Game 2 - BYU Plays Washington State Tuesday in Spokane

BYU will play its road opener on Tuesday when the Cougars face the Washington State Cougars at 7 p.m. PST (8 p.m. MST). The two teams will meet for the first time in Spokane, with the game being played at Spokane Arena, where the Cougars faced Connecticut in the 2003 NCAA Tournament. The game is not being televised. The radio broadcast can be heard on KSL Newsradio (102.7 FM or 1160 AM). Greg Wrubell and Russell Larson will call the game, which is also available online at KSL.com.

GAME #2 FAST FACTS

BYU COUGARS (0-1, 0-0 MWC) at WASHINGTON STATE COUGARS (1-0, 0-0 Pac-10)

TUESDAY, NOV. 22, 2005

SPOKANE ARENA

SPOKANE, WASH.

7 p.m. PST (8 p.m. MST)

Coaches:

BYU, Dave Rose (0-1 in first year; same overall)

WSU, Dick Bennett (26-32 in his third season; 480-289 in 28th season overall)

Series:

WSU leads 5-4, including last year's 49-46 win at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City

TV: None

Radio:

KSL Newsradio, BYU Sports Network (Greg Wrubell, play-by-play; Russell Larson, game analysis)

Web:

Live audio is available at byucougars.com/basketball_m/

UP NEXT

BYU returns to Provo to host in-state foe Southern Utah on Saturday at 7 p.m. in the Marriott Center. The Cougars will then face Lamar University on Nov. 30th in the Delta Center in Salt Lake City in a contest originally slated for Dec. 20th in Provo before being rescheduled because of Hurricane Rita.

COUGAR QUICK HITS

-- Coming off a disappointing 9-21 season after five straight postseason appearances, BYU looks to return to the ranks of conference contenders and postseason invitees under the direction of new head coach Dave Rose.

-- Rose enters his first year leading the Cougars after serving the past eight seasons as Steve Cleveland's lead assistant, including five years as associate head coach. After Cleveland announced his resignation to take the Fresno State job, BYU moved quickly to promote Rose to BYU's head position.

-- This year Coach Rose has five juniors with some starting experience and several talented newcomers with the ability to make an impact in their first seasons on the court.

-- Among BYU's returning players, honorable mention All-MWC guard Austin Ainge was the team's second-leading scorer and top assist man last year, and junior forward Keena Young was BYU's leading rebounder. Other returners with starting experience include junior swingman Jimmy Balderson, who represented Canada at the World University Games this summer; junior center Derek Dawes, who made 13 starts in the middle last year; and junior guard Mike Rose, who made seven starts last year and averaged 7.7 points while making a team-leading 56 treys.

-- Several players who did not take the court for BYU last year could be key contributors in 2005-06. Among those players are redshirt freshmen Trent Plaisted (6-11, F/C) and David Burgess (6-10, C), freshmen Lee Cummard (6-6, G) and Jackson Emery (6-3, G) and JC transfers Rashaun Broadus (6-0, G) and Fernando Malaman (6-9, F).

LOOKING AT WASHINGTON STATE

Washington State is coached by Dick Bennett. The Cougars are 26-32 in his third season at Washington State. Bennett owns a 480-289 career record in his 28th collegiate season. He guided Wisconsin to 2000 Final Four. Bennett has been the Washington State coach for 58 games. In 28 of those, WSU's opponent has scored 55 points or less, including UC Riverside in this year's season opener. Prior to Bennett's arrival, WSU held a total of 26 opponents to less than 55 points from the 1993-94 season to through 2002-03. Last year, WSU finished sixth nationally in scoring defense at 56.9 points per game, the fewest points given up by a Pac-10 team since Oregon State's 55.8 in 1983-84, prior to shot clock and 3-point line in college basketball. The Cougars returning players accounted for 56 starts and 44.4 percent of WSU's scoring in 2004-05. The Cougars were 12-16 last season and tied for sixth in conference play with a 7-11 mark. They lost to Stanford in the first round of the Pacific-10 Tournament. Sophomore Derrick Low is WSU s leading returning scorer after averaging 7.0 per game in 2004-05, the eighth best mark by a freshman in Cougar history. The Cougars return two starters and seven lettermen overall.

WSU's LAST OUTING - Crimson Cougars Cruise to Win to Open Season

PULLMAN, Wash. -- Washington State's Josh Akognon scored a career-high 22 points and pulled down a career-best eight rebounds to lead the Cougars past UC Riverside 86-55 in its season opener Saturday. The sophomore was making his first career start. UC Riverside struggled offensively, making 6-of-38 field goals, including 0-for-16 from three-point range, during the first half. Akognon scored eight unanswered points after an early 3-0 UC Riverside lead, including two treys, to give the Cougars control. WSU never trailed the rest of the way and built a lead to as many as 34 points. The Highlanders shot just 25 percent (19-for-76) for the game, including 6-for-33 on treys. Four Cougars reached double figures in the team's highest scoring output under coach Dick Bennett. Freshman Aron Baynes scored 19 points, while Derrick Low finished with 15 points and 11 assists for his first career double-double. Sophomore Kyle Weaver added 10 points for the Cougars. It was Washington State's 18th straight win in a home opener, and its fourth consecutive season-opening win overall.

WASHINGTON STATE GAME-ONE STARTERS

No Name Pos Ht Wt Cl Hometown (Previous School) PPG RPG

1 Josh Akognon G 5-10 198 SO Petaluma, Calif. (Casa Grande) 22.0 8.0

33 Ivory Clark F 6-5 212 JR New Orleans, La. (Midland College) 5.0 4.0

42 Chris Henry C 6-8 257 SO Santa Ana, Calif. (Mater Dei) 6.0 4.0

2 Derrick Low G 6-1 186 SO Honolulu, Hawaii (Iolani School) 15.0 2.0

25 Kyle Weaver G 6-5 185 SO Beloit, Wis. (Beloit Memorial) 10.0 8.0

KEY CONTRIBUTOR OFF THE BENCH

11 Aron Baynes C 6-10 247 FR Cairns, Australia (Cairns State) 19.0 1.0

WSU SUCCESSFUL IN PULLMAN HOME OPENERS

WIth its win Saturday over UC Riverside, Washington State has now won 18 consecutive openers at Friel Court in Pullman. The last time the Cougars lost in their home opener in Pullman was a 60-54 loss to BYU on Dec. 3, 1987.

MEETING IN SPOKANE

BYU is 1-1 against Washington Sate in Pullman. BYU's 60-54 victory in 1987 was followed in 1998 with a 70-69 WSU win. This year's game will be the first time the two teams have met in Spokane. Washington State will also play Arizona in Spokane Arena this season on Dec. 29th.

SERIES HISTORY VS. WASHINGTON STATE

Overall Series Record: WSU leads 5-4

BYU Record in Provo: 3-3

BYU Record at Washington State: 1-1

BYU Record at Neutral Sites: 0-1

BYU Record Under Dave Rose: 0-0

BYU Record in Overtime Games: 0-0

Longest BYU Win Streak: 3 (1946-85)

Longest Washington State Win Streak: 3 (1997-present)

Largest BYU Margin of Victory: 20, 64-44 in 1952

Largest WSU Margin of Victory: 29, 78-49 in 1997

Most Points Scored by BYU: 72 in 1958

Most Points Scored by Washington State: 78 in 1997

Date Opponent Score W/L

12-11-46 Washington State 49-50 L

12-12-46 Washington State 44-38 W

12-16-52 Washington State 64-44 W

12-12-58 Washington State 72-59 W

11-30-85 Washington State 65-69 L

12-3-87 at Washington St. 60-54 W

11-19-97 Washington State 49-78 L

12-08-98 at Washington St. 69-70 L

12-11-04 *vs. Washington St. 46-49 L

*Delta Center in SLC

LAST SEASON -- WASHINGTON STATE COMES BACK FOR 49-46 WIN AT THE DELTA CENTER

SALT LAKE -- In their second annual trip to the Delta Center, the Cougars could not hang on to an eight-point lead as Washington State fired back in the second half to edge BYU, 49-46. "We need more than two guys making baskets," BYU head coach Steve Cleveland said. "We have not figured out how to play two halves. Somebody's got to step up and make shots, and no one's doing that." After trailing by six points in the second half, Austin Ainge sparked the Cougars' comeback, scoring the last nine points for BYU including a clutch three-pointer with 18.3 seconds left in the game. Although Ainge's trey put the Cougars within two of Washington State, BYU's 5-3 run could not help them pull ahead in the last few seconds. Ainge finished with a team- and career-high 16 points after playing 31 minutes off the bench. Despite a rough beginning, BYU soon found its range in the first half, recording a 20-3 run early on with the help of Mike Rose, who came off the bench to score 10 points in the first 13 minutes of the game. Rose continued his firepower and led the Cougar offense, going 5-for-7 from the field while hitting 50 percent beyond the arc in the first half. Rose came away with 15 points as well as picking off three steals. Ainge also made an impact early for the Cougars, who struggled offensively throughout the contest. In the first half, Ainge tallied seven points while grabbing two rebounds and dishing out two assists. Washington State's Thomas Kelati, who led WSU with 15 points, started the second half with a three, but Mike Rose answered back with a trey of his own after center Derek Dawes went 1-for-2 from the charity stripe. Dawes played some key minutes for the Cougars and finished with six points and seven rebounds while Garner Meads led the team with 10 rebounds, tying his career high.

LAST MEETING IN PULLMAN

The last meeting between BYU and Washington State hosted by the Crimson and Gray Cougars was on Dec. 8, 1998. The game came down to the final horn with Washington Sate prevailing, 70-69. BYU was led by Olympia, Wash., native Mark Bigelow, who scored 33 points as a freshman in his return to his home state.

BYU IN SPOKANE ARENA

BYU played in Spokane Arena in the 2003 NCAA Tournament, facing Connecticut and Emeka Okafor and Ben Gordon on Mar. 20, 2003. Current Cougars Austin Ainge and Jermaine Odjegba were freshmen on that team, but neither Ainge nor Odjegba played while redshirting the season.

The Cougars upset hopes fell short as the they lost to the Huskies, 58-53, in the first round of the tournament. BYU suffers its worst shooting performance of that season, making just 31.3 percent of its shots from the field, including a season-low 2-of-17 from behind the arc. The Cougars also scored a season-low 53 points but managed to slow the game down to control the Huskies, entering the half tied at 26-26. UConn exploded out of the locker room in the second half. The Huskies went on a 14-2 run out of the gate. Ben Gordon completed a three-point play and then drained a three the next trip down to extend the Huskies lead to 46-32 with 11:30 left. Following a timeout, BYU settled down and turned up the defensive pressure, battling on the boards.

"We really competed well and hung in there. Defensively we did a great job securing the rebounds," said then BYU Associate Head Coach Dave Rose. "We knew that we needed to do that to control their transition game."

The Cougars earned better looks at the basket and went on a 7-point run of their own, cutting the lead to 46-39 with 9:25 left. Tough Cougar defense held the Huskies scoreless for a stretch of over seven minutes that enabled BYU to cut the lead to five on a steal by Kevin Woodberry and his layup at the other end. Woodberry then pulled up in transition and nailed a three to trim the lead to just two points with 2:20 to play in the game. Following a steal by Hansen of UConn's Gordon, BYU looked inside to Araujo who was blocked by Okafor and the ball was saved by the Huskies. That was the Cougars last chance as UConn made free throws to finish off BYU and the Cougars' hopes of busting brackets all across the country. BYU matched the rebound effort of UConn; each team grabbing 41 boards.

"We felt like we had a good chance and we played hard, but UConn is a very good team and they play very emotional basketball," Rose said.

The Huskies struggled at times on offense due to great defensive pressure by BYU. The Cougars held UConn to 32.7 percent shooting for the game. Okafor was a great presence for the Huskies inside, swatting shots and changing others. The big man finished the game with 20 points, eight rebounds and seven blocks. Gordon finished the game with 14 points on 4-of-12 shooting. Hansen, as he had done all season for BYU, played excellent defense to hold Gordon five points below his average. Hansen was the leading scoring for either team with 21 points and six rebounds. Mark Bigelow, playing for the first time in his home state since his freshman year, scored 12 points on just 4-of-15 shooting, including 1-for-7 behind the arc. Jake Shoff played tough defensive minutes before fouling out with six points, while Rafael Araujo was just 2-of-12 from the floor and totaled six points and eight rebounds. BYU finished the season with an impressive 23-9 record and a share of the Mountain West Conference regular season championship. The Cougars lose just one player, Travis Hansen, who finishes his career 24th on BYU's all-time scoring list with 1,237 points in his injury-shortened three seasons.

BYU's LAST OUTING -- Cougars Fall in Season Opener

PROVO -- In a game that matched up two head coaches in their first respective games, Loyola Marymount spoiled Cougar head coach Dave Rose's debut by beating BYU, 83-71, at the Marriott Center Friday night.

The Cougars, now 0-1, didn't have an answer for LMU's frontcourt which scored 45 of the Lions' points. LMU (1-0), who returned four of its five starters from last year's team, put together what turned out to be a decisive late 15-0 first-half run en route to the victory. The experienced squad then held on to counter all of the Cougars' runs. LMU head coach Rodney Tention said his team benefited from playing with each other for so long.

"Experience was a big difference in the game tonight," Tention said. "It helps having those guys who have been in a lot of games."

The Cougars jumped out to a quick lead to start the game. Fueled by Plaisted's early six points, BYU jumped out to an 8-2 advantage. LMU fought back behind the physical play of Matthew Knight and the shooting of Wes Wardrop and cut the lead to one at 14-13 with 11:49 remaining in the first half. BYU head coach Dave Rose was happy with the way his team started the game.

"Our team did a good job and was prepared to come out and play," he said. "We had a good start and scored early but seemed to get complacent and didn't push the ball with near enough purpose."

Plaisted continued his hot shooting, hitting his first five shots from the field for 12 points. Cougar turnovers kept the Lions close as LMU's Chris Ayer tied the game at 24 with an offensive rebound and put-back. Mike Rose then entered the game and promptly scored eight points, including two quick three pointers, helping BYU maintain a slim 30-29 first-half lead with 3:37 left in the first frame. Foul trouble and turnovers continued to haunt the Cougars as LMU scored 15 unanswered points to end the half and take an 11-point lead into the intermission. BYU didn't score for the final 4:48 of the first half.

In the second half, Jimmy Balderson came out firing on all cylinders scoring seven quick points helping cut the lead to five with 15:20 left in the game. The Lions' physical inside play helped the Lions go on a run of their own extending the lead to a game-high 12 point lead at 57-45 with 12 minutes remaining. BYU jumped back with an 8-0 run to cut back into the lead. LMU showed its experience by coming out of a timeout and scoring six points on a Wardrop three and a Brandon Worthy three-point play. Down the stretch, the Lions had an answer for seemingly every Cougar basket to hold on for the win.

"Every time we got into a position to get close they hit shots and made big plays," Rose said.

BYU was led by Balderson who scored 18 points and recorded seven boards. Plaisted finished with 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting while grabbing four rebounds.

NOTES FROM SEASON OPENER

-- Three Cougars earned the first starts of their BYU careers Friday as the Cougars started their two JC transfers (Broadus, Malaman) and redshirt freshman Trent Plaisted.

-- Derek Dawes did not play due to a shoulder injury. He is probable to play at Washington State on Tuesday.

-- Jimmy Balderson earned team-high scoring honors on the night as he led BYU with 18 points, going 6-for-13 from the field and 5-for-6 from the free throw line. Balderson also paced the Cougars with seven rebounds.

-- Trent Plaisted shot 75 percent (6-8) from the field in his first game as a redshirt freshman, scoring 17 points. Plaisted saw limited action in five games last season before having to sit out the season due to injury.

-- Plaisted made an immediate impact in the first start of his career, going 5-for-5 from the floor and scoring 12 points in the first 11 minutes of the game before sitting down.

-- After trailing since 2-2 at the 18:30 mark, LMU tied the game 24-24 with 6:44 left in the first half. The Lions took their first lead of the game three minutes later with a 31-30 advantage with 3:02 left in the first half during a 15-0 run to end the half.

-- BYU did not score during the final 4:48 of the first half, allowing LMU to go on a 15-0 run and build a 41-30 halftime lead.

-- The Cougars came out hot in the second half, putting together a 12-4 run to cut the lead to three points thanks in part to seven points from Jimmy Balderson.

-- LMU did not score from the field for the first 4:21 of the second half. However, the Lions put together a 10-2 run from that point to take a 12-point lead.

-- LMU's experience showed in the second half as the Lions never allowed BYU to take the lead. The Lions return four starters and 12 of 13 lettermen to this year's team.

-- The Lions' last six points over the final 1:58 came from the free throw line. LMU was 18-24 (.750) from the charity stripe while the Cougars were 14-17 (.824).

-- With the loss, BYU is now 72-32 (.692) all-time in season openers, including a 55-15 (.786) mark when the first game of the season is played at home. The Cougars are now 79-25 (.760) all-time in their annual home opener.

SCORING FOR THE COUGARS

BYU had three players reach double-digit points in its season-opening loss to Loyola Marymount. Junior Jimmy Balderson scored 18 points, followed by Trent Plaisted with 17 and Mike Rose with 12. Including BYU's exhibition games, Balderson, Plaisted and Rose are the only three players to reach double figures every time they have stepped on the floor. In BYU's two exhibition wins, Trent Plaisted and Jimmy Balderson were the two Cougars to score in double figures in both outings, while Rose made his first appearance this year vs. LMU. By average, Plaisted averaged 19 points and Balderson 11.5 in the two exhibition wins. Plaisted and freshman Lee Cummard, who boasts a 15.5 average in the two exhibitions, are the two players to top 20 points in a game.

FRESHMEN SHOW PROMISE IN EXHIBITION WINS

Both of the Cougars' exhibition games showcased rising stars as two freshmen led the team in scoring. Trent Plaisted led BYU against Seattle Pacific with 27 points while Lee Cummard paced the Cougars with 23 points against Victoria.

EXHIBITION NUMBERS

The Cougars made nearly half of their overall attempts in their two exhibition games, going 66-of-133 for a .496 field-goal percentage. They shot .385 from long range, going 10-for-26. From the line, BYU shot .658 while making 38 trips to the charity stripe in the two outings. While BYU has only played two unofficial exhibitions to date, the Cougars seem to be responding well to the new attacking-style offense in terms of assist/turnover ratio compared to last season. The Cougars averaged 21 assists per game in their two exhibitions, compared to 12.3 assists last season (and 16.5 in last year's two exhibition wins). BYU averaged 12.0 turnovers in this year's exhibitions compared to 14.6 turnovers per game last year (and 17.5 turnovers in last year's two exhibitions).

SAM BURGESS TO REDSHIRT

Junior guard Sam Burgess will redshirt the upcoming season. The 6-foot-3 guard from Alpine, Utah, is one of nine juniors on the roster this year. Junior Vuk Ivanovic will also redshirt while he sits out the season due to NCAA transfer rules. Burgess scored a game-high 21 points at Cougar Tipoff, the team's annual blue-white scrimmage. He went 7-for-12 from the floor, including 4-for-6 on threes, and was 3-of-4 from the line while adding five rebounds, one assist and one steal in 33 minutes on the floor.

"As a coach there are guys you love to coach and Sam is that kind of player," Rose explained. "He has a competitive spirit, is a good athlete and plays to win. He also has the mental toughness to use this year the best. He will work hard and improve and still help our team this season (in practice). He is plenty good enough to play this year but with so many players in this class, we needed to address that situation. As a staff, we feel this will help our team in the long run and also be good for Sam. We want to invest in Sam and commit to him another year. In that third year, he's going to be a player who will really help us."