Game 34 - BYU vs. UNLV in MWC Semifinals

Cougars to Face UNLV in MWC Semifinals

No. 14/15 and No. 2 seed BYU men’s basketball (29-4, 13-3 MWC) plays No. 3 seed UNLV (24-7, 11-5) in the semifinals of the MWC Tournament at the Thomas and Mack Center on Friday at 8:30 p.m. PST. The game can be heard live on KSL Newsradio beginning with the pregame show at 7:30 p.m. PST on 102.7 FM and 1160 AM or via the Internet at KSL.com. The game will be televised live on CBS C.

Up Next

If BYU wins the Cougars will face the winner of No. 1 seed New Mexico vs. No. 4 seed San Diego State on Saturday, March 13 at 4 p.m. PST. That game will be broadcast live on KSL Newsradio 102.7 FM and 1160 AM or via the Internet at KSL.com. The game will be televised live on VERSUS.

Cougar Quick Hits

— At 29-4 overall, BYU has set the program record for wins in a season (set previously in 1950-51) and has the best record in program history through 33 games. This also marks the fourth-straight season with 25-plus wins, a program record.

— Jimmer Fredette is the first BYU player to record 40-plus points in two games in his career. He set the Coguar single-game scoring record with 49 points at Arizona and had the third-highest single-game total with 45 vs. TCU in the MWC Tournament quarterfinals.

— Fredette is 14th all-time in scoring at BYU with 1,443 career points. He leads the conference in scoring at 21.4 points per game. He is also third at BYU in career threes (164), ninth in assists (343) and 12th in steals (114).

— Junior guard Jackson Emery has 87 steals this season, a BYU record for steals in a season. The previous record was 66, set by Marty Haws in 1989-90. He is fourth in career steals with 144.

— Two-time MWC Coach of the Year Dave Rose has guided BYU to three-straight MWC regular season titles and three-straight trips to the NCAA Tournament. Under Rose, BYU also has five-straight 20-win seasons and four-straight postseason appearances. At 126-38 (.768) overall, he is BYU’s all-time leader in winning percentage.

— Senior forward Jonathan Tavernari is BYU’s all-time leader in made threes 261. He is also climbing the lists for points (12th with 1,502) and steals (3rd with 158).

— With the win vs. TCU in the MWC Tournament, Jonathan Tavernari played in his 102nd BYU victory — first in school history. Tavernari’s teams have won 106 games, the best four-year stretch in program history.

BYU Game #34 Fast Facts

No. 14/15 BYU (29-4, 13-3) at UNLV (24-7, 11-5)

Friday, March 12, 2010

Thomas & Mack Center (18,500)

Las Vegas

8:30 p.m. PST

Coaches

BYU, Dave Rose (125-38 in fifth season; same overall)

UNLV, Lon Kruger (136-61 in sixth season; 454-293 in 25th season overall)

Series

UNLV leads 17-14, including a split this season with each team winning at home

TV

Live on The Mtn. (Tom Hart, play-by-play; Steve Lappas, analyst)

Radio

KSL Newsradio (102.7 FM/1160 AM and online at KSL.com) and the Cougar Sports Network (7:30 p.m. PST pregame show — Greg Wrubell, play-by-play; Mark Durrant, game analysis)

Web

Live stats links are available on the basketball schedule page at www.byucougars.com/basketball_m/

Looking at UNLV

No. 3 seed UNLV is 24-7 on the season after defeating Utah 73-61 in the MWC quarterfinals. The Rebels have now won five in a row. Tre’Von willis leads the team in scoring at 17.5 ppg and Chace Stanback adds 10.5 ppg and 5.8 rpg. Oscar Bellfield contributes 9.5 ppg and 4.6 apg. Matt Shaw adds 7.1 ppg, Kendall Wallace 7.0 ppg and Anthony Marshall 5.4 ppg. UNLV averages 74.3 ppg and shoots .464 from the field, .329 from three and .719 from the free throw line. Their opponents average 63.8 ppg, shoot .398 from the field and .325 from three.

UNLV’s Last Outing — Rebels Run Past Utes in Second Half, Win 73-61

LAS VEGAS (AP) -Freshman guard Anthony Marshall led UNLV with 13 points and a season-best 12 rebounds and the Runnin’ Rebels avenged Utah’s regular-season sweep with a 73-61 victory in the Mountain West Conference quarterfinals Thursday night.

Tre’Von Willis also scored 13 points for the third-seeded Runnin’ Rebels (24-7), who will face 14th-ranked BYU in the semifinals Friday night. The second-seeded Cougars (29-4) defeated TCU.

Utah (14-17) trailed just 29-25 at halftime after consecutive 3-pointers by Luka Drca, Marshall Henderson and Chris Hines in the closing minutes.

But the Utes didn’t bring that momentum out of the locker room.

UNLV used a 10-0 run to take a 41-30 lead in the opening minutes of the second half.

The Utes swept the Runnin’ Rebels during conference play, winning 73-69 in Las Vegas in January and 66-61 in Salt Lake City last month. It was Utah’s first sweep of UNLV in five years.

Series Notes

BYU trails UNLV 17-14 in the all-time series. The Cougars and Rebels split this season with BYU winning 77-73 at home and UNLV winning 88-74 at home. The Rebels lead BYU 3-0 in MWC Tournament play with all three games coming on UNLV’s home floor. This is the first meeting between the teams in the semifinals as all three previous MWC Tournament matchups came in the title game.

Most Wins in a Season

At 29-4 on the season, the 2009-10 BYU men’s basketball squad has set the Cougar record for regular season wins and the overall record for wins. The 2007-08 team set the previous regular season record with 25 regular season victories and finished 27-8 after the postseason. The 1950-51 team was 24-7 in the regular season and finished with what was a program record 28 wins to go with nine losses.

New Record for Thievery

With a steal at Colorado State, Jackson Emery broke the BYU record for steals in a single season. The record was previously held by Marty Haws, who had 66 steals in 1989-90. Emery now has 87 steals this season after collecting two vs. TCU in the MWC Tournament. He is five from breaking the MWC single-season record.

33-Point Games

Jimmer Fredette’s 45 points vs. TCU in the MWC Tournament was his sixth game with 33-plus points this season. He is fifth all-time in BYU history for career 33-point games and his six this season are the most by a BYU junior in a single season and tied for the second-most in any BYU season. Devin Durrant had 11 33-point games as a senior in 1983-84 and Dick Nemelka had six as a senior in 1965-66.

Best Record Through 33 Games

At 29-4 overall, BYU men’s basketball has the best record in program history through 33 games. The 2007-08 team held the previous best record in program history through 33 games at 27-6. See below for the other best records through 32 games.

In the Rankings

BYU men’s basketball entered the top-25 rankings for the first time this season on Jan. 4 at No. 25 in the AP Poll and No. 23 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. The Cougars are currently ranked No. 14 in the AP Poll and No. 15 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. BYU has been ranked as high as No. 12 in the AP Poll and No. 10 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. Rose has led his teams to the rankings in each of the last four seasons to become the first Cougar coach to lead BYU into the rankings in four-straight seasons.

BYU as a Ranked Team

BYU owns a 152-61 record as a ranked team, including 15-3 this season. The Cougars are 86-13 at home, 43-30 on the road and 23-18 at neutral sites when nationally ranked. BYU is 24-9 as a ranked team under Dave Rose.

Consecutive Weeks Ranked

BYU entered the rankings on Jan. 4 and has been ranked ever since, a streak of 10-consecutive weeks — the third longest streak in a single season since the 1980-81 and 1971-72 teams that were ranked for 15-straight weeks and the 1979-80 team that was ranked for 14-straight weeks. The Cougars were ranked for 30-consecutive weeks (not including preseason polls) over three seasons from the first week of the 1979-80 season to the first week of the 1981-82 season.

1,000-Point Scorers

With nine points vs. TCU in the MWC quarterfinals, Jonathan Tavernari has 1,502 career points and is 12th all-time in scoring at BYU. He is 11 points from passing Kresimir Cosic for 11th all-time. After scoring 45 points vs. TCU in the MWC quarterfinals, Jimmer Fredette has 1,443 career points, good for 13th all-time in program history.

Downtown Record Watch

Jonathan Tavernari is BYU’s all-time leader in career threes and attempts. Tavernari also owns the record for threes in a season with 88 in 2007-08. He now has 261 makes and 685 attempts. Jimmer Fredette is third with 164 makes and third with 416 attempts.

Top-10 Pick Pockets

Senior forward Jonathan Tavernari had three steals at TCU to give him 158 for his career. He is third all-time in BYU history. Jackson Emery is fourth with 144 while Jimmer Fredette is 12th with 114.

When Jimmer Scores 20...

Jimmer Fredette had 45 points vs. TCU in the MWC quarterfinals, his 19th 20-point game this season and 27th of his career. He has reached 33-plus points six times this season. BYU is 23-4 when Fredette scores 20 or more points.

BYU Freshman Scoring Leaders

With 373 points this season, Tyler Haws is on pace to become one of the highest scoring freshmen in BYU history. He is currently sixth and 22 points from passing Trent Plaisted.