Nine-game winning streak snapped in overtime against Saint Mary's

PROVO, Utah – BYU men's basketball fell 74-64 in overtime against Saint Mary's on Saturday afternoon at the Marriott Center to snap a nine-game Cougar winning streak.

"Both teams competed really hard," BYU head coach Dave Rose said. "It came down to execution late. We had plenty of opportunities to find a way to win that game."

Yoeli Childs scored a career-high 29 points and grabbed 10 boards to lead BYU (12-3, 1-1 West Coast Conference). Elijah Bryant added 16 points.

The score was tied seven times before the Cougars eventually fell to the Gaels (13-2, 2-0).

BYU led 7-5 after five back-and-forth minutes, with four points and three rebounds from Childs.

Bryant stole a Saint Mary's pass and went the length of the court for a lay-in halfway through the first half. On the next possession, Childs buried a hook shot to tie the game at 17-17.

TJ Haws hit a 3-pointer with just under seven minutes on the clock to put the Cougars up 22-21. It marked their first lead since going up 7-5.

After an 8-0 run, BYU led 29-21 with four minutes left until halftime. The Gaels came back with their own 8-2 run to cut it to 31-29 as the buzzer sounded.

Childs and Bryant led the Cougars with 11 and nine points, respectively, at the half.

Jahshire Hardnett cut through the lane and lobbed it to Childs, who made a layup and was fouled in the process. He knocked down the free throw to put BYU up 38-30 three minutes into the second half.

Saint Mary's once again cut into the lead and hit a 3 to trail 40-37 and force a Cougar timeout with 13:37 on the clock.

Halfway through the second half, Hardnett made it 46-41 with a pair of free throws.

A Gael 3-pointer with around seven minutes left in the game made it just a one-point BYU lead. Childs scored on the next possession to tie his career high of 26 points and make it 52-49 for the Cougars. Bryant buried a 3 one minute later for a six-point lead.

Saint Mary's scored on three-straight possessions to lead 56-55 with just over three minutes left.

Childs set a new career high with a free throw that tied the game at 56-56. The Gaels answered with a free throw to go back up by one point, and then Childs knocked down two more to put the Cougars up 58-57.

Saint Mary's hit a 3-pointer to lead 60-58 with under two minutes left to play. Out of a timeout, Haws scored on a nice move to the hoop to tie the game.

BYU called a timeout with 20 seconds left and the scored tied at 60-60. Zac Seljaas got off a 3-point attempt at the buzzer but drew iron to send the game to overtime.

The Gaels outscored the Cougars 14-4 in the extra period to win 74-64.

BYU plays its first road WCC contest on Thursday at San Francisco. That game begins at 8 p.m. PST and features a live stream on NBC Sports California and radio broadcasts on KSL (1160 AM and 102.7 FM) and BYU Radio (Sirius XM 143).

Player Notes

Yoeli Childs scored a career-best 29 points and added 10 rebounds. It was his second-straight double-double, seventh of the season and 12th of his career. Childs has scored in double figures in 13-straight games and 14 times this season.

Payton Dastrup tied his career high with two blocks while adding three points and five rebounds.

TJ Haws finished with five assists, his seventh game this season with five-plus assists.

Elijah Bryant totaled 16 points, three rebounds, five assists and two steals. It was his third game with five-plus assists this season. Bryant has also hit a 3-pointer in every game this season.

Quotes

BYU coach Dave Rose

"I thought it was a really competitive game – great atmosphere, and the crowd was terrific for a mid-afternoon game during Christmas break. It was loud and electric and I think both teams responded to it. It gives us a pretty good benchmark of where we are and we’ll move forward and get ready for next week.”

“Sometimes you compete and you go after it, and you just don’t get the results that you want. I think that’s how you’ll describe this game because the guys played hard. We played hard enough to win; we just didn’t finish it off.”

What happened in overtime?

"Their execution was better, and we missed a couple of shots right at the rim. For the most part, we got the shots that we wanted and then we got in a little hurry trying to make two or three plays at once. Then we settled down for a little bit, but they outscored us 14-4."

TJ Haws

“They’re a very good team. They’re very experienced. They have a lot of talent and they’re very poised. They made very tough plays down the stretch that gave them the edge in the end.”

"Give them credit, but I think we’re learning and I wouldn’t doubt us down the road."

Yoeli Childs

“Defensively we weren’t as locked down as we were earlier in the game. Toward the end they were going on runs, and we couldn't get those second and third stops in a row.”

“The most important thing we learned is that we need to be consistent throughout the whole game, and we need to continue to take away what teams are good at.”

Saint Mary's coach Randy Bennett

"It was a great college basketball game and fun to be a part of it. We were able to hit a few big shots and get some stops at the end. The way that game went, it probably would have been tied again if we played five more minutes. We just hung in there and made our run at the right time."

"Our seniors were big. A couple of them were well-defended by BYU the whole game, but hit big shots when they needed to. That's the difference in having senior leadership."

How was this game different than last year's games against BYU?

"BYU is better this year. They're grittier on defense and more patient on offense. They're less selfish. They're playing well, and we feel fortunate to get out of here with a win."

File Attachments

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