BYU Beats Utah, Moves to 6-0

BYU overcame a sloppy first half and turned things around the final 20 minutes to beat Utah 75-64 Saturday night in the Huntsman Center.

Rebounding was the key for BYU, as BYU outrebounded the Utes 45-28 and had 18 offensive boards compared to Utah’s 6. Caleb Lohner had 12 rebounds — 5 of them offensive — to go along with 12 points. Utah came into the game #6 nationally in offensive rebounding percentage and 13th nationally in defensive rebounding percentage, but they were no match for BYU’s long and athletic wings and front line. Lohner waved goodbye to his former team’s student section after his nice night.

Four BYU players were in double figures, led by 18 from Te’Jon Lucas and 17 by Alex Barcello. Gavin Baxter continued his strong start with 14 points and 2 blocks. Fousseyni Traore had only 2 points off the bench, but had 7 rebounds and played good defense on Utah star big man Branden Carlson.

Te’Jon Lucas was a major spark for BYU, lifting the BYU offense with his dribble penetration after BYU’s offense had a stagnant first half. Lucas is really starting to find his fit alongside Barcello, which is a big development moving forward.

BYU moves to 6-0 with the win and has a pair of road games next week at UVU and Missouri State.