Barcello’s hot-shooting, record-setting night leads BYU over San Francisco

PROVO, Utah — In the second-to-last game of the regular season, Alex Barcello led BYU men’s basketball to a 79-73 win over San Francisco, setting a new school record for most 3-pointers made in a game without a miss.

Barcello scored a career-high of 29 points on 7-for-7 shooting from beyond the arc.

“Every shot, he shot with more and more arc," said BYU head coach Mark Pope. "He knew they were going in. He didn’t miss a shot the whole morning at shoot-around. He was shooting it higher and higher so it would take longer to get to the rim, so that all the fans could take it in. It was amazing!” 

The previous BYU record for most threes in a game without a miss was held by Brock Zylstra, who went 6-for-6 against USF in 2012, and Nathan Call, who went 6-for-6 against Utah in 1991.

Caleb Lohner led the way for BYU (18-5, 9-3) in the first half with a dominating performance, scoring 13 first-half points, a first-half career-high for him. He also had a team-high nine rebounds. In his last three games, Lohner has scored a combined 50 points.

BYU held USF to 38 percent shooting and only 16 points in the paint, while the Cougars shot 59 percent. The Dons only had three turnovers in the game, compared to 12 for BYU.

USF (10-12, 4-8) stayed close for the first 12 minutes of the game, as the teams had 13 lead changes during that span. BYU took over with 8:15 left in the half and held the lead for the remainder of the game.

BYU held USF’s second leading scorer, Khalil Shabazz, to a single point in the first half and most of the second, until the very end of the game, when he scored 11 points. Last year when the Dons and Cougars met in Provo, Shabazz had 16 points, and in his three career games against BYU, he averaged 26 points per game. San Francisco attempted to close in on the lead with 4:30 left in the second half with an 8-0 run. BYU kept the lead regardless, as Shabazz and Barcello exchanged threes.

In the second half, Gideon George scored nine points for the Cougars, compared to only two in the first 20 minutes. Four Cougars finished the night in double figures, including Barcello, Lohner, George, and Brandon Averette with 10. Averette also had a team-high five assists.

BYU will wrap up its regular season in the Marriott Center Saturday, Feb. 27 against Saint Mary’s for senior night. The matchup will air on ESPNU. The game will also be broadcast on the BYU Sports Networks on BYU Radio – Sirius XM 143/89.1 FM HD2 and KSL 102.7 FM/1160 AM. Fans will once again be present for only the second time this season.

Box Score
Postgame Notes & Quotes