Emery's 37 points not enough as BYU falls to Utah Valley 114-101

PROVO, Utah -- Despite high scoring from Nick Emery, BYU fell to Utah Valley 114-101 in the UCCU Crosstown Clash at the Marriott Center on Saturday.

"Utah Valley came in and played as well as any team I can remember coming in here and shooting," BYU head coach Dave Rose said. "They played on attack, aggressive, with confidence, and we had a really difficult time slowing them down. We got flustered. A real issue with our team in last two games is composure. That is a real challenge for a young team."

Emery tied his career-high 37 points while Eric Mika followed with 22 for BYU (4-2). Kyle Davis contributed 11 points and six rebounds, but it wasn’t enough to hold off the Wolverines (4-1).

Emery and TJ Haws each hit layups to put the Cougars on the board 4-0 before Utah Valley countered with a 3-pointer. Three free throws by Haws gave the Cougars a 16-11 advantage before five Wolverine 3-pointers propelled a 15-0 run.

L.J. Rose ended BYU’s three minute scoring drought with a jump shot to cut the Cougars' deficit to eight with 12:12 left in the first half.

Emery nailed a 3-pointer to cap off a 7-0 run as BYU brought the game within four, 31-27, with 9:51 on the clock. The Wolverines took the next eight points before Yoeli Childs halted Utah Valley’s scoring drive with a jumper as the Cougars trailed by 10 with 7:53 left.

An Emery layup fueled BYU’s return and cut the deficit to six. The Cougars continued to fight back and chip away at the Wolverines' advantage, 39-36, on a Childs dunk with 5:39 to go.

Braiden Shaw entered the game and helped BYU retake the lead on a jump shot. Utah Valley launched a 3-point shot at the buzzer to send them into halftime with a 54-52 advantage.

The opponents came out of the locker room trading baskets before Utah Valley's Isaac Nielson scored two jumpers to create distance for the Wolverines as they led 68-60 with 15:51 to go.

After neither team scored for over two minutes, Childs and Emery combined for seven points to close Utah Valley’s gap 70-67 with 12:37 left. A Guinn jump shot brought the game within two, 75-73, but BYU couldn’t hang on as Utah Valley went on a 10-0 run, rebuilding a decisive lead.

Mika dunked off a pass from Davis to try to put the Cougars back in action as they trailed 85-75 with 7:14 left on the clock. BYU struggled to keep up with the Wolverines as they led by as many as 16. Davis and Emery tried to keep BYU alive fueling the Cougars' next eight points, but it wasn’t enough to match Utah Valley's offensive drive.

Freshman Colby Leifson fought for final momentum on a 3-pointer before two Utah Valley free throws secured the 114-101 victory for the Wolverines.

Next up for BYU is an instate matchup against Utah State on Wednesday, Nov. 30, at the Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City at 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast on BYUtv and Cougar IMG Sports Network, 102.7 FM/1160 AM and BYU Radio – Sirius XM 143.

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