Cougars Suffer Close Loss in San Diego

SAN -- Reminiscent of its defeat in San Diego last season, the BYU men's basketball team suffered a close 69-65 loss to San Diego State on Saturday, breaking its nine-game winning streak. With the loss the Cougars fall to 21-6 on the season and 10-2 in Mountain West Conference play.

"We just needed a couple more plays to go our way and it would have been a different game," said BYU head coach Dave Rose. "We got some good looks at the basket and had a chance in the second half to open things up a little bit, but things didn't go out way."

Lee Cummard led BYU with 20 points, his fifth 20-point game in the last eight outings. Also scoring in double figures was Jonathan Tavernari with 12 points and Sam Burgess with 11 points.

Cold shooting plagued the Cougars early, giving SDSU a 7-0 lead. Tavernari put BYU on the scoreboard with a running lay-in at the 15:45 mark. Burgess followed with a three-point make to quickly cut into BYU's deficit.

Turnovers and the inability to secure rebounds allowed SDSU to reestablish its lead at 15-5. With 11:30 to play in the first half, Chris Collinsworth's three-point make helped spark BYU's own 10-2 run. Michael Loyd contributed to the run, scoring only his second field-goal this season against a MWC opponent. The Cougars found themselves down by only two points after a Cummard make from beyond-the-arc.

"We got some good help off the bench and put ourselves in a position where we could get back in the game at the half," said Rose. "I thought those guys came in with good energy and focus."

Poor free-throw shooting by SDSU opened things up for Cummard, as he scored back-to-back field goals to both tie and give the Cougars their first lead of the game with 3:29 remaining in the first half. Holding a two-point lead as the clock ran down, a dunk by SDSU's Billy White tied the game at 29-29, marking the first time BYU has been tied heading into the break this season.

With the second half underway, neither team could miss a shot. A combination of four BYU three-pointers by Tavernari, Burgess and Cummard, and 10 points by the Aztecs' Lorrenzo Wade, gave the Cougars a 46-41 advantage. Jimmer Fredette soon added a three of his own with 13:15 remaining.

Chris Miles converted a big three-point play for BYU after he laid it in with the foul. A make from the charity stripe increased the Cougars' lead to 52-47. As SDSU continued to make shots, Tavernari was there to answer, scoring BYU's next five points.

The Cougars had no defensive response for Wade, as he continued to makes shots, giving SDSU a one-point lead with 4:57 to play. Playing with four fouls, Cummard put BYU up 61-60 on a made jumper, cutting into the Aztecs' run.

Untimely miscues and missed shots kept the Cougars from retaking the lead as the clock wound down to under four minutes. Down by four, Tavernari's running lay-in off a SDSU steal put the score at 65-63 in favor of the Aztecs. With one minute remaining in the game, Cummard went to the sidelines for good, receiving his fifth foul on the night.

The Cougars return to action on Tuesday when they travel to take on New Mexico. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. MT and will be broadcast live on The Mtn.

CLICK HERE for postgame notes and quotes.

Official Basketball Box Score

BRIGHAM YOUNG vs SAN DIEGO STATE

02-23-08 8:05 pm PST at Cox Arena at Aztec Bowl (San Diego, CA)

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VISITORS: BRIGHAM YOUNG 21-6 (10-2 MWC)

TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS

## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN

45 TAVERNARI, Jonathan. f 5-13 2-8 0-0 0 6 6 4 12 2 3 0 3 28

44 PLAISTED, Trent..... c 3-10 0-0 0-0 2 1 3 4 6 0 0 0 0 24

20 BURGESS, Sam........ g 4-5 3-4 0-0 1 4 5 3 11 4 2 0 1 26

24 MURDOCK, Ben........ g 1-4 0-2 0-0 1 1 2 2 2 0 2 0 0 22

30 CUMMARD, Lee........ g 8-11 3-4 1-2 0 5 5 5 20 4 2 0 0 36

01 LOYD, JR., Michael.. 2-2 0-0 0-0 1 1 2 2 4 2 2 0 0 12

32 FREDETTE, Jimmer.... 1-4 1-2 0-0 0 1 1 1 3 0 2 0 0 20

41 COLLINSWORTH, Chris. 1-7 1-3 0-0 2 4 6 2 3 0 0 1 0 16

54 MILES, Chris........ 1-2 0-0 2-4 0 0 0 3 4 0 1 1 1 16

TEAM................ 2 3 5

Totals.............. 26-58 10-23 3-6 9 26 35 26 65 12 14 2 5 200

TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 12-29 41.4% 2nd Half: 14-29 48.3% Game: 44.8% DEADB

3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 4-10 40.0% 2nd Half: 6-13 46.2% Game: 43.5% REBS

F Throw % 1st Half: 1-3 33.3% 2nd Half: 2-3 66.7% Game: 50.0% 0,2

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HOME TEAM: SAN DIEGO STATE 18-9 (8-5 MWC)

TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS

## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN

31 WADE, Lorrenzo...... f 10-16 0-1 8-14 0 6 6 3 28 2 3 0 1 38

32 WHITE, Billy........ f 7-11 0-1 1-3 5 3 8 4 15 2 3 4 3 34

43 AMOROSO, Ryan....... c 3-10 0-3 3-3 2 4 6 2 9 1 0 0 0 32

21 THOMAS, Matt........ g 0-1 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 14

23 GAY, D.J............ g 2-3 1-2 2-2 0 3 3 0 7 0 2 0 0 26

02 JOHNSON, Jer'Vaughn. 0-2 0-0 0-1 0 2 2 2 0 1 0 1 0 7

03 WILLIAMS, Richie.... 0-5 0-2 2-4 1 2 3 2 2 0 1 0 1 17

05 PASTOREK, Jon....... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3

30 LAMB, Chris......... 1-1 0-0 0-1 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 4

40 DAVIS, Kelvin....... 2-5 1-3 1-2 1 2 3 2 6 2 1 0 2 25

TEAM................ 1 2 3

Totals.............. 25-54 2-12 17-30 11 24 35 16 69 8 10 5 7 200

TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 12-32 37.5% 2nd Half: 13-22 59.1% Game: 46.3% DEADB

3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 0-8 0.0% 2nd Half: 2-4 50.0% Game: 16.7% REBS

F Throw % 1st Half: 5-12 41.7% 2nd Half: 12-18 66.7% Game: 56.7% 3,2

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Officials: David Hall, Eric Curry, Dan Chrisman

Technical fouls: BRIGHAM YOUNG-None. SAN DIEGO STATE-None.

Attendance: 9776

Score by Periods 1st 2nd Total

BRIGHAM YOUNG................. 29 36 - 65

SAN DIEGO STATE............... 29 40 - 69

ID-604645

Points in the paint-BY 24,SD 38. Points off turnovers-BY 9,SD 15.

2nd chance points-BY 5,SD 10. Fast break points-BY 15,SD 8.

Bench points-BY 14,SD 10. Score tied-2 times. Lead changed-8 times.

Last FG-BY 2nd-00:20, SD 2nd-03:30.

Largest lead-BY by 7 2nd-15:11, SD by 10 1st-12:19.