BYU Rallies on the Road to Defeat SDSU

SAN -- Jimmer Fredette scored 33 points at San Diego State and Charles Abouo had a block on a pivotal possession late in the game as BYU defeated the Aztecs 71-69 on Saturday. The win is the 15th-consecutive for the Cougars, the second-longest streak in program history.

BYU is now 20-1, tied for the best record ever for a Cougar team, set previously in 1987-88. BYU is also a perfect 5-0 in the Mountain West Conference, the only team in the MWC with fewer than two conference losses.

Fredette tied his mark for second-most points in a game this season, finishing with 33 on 11-of-19 from the field, including 5-of-8 from three and 6-of-6 from the free throw line.

Up by a single point with under a minute left, BYU wore down the shot clock to under ten seconds when Fredette took the ball from the top of the key and slipped in for a left-handed layup to push the lead to 69-66.

On the ensuing possession for San Diego State, Kelvin Davis drove underneath looking for a layup, but BYU’s Charles Abouo blocked the shot away, preserving the win after two more Fredette free throws.

“Even though we got ourselves in a tough situation where they had the momentum, the crowd, and a lot of energy, we were able to stay calm and put enough in the basket to win,” said BYU head coach Dave Rose.

BYU started the second half stagnant, eventually giving up the lead to the Aztecs, 48-44. That’s when Abouo came in for his first minutes of the game, quickly scoring on a tip-in and a jumper from the wing. Abouo finished with five rebounds, four points, one steal and one block.

That jumper would begin a 15-0 run by the Cougars over the next 5:38 of the game. Tyler Haws, Fredette and Jonathan Tavernari each hit a three-pointer as BYU came back to take a double-digit lead, 61-50 with six minutes left.

Fredette went on to score seven of BYU’s last nine points to seal the win.

“He was really good off ball screens tonight,” Rose said. “That’s what he does and he’s good at it. Our post guys have been good at getting a good angle for him. He’s just good at settling things down in games like this.”

BYU again came out hot to start the game, led by freshman Tyler Haws who scored the team’s first five points and had 10 at halftime. Haws shot 6-of-10, 3-of-4 from beyond the arc for 17 points.

Chris Miles grabbed seven rebounds, one shy of his career high, adding six points, two blocks and an assist.

The Cougars will continue to play on the road at New Mexico on Wednesday at 8 p.m. MST. Listen to the game live on KSL Newsradio 102.7 FM and 1160 AM. The game will be televised live on The Mtn.

CLICK HERE for game notes and quotes.

Official Basketball Box Score
BRIGHAM YOUNG vs SAN DIEGO STATE
01-23-10 7:02 pm PST at Viejas Arena at Aztec Bowl - San Diego
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VISITORS: BRIGHAM YOUNG 20-1 (5-0 MWC)
                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
34 HARTSOCK, Noah...... f  2-4    0-0    0-0    0  2  2   2   4  2  0  4  0  22
54 MILES, Chris........ c  3-7    0-0    0-0    4  3  7   0   6  1  0  2  0  31
04 EMERY, Jackson...... g  1-9    0-6    0-0    0  5  5   2   2  4  1  0  3  27
23 HAWS, Tyler......... g  6-10   3-4    2-2    1  1  2   0  17  2  1  0  0  32
32 FREDETTE, Jimmer.... g 11-19   5-8    6-6    1  2  3   1  33  5  3  1  1  38
00 DAVIES, Brandon.....    1-2    0-0    0-0    0  2  2   4   2  0  2  0  0   7
01 ABOUO, Charles......    2-4    0-0    0-0    1  4  5   1   4  0  0  1  1  11
02 MORGAN, JR., Lamont.    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  1  0  0   2
10 LOYD, JR., Michael..    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   5
15 ANDERSON, James.....    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   1   0  0  0  0  0   2
45 TAVERNARI, Jonathan.    1-5    1-3    0-0    1  4  5   0   3  2  2  1  1  23
   TEAM................                         2  2  4             1
   Totals..............   27-60   9-21   8-8   10 25 35  11  71 16 11  9  6 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 13-30 43.3%   2nd Half: 14-30 46.7%   Game: 45.0%  DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  5-11 45.5%   2nd Half:  4-10 40.0%   Game: 42.9%   REBS
F Throw % 1st Half:  4-4  100 %   2nd Half:  4-4  100 %   Game: 100 %    0
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HOME TEAM: SAN DIEGO STATE 14-6 (3-3 MWC)
                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
04 THOMAS, Malcolm..... f  1-6    0-0    0-0    2  4  6   0   2  5  2  2  0  29
15 LEONARD, Kawhi...... f  7-15   2-4    0-0    6  5 11   2  16  1  0  1  0  33
32 WHITE, Billy........ f  2-5    0-1    4-4    1  1  2   2   8  2  1  0  5  27
22 TAPLEY, Chase....... g  4-9    3-5    0-0    0  3  3   3  11  3  1  2  1  29
23 GAY, D.J............ g  4-11   1-4    3-3    1  1  2   0  12  2  0  0  0  32
03 SHELLEY, Tyrone.....    2-4    0-0    0-0    1  1  2   0   4  1  4  1  2  13
05 CARLWELL, Brian.....    4-5    0-0    0-1    0  4  4   2   8  0  0  0  0  14
40 DAVIS, Kelvin.......    3-12   1-8    1-2    1  3  4   3   8  3  3  0  0  23
   TEAM................                         5  1  6             1
   Totals..............   27-67   7-22   8-10  17 23 40  12  69 17 12  6  8 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 15-34 44.1%   2nd Half: 12-33 36.4%   Game: 40.3%  DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  2-8  25.0%   2nd Half:  5-14 35.7%   Game: 31.8%   REBS
F Throw % 1st Half:  2-3  66.7%   2nd Half:  6-7  85.7%   Game: 80.0%    0
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Officials: Mike Reed, Bobby McRoy, Jimmy Casas
Technical fouls: BRIGHAM YOUNG-None. SAN DIEGO STATE-WHITE, Billy.
Attendance: 12414
Score by Periods                1st  2nd   Total
BRIGHAM YOUNG.................   35   36  -   71
SAN DIEGO STATE...............   34   35  -   69
ID-811572
Points in the paint-BY 18,SDSU 40. Points off turnovers-BY 8,SDSU 14.
2nd chance points-BY 11,SDSU 14. Fast break points-BY 4,SDSU 9.
Bench points-BY 9,SDSU 20. Score tied-3 times. Lead changed-6 times.
Last FG-BY 2nd-00:22, SDSU 2nd-00:01.
Largest lead-BY by 12 1st-10:39, SDSU by 5 2nd-11:59.