Game 14 Notes - BYU Plays at Weber State Wednesday

Coming off a loss to Oklahoma State at the Touchstone Energy All-College Classic, BYU (10-3) stays on the road to face in-state foe Weber State (9-5) Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Dee Events Center in Ogden. The game is not being televised.

The radio broadcast can be heard on KSL Newsradio 1160 and the Cougar Sports Network, beginning with a one-hour pregame show. KSL's Greg Wrubell will call the play-by-play action with Mark Durrant providing game analysis. Live Internet audio links are available on the basketball page of the official BYU athletics website, byucougars.com, and via BYU Radio on the Dish Network and at byuradio.org.

Leading the overall series 18-9, BYU has won the last three games vs. Weber State, including the last outing in Ogden, but is 4-9 in Ogden vs. the Wildcats. The Cougars look to end a three-game losing streak away from the Marriott Center against a Wildcat team that is 3-0 in the Dee Events Center this season. BYU won its first four games away from home this year before suffering losses at Creighton, San Francisco and Oklahoma State. The Cougars have received strong recent play from 6-foot-11 center Rafael Araujo, who has recorded a double-double in three of the last four games. Weber State is coming off back-to-back losses for the first time this year, both on the road at Tennessee-Chattanooga and at Utah. The Wildcats have already played 11 games away from home, going 6-5, and are led by talented guard Jermaine Boyette, who is averaging 20.4 points while shooting 56 percent from the floor on more than 11 field goal attempts per game.

GAME #14 FAST FACTS

BYU (10-3, 0-0 MWC) @ WEBER STATE (9-5, 0-0 BIG SKY)

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 8, 2003

DEE EVENTS CENTER (12,000)

OGDEN, UTAH

7 p.m. MST

Coaches:

BYU, Steve Cleveland (95-72 in sixth year; same overall)

WSU, Joe Cravens (60-40 in fourth year; 115-92 in eighth year overall)

Series:

BYU leads, 18-9; Last: BYU won 65-47 last season in Provo on Dec. 5, 2001

TV: None

Radio:

KSL Newsradio 1160 AM (Cougar Sports Network)

Pregame Air Times: 6 p.m. MST

Play-by-Play: Greg Wrubell

Game Analyst: Mark Durrant

Web:

Live audio link available at byucougars.com/basketball_m/ (select 2002-03 schedule) and on KSL.com and byuradio.org or via BYU Radio on Dish Network.

BYU's Probable Starters:

Pos. # Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PPG RPG

F 3 Mark Bigelow 6-7 195 Jr. 12.8 3.3 2.2 apg

F 52 Jared Jensen 6-9 250 So. 8.8 3.6

C 55 Rafael Araujo 6-11 265 Jr. 10.5 8.8

G 2 Travis Hansen 6-6 210 Sr. 15.5 4.6 3.1 apg

G 24 Kevin Woodberry 6-0 170 Jr. 6.2 1.8 2.4 apg

BYU Reserves:

Pos. # Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PPG RPG

G 14 Ricky Bower 6-4 185 Jr. 5.8 1.8 2.0 apg

F 15 John Allen 6-7 215 So. 3.5 1.5

F 5 Jake Shoff 6-9 265 Jr. 3.3 2.3

G 10 Terry Nashif 5-10 165 Fr. 2.7 1.5 1.6 apg

G 4 Luiz Lemes 6-3 180 Jr. 1.6 0.9

C 40 Dan Howard 7-0 225 Jr. 1.6 0.8

F 32 Bart Jepsen 6-9 235 Jr. 1.4 1.0

WEBER STATE WILDCATS

Weber State returns four starters from last year's 18-11 team that finished third in the Big Sky Conference. The Wildcats are off to a 9-5 start despite having played 11 of their 14 games away from home, including the last six contests. Beginning three straight home games Wednesday against BYU, Weber State looks to build on its 3-0 record in the Dee Events Center this year, not having played at home since defeating Wisconsin-Green Bay (78-72) on Dec. 14. The two prior home wins were over Nevada (73-70) on Nov. 30th and Montana State (94-58) on Nov. 27th. The Wildcats have neutral court wins over UC Santa Barbara (91-82), Ball State (72-67), Morris Brown (65-56) and Maine (69-66) and a loss to North Texas (76-72). They have defeated Portland (78-71) and Boise State (66-65) on their courts and had setbacks at Alaska Fairbanks (77-65) and at Utah State (66-64) before suffering their first back-to-back defeats of the year in the last two games at Tennessee-Chattanooga (75-63) and at Utah (72-58). Weber State is led by talented guard Jermaine Boyette, who is averaging 20.4 points while shooting 56 percent from the floor on more than 11 field goal attempts per game. Guard John Hamilton adds 13.5 points, primarily off the bench, having started just once this year. Slobodan Ocokoljic is averaging a team-leading 5.2 rebounds while contributing 8.0 points in the five games he has played this year, including three starts. He led the Wildcats with 17 points and four rebounds in their last outing at Utah. Weber State shoots 44.8 percent from the floor, 31.1 percent on threes, and 73.4 percent from the line while allowing its opponents to shoot 46.1 percent on field goals, including 35.2 percent on threes. The Wildcats score 72.0 ppg while yielding 69.5 and grab 33.0 rebounds while its opponents have combined for 34.3. They have dished out an average 13.1 assists while commiting 13.3 turnovers, and have forced 16.2 opponent miscues per game.

WEBER STATE'S PROBABLE STARTERS

POS. # NAME HT. WT. YR. PPG RPG

F 2 Nic Sparrow 6-4 205 Jr. 11.9 8.2

F 5 Slobodan Ocokoljic 6-8 235 Jr. 8.0 5.2

C 35 Stephan Bachmann 6-10 245 Sr. 8.7 3.5

G 3 Jermaine Boyette 6-2 185 Sr. 20.4 2.4

G 43 Stevie Morrison 6-0 215 Sr. 5.5 2.2

SERIES NOTES

BYU leads the series, 18-9. The Cougars have won the last three games against Weber State, including 84-75 in the last meeting in Ogden two years ago. BYU won last year in Provo, 65-47. In Weber State's last win the Wildcats jumped out to a big early lead and held on to win in Ogden, 83-80, on Nov. 19, 1998. The game was the second college game for BYU's Mark Bigelow and the only game he has not started. He did play 32 minutes off the bench, going 7-12 from the floor for 19 points while dishing out a career-high six assists but BYU's comeback fell just short. The Cougars and Wildcats first played during the 1973-74 season with BYU winning a close contest, 77-76, in Provo. With the exceptions of the 1978-79 and 1979-80 seasons, the two teams have played each other on an annual basis. The Cougars have not fared well on the road during the series, having suffered all nine losses in the series in the 13 meetings in Ogden. BYU is 14-0 vs. Weber State in Provo. The Series has had four overtime contests, two at each venue with the home team coming out on top in all four extra-period contests. The last overtime game was an 83-77 Wildcat win in Ogden Dec. 8, 1992.

SERIES BREAKDOWN

Overall Series Record: BYU leads 18-9

BYU Record in Provo: 14-0

BYU Record in Ogden: 4-9

BYU Record at Neutral Sites: 0-0

BYU Record under Steve Cleveland: 4-1

BYU Record in Overtime Games: 2-2* (0-2 Rd, 2-0 Hm)

*BYU is 0-1 in 2OT games, lost in Ogden in 1983

Last Overtime Game: 1992, lost at Weber St, 77-83

Longest BYU Win Streak: 3, four times (1978-81, 85-

87, 89-91, 99-present)

Longest Weber State Win Streak: 1 (9 times)

Largest BYU Margin of Victory: 33, 104-71 in 1987

Largest Weber State Margin of Victory: 21, 96-75 in 1976

Most Points Scored by BYU: 104 in 1987

Most Points Scored by Weber State: 97 in 1996

Date Opponent Score W/L

11-30-73 Weber State 77-76 W

12-6-74 at Weber State 63-76 L

12-20-75 Weber State 89-80 W

11-27-76 at Weber State 75-96 L

1-3-78 Weber State 81-76 W

12-23-80 at Weber State 85-78 W

12-81 Weber State 63-55 W

1-6-83 at Weber State (2OT) 81-84 L

1-7-84 Weber State (OT) 86-81 W

12-8-84 at Weber State 79-87 L

12-28-85 Weber State (OT) 88-86 W

12-18-86 at Weber State 84-69 W

12-11-87 Weber State* 104-71 W

12-1-88 at Weber State 78-80 L

11-28-89 Weber State 81-65 W

11-29-90 at Weber State 69-57 W

12-21-91 Weber State 81-68 W

12-8-92 at Weber St. (OT) 77-83 L

12-21-93 Weber State 92-79 W

12-21-94 at Weber State 74-86 L

12-12-95 Weber State 91-86 W

12-4-96 at Weber State 80-97 L

12-12-97 Weber State* 83-70 W

11-19-98 at Weber State 80-83 L

12-11-99 Weber State* 66-53 W

12-28-00 at Weber State 84-75 W

12-5-01 Weber State 65-47 W

*Cougar Classic

LAST YEAR - BYU DEFENSE SHINES IN WIN OVER WEBER STATE

PROVO -- Defense was the key for BYU as the Cougars extended their home win streak to 22 with a 65-47 win over Weber State. BYU led the entire game, and the closest the Wildcats came was a tie at 2-2 in the first half. The Cougars established a 14-point lead at the half, thanks to four three-pointers. In the second half the defense allowed only 18 points after surrendering 29 to the Wildcats in the first half. The Cougar defense came up big, allowing only 47 points, the least amount of points allowed during the season (UNLV also held to 47 points). BYU's defense shut down the Wildcat penetration, leaving Weber State with a 35 percent shot percentage and only 2-for-12 from behind the arc. In a team-leading 39 minutes of play, Matt Montague scored eight points, all in the first half, and recorded a game-high seven assists. Eric Nielsen and Mark Bigelow led the Cougars in scoring with 14 points each. Bigelow made two three-pointers and pulled down seven rebounds, including three offensive rebounds. Nielsen led BYU with eight rebounds and made his first three-pointer of the season. Freshmen Jimmy Balderson recording a six points in 13 minutes while Jon Carlisle made his season debut with three minutes of play in the first half. Jermaine Boyette and Chris Woods led Weber State with 12 points each. Boyett finished with four steals and five turnovers. The Cougars extended their home win streak against the Wildcats to 14-0 and 18-9 overall.

WHAT COACH STEVE CLEVELAND HAD TO SAY LAST YEAR ...

"Tonight we were much quicker to attack penetration. Our No. 1 objective was to stop their dribble penetration. This was our best defensive effort of the season. The difference tonight was Matt Montague, who did a nice job going to the basket."

WHAT COACH JOE CRAVENS HAD TO SAY LAST YEAR ...

"We got beat in a very tough place to play. They've got a pretty good team here."

LAST GAME IN OGDEN - BYU WINS DESPITE BOYETTE'S BIG NIGHT

OGDEN -- Winning in Ogden for the first time in 10 years, BYU scored 56 second-half points to come from behind and defeat Weber State 84-75 in front of 10,252 fans at the Dee Events Center. The Cougars improved to 8-4 with the win and a perfect 3-0 against instate rivals this season. BYU handed Weber State its first home loss of the year in four games and the Wildcats suffered back-to-back defeats for the first time this season with the loss. Weber State, now 5-5 overall, was coming off a loss at Utah State. BYU trailed at half, 32-28, as its leading scorer, Mekeli Wesley, did not score in the first 20 minutes on four attempts. But Wesley put down 17 second half points to lead a balanced BYU offense that out scored the Wildcats 56-43 in the final 20 minutes. Five Cougars reached double figures for the first time this year. After Wesley's 17 points, Trent Whiting had 15, Terrell Lyday 14, and Eric Nielsen and Travis Hansen added 12 apiece. Montague provided a spark off the bench for the Cougars, adding seven points and a game-high five assists in 18 minutes. With Weber State starting the game with a 10-0 run, BYU had six times gotten to within a possession of equaling the score but had not been able to convert. Montague helped turn the momentum BYU's way when he stole the ball from Wildcat star Jermaine Boyette and fed Hansen for a break-away hammer dunk to finally tie the game at 46 at the 11:58 mark. BYU did not trail again, and built a lead that reached 12 points thanks to strong free throw shooting. The Cougars went 23-24 from the line in the second half and 30-32 for the game. The Cougars made 24 straight free throws at one point in the game between their only two misses from the line. Boyette had a career night for Weber State, scoring 36 points with five rebounds and five assists. The quick Wildcat guard went 13-19 from the floor, including 2-3 from three-point range, and was a nearly perfect 8-9 from the line. Center Stephan Bachmann added 13 points while Jake Shoff had a game-high 10 rebounds in a losing effort. Lyday had a season-high seven rebounds for BYU while playing the entire 40 minutes and having the task of guarding Boyette. Lyday took only one three, a miss, to halt his string of 15 straight games with a made three-pointer, the third longest streak in BYU history. Lyday set the BYU mark at 21 last season.

UP NEXT FOR BYU

BYU plays its final non-conference game when it hosts another Big Sky opponent, Idaho State, Saturday at 7 p.m. in the Marriott Center. The Cougars are 26-6 all-time vs. the Bengals. This will be the first meeting between the two schools since 1981. Off to a 6-5 start this year, ISU won five straight games before suffering a loss in its last outing, losing 66-59 in Logan to Utah State in a hard-fought contest.

BYU'S LAST GAME -- COUGARS FALL TO OKLAHOMA STATE

OKLAHOMA CITY -- BYU dropped its third game of the year Saturday, losing 78-65 to Oklahoma State at the Touchstone Energy All-College Classic in Oklahoma City. BYU, now 10-3 with the loss, got another double-double performance from junior center Rafael Araujo, but Oklahoma State improved its record to 10-1 on the strength of its defense and a career-scoring night by forward Ivan McFarlin. Looking impressive early, the Cougars went on a 9-0 run to take a 12-7 lead before gaining their biggest first-half advantage at 18-11 on a trey by point guard Kevin Woodberry with 10:40 until the break. After the Cowboys scored six in a row to get within one, BYU went on another brief run capped by a Travis Hansen three-pointer that made the score 25-19 with 5:09 remaining. With BYU's starting post players in foul trouble, the Cowboys scored the next 10 points as part of a 16-2 run that didn't end until BYU reserve center Dan Howard converted a three-point play on an offensive put-back with just 19 seconds until the half. McFarlin and Tony Allen scored all but two of the points for Oklahoma State during the run to help the Cowboys build a 35-30 halftime lead. BYU looked inside in the second half as Araujo and Jared Jensen scored the Cougars' first eight points to tie the game at 38. But the Cougars went nearly the next 12 minutes without a field goal, allowing OSU to go on a 21-4 spurt that included two separate 9-0 runs only separated by two BYU trips to the foul line. The field-goal drought ended when Araujo, who had been out during much of the OSU run with foul trouble, scored inside with 5:55 remaining. The Cowboys' pressure defense forced 19 BYU turnovers, the most for the Cougars since losing at Creighton. Oklahoma State led by 18 three times in the second half, the final time at 66-48. BYU fought back but got no closer than 10 the rest of the way. Hansen led BYU in scoring with 14 before fouling out. He scored 12 of his points in the first half. Araujo turned in his third double-double effort in the last four games with 11 points and 14 rebounds while Mark Bigelow also added 11 points. McFarlin led the Cowboys with a career-high 27 points, followed by Allen with 22. BYU out rebounded the Cowboys 30-28 but shot 43 percent to OSU's 51 percent from the floor. BYU was 7-18 on threes, five coming in the first half, while OSU went 3-8 from behind the arc.

ARAUJO CONTINUES STRONG PLAY

Junior center Rafael Araujo recorded double-doubles in both games last week to average double-digit points and rebounds for the second consecutive week. The 6-foot-11 Brazilian averaged 15.0 points and 12.5 rebounds in BYU's two games this past week. He went 12-for-16 (.750) from the floor and shot 60 percent (6-10) from the line. Araujo's 8-for-11 shooting against Pepperdine helped him score a team-leading 19 points while also grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds in 21 minutes against the Waves. It marked the second consecutive game he has gone 8-for-11 from the floor. He had 11 points and a game-high 14 rebounds against Oklahoma State Saturday. He added two assists and a steal against the Cowboys while going 4-for-5 from the floor in season-high-equaling 31 minutes. On the year, Araujo is second among MWC players in rebounds with an 8.8 average. He is third on BYU's team in scoring at 10.5 points per game. An NJCAA All-American transfer out of Arizona Western, Araujo has recorded three double-doubles in his last four games and has scored in double figures in six of the last seven games, including four straight. He has six double-figure rebounding games this year.

70-POINT BAROMETER

BYU is 10-0 this year when holding opponents below 70 points but 0-3 when the opposition reaches the 70-point mark. In the five-plus season Steve Cleveland has been BYU's coach, the Cougars are 77-15 (.837) when holding opponents below 70 points. BYU's winning percentage drops off substantially when BYU opponents have scored between 70-79 points. BYU's record is 16-32 (.333) in those games during the Cleveland era.

PLAYER PERSONNEL

BYU coach Steve Cleveland is using a larger rotation this year with a deeper bench. Twelve players will play this year and eight are playing double-digit minutes, with Jake Shoff averaging 9.2 minutes per game. Cleveland has gone with the same starting lineup in every game but St. Bonaventure, where a the Bonnies pressing defense warranted a lineup change. Sophomore guard Marc Roberts and freshman guards Austin Ainge and Jermaine Odjegba are redshirting.

BYU STARTING LINEUP (RECORD)

Woodberry, Hansen, Bigelow, Jensen, Araujo (9-3)

Woodberry, Bower, Bigelow, Hansen, Araujo (1-0)

NATIONAL POLLS

BYU did not receive any votes this week after suffering its third loss of the year vs. Oklahoma State Saturday. The Cowboys moved up and are just out of both top-25 listings, ranking 26th in the Associated Press Poll and 27th in ESPN/USA Today. BYU was ranked 43rd (AP) and 45th (ESPN/USA Today) in last week's polls.

RPI AND SAGARIN RATINGS

BYU is the top-rated team in the Sagarin Ratings released Monday, ranking 26th followed by Utah at No. 34. As a conference, the Mountain West hs dropped one slot to 7th as the Pac-10 jumped into the No. 6 ranking. BYU is the top-rated MWC team in RPI, ranking 17th with Utah at 29 in the RPI computed by Collegiate Basketball News. BYU is 18th in the CBS Sportsline.com RPI while Utah is 26th.

OLD OQUIRRH BUCKET

With each in-state basketball game comes the battle for the Old Oquirrh Bucket. The Old Oquirrh Bucket (named after the Oquirrh Mountains to the west of Salt Lake City) is the symbol of in-state basketball supremacy in Utah. Each year the bucket is awarded to the in-state college with the best won-loss record against in-state competition. Utah State won the bucket last year to claim its first bucket since 1985. BYU won the honor in 2001, going 4-1 that year. BYU is the only team still without an in-state loss with a 2-0 record this year with home victories over Utah State and Southern Utah. Weber State is 0-2 with road losses at Utah and Utah State. BYU has won seven buckets since the award was created for the 1974-75 season. Weber State has earned the bucket three times, last winning the honor in 1993.

STREAKS

BYU is coming off a loss vs. Oklahoma State and has lost its last three games away from the Marriott Center, including its last two contests on an opponent's home court. BYU's loss at Creighton ended a string of four consecutive BYU wins away from the Marriott Center. It was the team's best streak away from home since BYU's 2001 NCAA team won five consecutive games (2 away, 3 at the MWC tournament) in March 2001. BYU owns the nation's longest homecourt winning streak at 42 games. The Cougars have won 33 straight home games over a nonconference opponent and 17 consecutive vs. Mountain West Conference teams. The Cougars won five straight games overall to open this season, the longest overall streak since winning eight straight games last year in preseason. BYU has made a three-point shot in 192 consecutive games since last going 0-9 in a 75-67 loss to CS Fullerton on Nov. 22, 1996 during BYU's 1-25 season.

SHOOTING, REBOUNDING SUCCESS

BYU has outshot 11 of 13 opponents this year (except USF, OSU) and outrebounded 10 (except Creighton,USU, USCB). BYU is shooting .477, including .379 on threes, while limiting opponents to .392 shooting from the floor and only .273 on threes. BYU averages 34.9 boards to its opponents' 32.3. BYU has shot 45 percent or better in nine games this year, including a string of six straight until shooting a season-low 36.5 percent at USF when the Cougars also allowed USF an opponent-best 50.9 percent. BYU rebounded to shoot 58 percent (SUU) and 54.2 percent (Pepperdine) in its last two games before shooting 43 percent vs. OSU, with the Cowboys shooting 51 percent.

FROM THE LINE

BYU topped 80 percent (20-25)free throw shooting for the fifth time this year vs. Oklahoma State Saturday. BYU shot a season-high 85.2 percent from the line vs. UCSB, going 23-27. The Cougars have shot better than 70 percent in all but three games, a season-low 55.0 percent (11-20) vs. San Diego, 65.4 percent vs. Pepperdine Thursday and 65.7 percent at USF. Individually, six Cougars are shooting 75 percent or better from the line. John Allen is a perfect 10-10 while Ricky Bower is shooting 91.2 percent (31-34). BYU is shooting 73.8 percent as a team.

DEFENSIVE NOTABLES

BYU has held nine opponents to 42 percent or lower shooting, and has held five opponents below 35 percent shooting. BYU held Pepperine, coming in shooting 47.1 percent, to its second-lowest percentage of the year at 34.5 percent. BYU held UCSB, a team that came in after seven games shooting 50.3 percent from the floor and 45.5 percent on threes, to 36.5 percent and 26.1 percent on threes. BYU has held eight of its 13 opponents this year to 60 points or less. BYU is 48-3 under Steve Cleveland when holding opponents below 60 points. BYU held USD to a BYU-opponent low of 49 points. On the year, BYU's defense yields a combined 62.9 points per game.

MORE DEFENSE

The Cougars did not allow a SUU player to reach double figures and held UCSB forward Mark Hull to four points on 2-8 shooting and three rebounds in 34 minutes. He entered the game averaging 14.3 points and 5.3 rebounds. BYU made Utah State's leading scorer Desmond Penigar earn all 11 of his points on 3-11 shooting. He was averaging 15.2 and shooting 49 percent from the floor entering the game. The other top Aggie scorer, guard Mark Brown, entered the game with a 13.8 scoring average, having reached double figures in every game. He scored only two points against the Cougar defense, going 1-8 from the floor in a team-high 35 minutes. BYU also held San Diego's leading scorer, 6-foot-10, 290-pound center Jason Keep, who had 30 points and 16 rebounds at UCLA this year, to just seven points -- nearly 11 points below his 17.7 average entering the game. Against Rice, BYU held 2002 WAC Freshman of the Year forward Michael Harris, who came in averaging 13.7 points and 10.3 rebounds, including a 14-point, 10-rebound night on 7-10 shooting at Stanford, to 11 points and four boards. ASU's freshman sensation Ike Diogu was held five points below his season average. Despite the loss, BYU held Creighton, a team that shot 54 percent from the floor and 51 percent on threes in its first five games, to 42 percent shooting from the floor and 29 percent three-point shooting on its home floor.

NATION'S LONGEST HOME WINNING STREAK

BYU has a 42-game homecourt winning streak. The streak, which is a school record topping the 24 straight won between March 1994 and January 1996, is the longest current streak in the nation. BYU went 16-0 at home last season and was 15-0 the prior year. BYU has had a perfect home record seven times since the Marriott Center opened for the 1971-72 season. The past two years, however, marks the first time it has happened in back-to-back seasons. Last year's team tied the BYU single-season record with 16 home wins and was only the fourth Cougar squad to win more than 14 home games in a season. The 1987-88 Ladell Andersen squad went 16-2 in the Marriott Center. BYU's last home loss was on Feb. 17, 2000 when New Mexico edged the Cougars 78-74. BYU has won 17 straight at home over MWC teams. BYU has defeated 33 straight nonconference opponents in the Marriott Center since starting the streak with a 61-59 win over Utah State on Jan. 2, 1999. The last non-league foe to win in Provo was the California Bears, who edged BYU 71-70 on Dec. 19, 1998.

BYU ON THE ROAD

While BYU entered this season with the nation's longest active home winning streak at 36 games (now 42), the Cougars also finished last season having lost their last 10 games away from the Marriott Center and their last 11 straight games on an opponent's home court, including three in overtime. This year, BYU has snapped both losing streaks. With its three wins at the Paradise Jam -- BYU's first win streak away from home since the end of the 2001 season, BYU ended the 10-game skid. With BYU's victory at ASU, the Cougars ended the 11-game road losing streak and seven straight losses on a Pac-10 opponent's home floor dating back to its win over ASU in 1989. BYU is 1-2 on an opponent's court this year, having lost its last two road games. Including neutral court games, BYU has lost its last three games away from home and is 4-3 on the year away from the Marriott Center. Last year BYU won only twice away from home with a neutral court 81-76 upset over No. 13 Stanford at the Las Vegas Showdown on Dec. 22, 2001 and a season-opening win at San Diego, 70-59, on Nov. 17, 2001.

NEUTRAL COURT RECORD

BYU is 12-8 on a neutral court under Steve Cleveland. Last year BYU was 1-1 on a neutral floor. BYU is 3-1 this year. Prior to the Paradise Jam, BYU's last neutral court game was a 62-51 loss to San Diego State at the 2002 MWC Tournament. BYU's prior neutral win was over No. 13 Stanford, 81-76, at the Las Vegas Showdown. The Cougars have won seven of their last 10 neutral court contests.

ARAUJO NAMED MOUNTAIN WEST PLAYER OF THE WEEK ON DEC. 30

BYU junior center Rafael Araujo has been named Mountain West Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week on Dec. 30. It was Araujo's first player of the week honor of his career. Araujo, from Sao Paulo, Brazil (Arizona Western), averaged 20.5 points and 12 rebounds in two games last week as BYU earned a 1-1 record. He shot 61.3 percent (19-of-31) from the field and averaged two steals per game. In the 84-72 loss at San Francisco last Monday, Araujo recorded his first Division I double-double with career-highs of 24 points and 17 rebounds in 28 minutes of action. He went 11-for-20 from the field (55 percent) and registered a career-high three steals. The 17 boards and 11field goals are both currently tied for the second-highest output by an MWC player this year. Araujo led the Cougars in scoring for the second straight game with 17 points on 8-of-11 field goals and seven boards in the 93-60 win over Southern Utah.

BIGELOW REACHING, APPROACHING MILESTONES

Junior Mark Bigelow reached two milestones vs. Southern Utah. The 6-foot-7 swingman went 4-6 from behind the arc to move past Terrell Lyday into second place on BYU's career three-point list. Now with 133 career treys, Bigelow needs 8 more to catch BYU assistant coach Andy Toolson, who holds the top mark at 141. Bigelow leads BYU with 24 threes this year and has made a combined 41.6 percent (133-320) in his two-plus seasons. Against SUU, Bigelow also became the 34th Cougar and only ninth junior to score 1,000 points during his career. Bigelow moved into 32nd place with his 11 points vs. Oklahoma State, surpassing current NBA official Bernie Fryer (1,031). He needs 20 points to move past Scott Runia, who shared the backcourt for three years with BYU's career scoring leader Danny Ainge (2,467).

CELEBRATING 100 YEARS OF BASKETBALL

BYU is celebrating 100 years of basketball. Since the first season of BYU basketball in 1903, BYU entered this season having achieved a 1437-925 (.608) overall record with 21 different coaches at the helm. The combined efforts of these men have provided the Cougars with 80 winning seasons in 100 years. BYU has won 25 conference titles and made 28 postseason tournament appearances with 19 NCAA bids and nine NIT berths. The Cougars won the 1951 and 1966 NIT titles and advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA tournament in 1981, highlighted by Danny Ainge's length-of-the-court dash to defeat Notre Dame at the buzzer. Ainge was named the nation's top player as the John Wooden Award and Eastman Award winner. Twenty-three players have received All-America recognition while NBA teams have selected a Cougar 41 times in its annual draft. BYU has the nation's 11th longest rivalry, dating back to 1909, against the University of Utah. BYU and Utah have the 10th longest rivalry in terms of games played with 232 contests. Amazingly, the series is tied at 116-116. For more information on BYU's 100-year history, please consult the 2002-03 BYU media guide.

BYU AMONG TOP-40 All-TIME WINNINGEST BASKETBALL PROGRAMS

With its all-time record of 1437-925 (.608), BYU is the ranked 40th all-time in winning percentage among all Division I basketball programs. In terms of total wins, BYU is in the top 25. The Cougars have had 80 winning seasons in their 100-year basketball history and have made 28 postseason appearances, including 19 NCAA bids, and won 25 conference championships.

COUGARS BOAST STRONG 2002-03 SCHEDULE

Seventeen games against teams who qualified for postseason play last year and spots in the University of The Virgin Islands Paradise Jam (U.S. Virgin Islands) and Touchstone Energy All-College Classic (Oklahoma City) highlight BYU's 2002-03 men's basketball schedule. BYU's nonconference schedule includes teams from 10 different conferences. Overall, 12 teams earned postseason bids last season, seven advancing to the NCAA tournament and five playing in the NIT. Six teams earned a conference regular season or league tournament title and 12 placed in the top three in their league standings. In all, the schedule includes a total of 29 regular season games and two exhibitions. The Cougars will play 14 regular season games in the Marriott Center, where BYU owns the nation's longest active home-court victory streak at 36 games. Excluding the MWC Tournament, BYU plays 15 road games, including 11 away contests and four neutral site games. The 2003 MWC Tournament takes place March 12-15 at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas. The Pac-10, Big 12, Atlantic 10, Big Sky, Big West, Mid-American, Mid-Continent, Missouri Valley, West Coast and Western Athletic are represented on the non-league schedule. Nine teams -- Arizona State, Creighton, San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, San Francisco, Utah State, Southern Utah, Weber State and Pepperdine -- were also on last year's nonconference schedule. BYU earned a 6-3 record in those games, losing at UCSB and dropping overtime games at both Utah State and Pepperdine.

BYU OPPONENTS PROVE SCHEDULE IS CHALLENGING

Of the 22 teams BYU will face on its regular season schedule this year, 17 have a winning record after Sunday's play while four have losing records and one is at .500. BYU's opponents have combined to win 65 percent of their games thus far this year.