Game Notes and Quotes: BYU vs. Eastern Washington

BYU vs. Eastern Washington

Dec. 19, 2009

Marriott Center (Provo, UT)

Player Notes

— Tyler Haws began the game 5-of-5, including 2-of-2 from downtown, scoring 12 points early in the first half. He finished the game with 14 points, seven rebounds and three steals.

— Brandon Davies had a career high 12 points, shooting a perfect 5-of-5. Brock Zylstra had a career high 4 rebounds.

— Tyler Haws set a new career high with 3 steals. Jackson Emery tied a career high with 7 rebounds.

— Michael Loyd, Jr., had a career-high 5 rebounds and tied his career high of 4 assists.

Team Notes

— The win for BYU is its 13th in a row at home, 5th win in a row overall.

— BYU’s 68.8% shooting from the field in the first half is a season high and the best percentage in a half since shooting 72.4% against Colorado State in February 2009.

— BYU’s 64.2% shooting for the game is the best since shooting 60.0% at TCU in February 2009.

— The 34 points allowed is fewest allowed by BYU since a 74-34 win over Long Beach State to open the 2007-08 season.

— Eastern Washington’s 27.1 FG% is the lowest allowed by BYU this year.

— BYU did not allow a single 2nd chance point.

— BYU out-rebounded the Eagles 45-17.

— No player for Eastern Washington scored more than 8 points. Only one Eagle had more than two field goals.

Record Watch

— BYU’s 41-point halftime lead surpasses a 35-point halftime lead earlier in the year against Southern. BYU led by 33 at half the last time the two teams met in 2005.

— Eastern Washington’s 14 first half points were 4 off of the all-time low by a BYU opponent set by Air Force with 10 points in 2003.

— BYU’s 33-0 run is the longest in Dave Rose’s tenure and the longest since 2005-06 since runs began to be tracked. In BYU’s biggest win ever over Western Oregon, a Division II team, the Cougars’ largest run was 25-0.

Game Trends

— After an initial Eagle basket, BYU went on a 33-0 run, not allowing a point for 10:02. Haws had 12 points (5-of-5), 4 rebounds and 2 steals on three jumpers (two treys) while Fredette had 11 points and 4 assists during the stretch. BYU shot 14-of-19 (.737) against Eastern Washington’s 1-of-14 (.071). Jimmer Fredette shot 5-of-9 while four other players went 9-of-10 from the field.

— Fredette scored 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting, his sixth 20-point game this season and 14th of his career. BYU is 12-2 when Fredette scores 20 or more and has won the last 11 games in which he has reached that milestone.

BYU Head Coach Dave Rose

"This is definitely the best this team has played on my birthday."

"I was really pleased with how we came out to start the game. We played well defensively and played focused throughout the whole game. We played relaxed and confident, which are two crucial components to playing a solid game."

"We played united and did a great job at taking them out of their game plan. We stuck to our game plan and held them to one shot per possession."

"I was extremely proud at how we kept progressively getting better throughout the first half, and through the game in general. This has to be one of the best halfes I have seen this team play yet."

"We covered our defense well and helped out where help was needed. We also had some really big offensive plays, and were fortunate to get our own rebound at times."

"Eastern Washington is a great team, and I don’t feel that the numbers from the final box really tell this story. This was just one of those games where we were just really dialed in as a team."

Eastern Washington Head Coach Kirk Earlywine

"In most games where you don't play well you can at least take something and make a positive spin, but I can't think of one thing."

"They looked pretty good to me. They were much crisper, much sharper and we knew they'd play well."