BYU-SDSU Postgame Notes & Quotes

The following notes are from BYU's 66-60 win over San Diego State on Friday, Nov. 12, 2021, at the Marriott Center. 

ALL-TIME SERIES RESULTS: BYU leads 50-26

TEAM NOTES

First Half

BYU maintained the lead through most of the first with San Diego State keeping the game close at 32-30. The Cougars shot 46 percent going 12-of-26 from the field and 33 percent from 3-point range hitting 3-of-9. Senior Alex Barcello led all with nine points, while Fousseyni Traore and Te’Jon Lucas trailed close behind with seven points each. BYU and SDSU ended the half with seven turnovers each. BYU earned seven points off turnovers to SDSU’s four. The Aztecs shot 42 percent going 12-of-21 from the field and only 18 percent from 3-point range hitting 2-of-11.

Second Half

BYU held the lead once again through the majority of the half. However, SDSU kept within five until the final minute as the Cougars pulled ahead by six to close out the half. BYU struggled from three, ending the game 4-of-18 as well as shooting 39 percent from the field. The Cougars held strong defensively, holding the Aztecs to 39 percent from the field and only 14 percent from 3-point range. BYU was able to handle the ball well, allowing only four turnovers in the half and 11 overall.

Defense

Defense was strong on both sides of the ball, resulting in a low-scoring game between the Cougars and Aztecs. BYU had 29 defensive rebounds and capitalized on the 11 SDSU turnovers, resulting in 13 points. SDSU had 25 defensive rebounds and had eight points from BYU turnovers.  

Free Throw Shooting

The Cougars hit 18-of-23 for 78.3 percent from the line  in the game. In addition to Te’Jon Lucas’ 8-of-8 free throw performance, every BYU player kept their free throw percentage above 50 percent for the second week in a row. 

Alex Barcello had his seventh-consecutive 100 percent free throw showing. The senior from Chandler, Arizona has now made 35 consecutive free throws, 15-shy of the program-record set by Tyler Haws in 2012. Against the Aztecs, Barcello passed the mark of 32-straight set by Michael Smith in 1989 for the fourth-best mark all time.

San Diego State shot 47 percent from the charity stripe Friday night on 9-of-19 shooting.

PLAYER NOTES

Traore

Fousseyni Traore came off the bench scoring nine points, going 4-of-6 from the field and ending the night with eight rebounds and two assists. 

Barcello

Alex Barcello led the team in scoring for the second consecutive game with 17 points. He finished the game shooting 60 percent from both the field and 3-point range, hitting a late comer three to put the Cougars up, along with three assists and two rebounds.

Lucas

Te’Jon Lucus had his first double-digit scoring game as a Cougar with 13 points going 8-of-8 for free throws, with five assists and three rebounds.

Lohner

Caleb Lohner played a strong defensive game with eight rebounds, one of which was in the last few minutes of the game and held BYU to their lead.

Notable career highs/career firsts

Career-high points: Fousseyni Traore (9)

BYU-high points: Te’Jon Lucas (13), Seneca Knight (8)

BYU-high rebounds: Seneca Knight (6), Te'Jon Lucas (3) 

BYU-high assists: Te'Jon Lucas (5)

Career-high minutes: Fousseyni Traore (27), Atiki Ally Atiki (3)

BYU-high minutes: Te'Jon Lucas (32), Seneca Knight (24)

Career-high field goal attempts: Caleb Lohner (12), Fousseyni Traore (6)

COACH AND PLAYER QUOTES

Mark Pope

On San Diego State Matchup

“San Diego State was undefeated last year when they outrebounded opponents, and we knew that we had to win on the glass, which is saying something because this is an elite level rebounding team. I’m so proud of this 42 to 38, talk about our guys answering the bell and staying focused.”

“The second part that was important was protecting the ball and for us to play against San Diego State and only have 11 turnovers with only four in the second half with the pressure and the disruption and all the things they exert. To win this game we had to protect the glass and the ball and these guys did it.”

“We had the ability tonight to focus on what really mattered. I like that we can be 4-of-18 from the three and still beat an unbelievably talented, long, athletic, top 30 team.”

“This is an elite, NCAA game out here, no doubt about it. That’s as real as it gets.”

On shooting tonight

“You can’t control everything about shooting, what you can control is the shots you take and how you own them. The last 10 minutes of the game I felt great about it, we’re getting unbelievable shots and some of them didn’t fall today. But you know what great teams do on those nights when they don’t fall, they go and win anyway. Good teams may win when they make shots and lose when they don’t, but we’re not interested in being a good team, we’re interested in being a great team.”

On Alex Barcello

“This Alex Barcello is a pro. I’m not an authority on all things basketball, but I actually have some experience in the game, and he’s a pro, and he’s proven it every single night.”

“The most incredible thing about Alex right now is that he’s finding a way to lose himself and just enjoy this incredible experience. Just think about the last two games, most guys grab a couple of those clutch shots in a career, and Alex is just like ‘I’ll go now, I’ll do it now,’ it’s super humbling.”

On Fousseyni Traore

“We have a rookie out there holding down the fort. He is learning lessons, but he’s growing so fast and he’s going to be terrific for us.”

On defense against Matt Bradley

“When you have an epic scorer like that, it takes a lot of bodies to stop him and we did.” 

“It’s harder for an elite scorer to face a variety of different bodies. Seneca is giving you an entirely different look than Spencer and Spencer’s giving you an entirely different look from Gideon’s.”

On Te’Jon Lucas

“Te'jon Lucas did an unbelievable job. He is so special at understanding all the pieces on the floor on the defensive end. There were 3 or 4 possessions where Te’jon rotated guys on his own, reading that isolation and really helped us there.”

On playing Oregon next week

“We gotta get back to work. We did this for a purpose. There is a reason behind this schedule.” 

“Oregon is going to be a massive challenge, and we appreciate that.”

On signing day with Collin Chandler

“This signing day is a huge deal. It is a huge win for our team and for what these guys are building here.” 

“Collin came here and got to have a conversation with All-American Alex Barcello, who has been through it. He got to be with a team who is really trying to look inward all the time, and you can feel it.”

“Collin would not come here if our players had not built what they’ve  built.”

Alex Barcello

On Teammate Te’Jon Lucas

“It’s what Te’Jon does every day. He just throws dimes. He has great vision and such great awareness of the defense and where they are on the floor.”

On San Diego State’s Defense

“They are a really great team. They’re a tournament team. They are a team that is heavy in the gaps and they did not want the ball in our hands, but just staying with our offense and keeping with the flow was important. I think our team as a whole did a really good job being aware of that. We started off the game slow, but as the game went on, we continued to stick with each other and stick with our offense that works.”

On First Week of Games

“Starting out with two tournament teams and playing at the level we were in last game and tonight has been great. We want to play the best competition out there and that is exactly what our schedule was. It has been fun and it has been a battle in both games, but as a whole team we are hungry.” 

On Confidence in Team Shooting

“I’m really confident in our 3-point game. We shoot every day. It’s the first thing we do every practice after our warm-up and we get our reps up. The ball didn’t fall for us tonight, but our coaches always tell us you miss five, you make five. We are going to stay with it and keep owning our shot.”

On Crowd Energy 

“It is one of the best feelings that you get, playing in this Marriott Center, knowing that anyone going to the line to shoot has to deal with the ROC noise. It is special to be at a school with a fan base that is so committed and wants us to win so badly that they will do anything and everything that they can to distract the other team.”

On Caleb Lohner

“He has a great awareness of where the ball is going to come off the rim or off the glass and he just goes and gets it. We struggle with blocking him and getting out in practice because he has such great awareness.”

On Opportunity to Play Oregon

“It is a great opportunity. Oregon is a Top-15 team right now. They’re long, they’re athletic and they are really talented. It will definitely test us, but we are confident going into every game.”

Te’Jon Lucas

On Clutch Shots

“We do what we always do and take the best look. Alex is always coming through for us, and it could be another guy next game. We are not predicated on the idea that one person has to score or one person has to make a play. We like to take the best available play.”

On Playing in the Marriott Center

“It was great having the fans here. The ROC showed out all the way to the top and the energy was great, which is always a plus for us to have the crowd with us. It is good to have people in here to push us.”

On Coming Up with the Right Plays for the First Two Wins

“I think it shows maturity and that we are getting better each game. We have played two tournament teams and coming out of those on top shows how much we have been working and grinding, which is paying off during games. We do not take it lightly that we were able to secure this win tonight because San Diego State is a great team.”

On Coming to BYU for High Level of Competition

“Games like tonight and the Oregon game next week are what I came here for. We want to play the best of the best and compete with everybody at the top in the country and put them on notice. We played two tournament teams this week, and it doesn't get easier, so we have to come back tomorrow and get to work."