related stories

Most recent BYU Cougars stories

Related topics

BYU CougarsSports
KSL.com BYU and college sports reporter

ARE YOU GAME?

From first downs to buzzer beaters, get KSL.com’s top sports stories delivered to your inbox weekly.
By subscribing, you acknowledge and agree to KSL.com's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

KSL Weather Forecast