Game 26 - Cougars to Host Utes in Deseret First Duel

Cougars vs. Utes in Deseret First Duel

No. 7/8 BYU basketball will host rival Utah in a Deseret First Duel matchup on Saturday, Feb. 12, in the Marriott Center at 4 p.m. MT. The Cougars are 23-2 overall and 9-1 in MWC action and are coming off a 90-52 win at Air Force. Jimmer Fredette scored 25 points, Jackson Emery added 17 points and Brandon Davies had 13 points, eight boards and six assists. Fredette leads the nation in scoring at 27.5 points per game and is shooting .421 from three. Jackson Emery adds 12.6 points per game and Brandon Davies is third on the team in scoring at 11.7 points per game. Utah is 10-14 overall and 3-7 in MWC play and is coming off an 85-53 loss at San Diego State. The Utes have lost four straight, including home losses to Colorado State and Air Force and a loss at UNLV. Will Clyburn leads Utah in scoring and rebounding at 18.3 points and 8.5 rebounds per game while Josh Watkins adds 14.4 points and 3.3 assists per game. Chris Kupets is third in scoring at 8.7 points per game. Wednesday’s game can be heard live on KSL Newsradio beginning with the pregame show at 3 p.m. MT on 102.7 FM and 1160 AM out of Salt Lake City or via the Internet at KSL.com. The game will be televised live on The Mtn.

Up Next

No. 7/8 BYU plays at TCU on Saturday, Feb. 19, at 3:30 p.m. CT. Live stats and audio links will be available on www.byucougars.com and fans can listen live on the radio beginning with the pregame show at 2:30 p.m. CT on KSL Newsradio 102.7 FM and 1160 AM out of Salt Lake City. The game will be televised live on The Mtn.

Cougar Quick Hits

— No. 7/8 BYU head coach Dave Rose is 150-42 in his six seasons at BYU and is the program’s all-time leader in winning percentage at .781. He is third in wins and two from tying Roger Reid for second all-time.

— In MWC action, Jimmer Fredette is averaging 32.6 points, 4.1 threes and 4.2 assists while shooting .471 from the field, .482 from three and .908 from the free throw line.

— Jimmer Fredette was named to eight preseason All-America teams and is a Cousy Award finalist, a Wooden Award midseason candidate and a preseason candidate for the Naismith Trophy. Fredette leads the nation in scoring at 27.5 points per game and adds 4.3 assists and 1.4 steals per game.

— Senior guard Jackson Emery is second on the team in scoring at 12.6 points per game and adds 3.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and a team-best 2.7 steals per game. He has posted four-plus steals eight times this season and is the program’s all-time leader in career steals. Brandon Davies is third on the team in scoring at 11.7 points per game on .548 shooting. He has scored in double figures 18 times this season, including 15 of the last 17 games.

— At 23-2, BYU has tied for the best 25-game record in program history with the 1987-88 team.

BYU GAME #26 FAST FACTS

No. 7/8 BYU (23-2, 9-1) vs. Utah (10-14, 3-7)

Saturday, Feb. 12, 2011

Marriott Center

Provo, Utah

4 p.m. MT

Coaches

BYU, Dave Rose (150-42 in sixth season at BYU; same overall)

Utah, Jim Boylen (66-56 in fourth season at Utah; same overall)

Series

BYU leads 126-125, including eight Cougar wins in the last nine meetings

Radio

KSL Newsradio (102.7 FM/1160 AM) and the Cougar Sports Network (Greg Wrubell, play-by-play; Mark Durrant, game analysis)

TV

The Mtn. (Rich Cellini, play-by-play; Blaine Fowler, game analysis)

Web

Live audio and live stats links are available on the men’s basketball schedule page at www.byucougars.com/basketball_m/

Looking at Utah

2010-11 Record: 10-14, 3-7

Conference: Mountain West

2009-10 Record: 14-17, 7-9 (T5th)

2010 Postseason: None

Highlights:

- Utah is 10-14 overall and 3-7 in Mountain West Conference play. The Utes are 7-5 at home, 3-7 on the road and 0-2 in neutral games. Utah was 3-5 in the first half of MWC play and opened the second half with a 54-49 home loss to Utah. The Utes fell 85-53 at San Diego State on Tuesday.

- Will Clyburn leads Utah in scoring and rebounding at 18.3 points and 8.5 rebounds per game while Josh Watkins adds 14.4 points and 3.3 assists per game. Chris Kupets is third in scoring at 8.7 points per game.

- Utah averages 68.9 points and shoots .429 from the field and .337 from three. Ute opponents average 71.1 points and shoot .421 from the field against Utah.

Utah’s Last Outing — San Diego State Tops Utah

SAN DIEGO (AP) - The way No. 6 San Diego State blitzed Utah early, the only thing in doubt was whether the crowd was going to get curly fries.

It didn’t, the only bummer on a night when SDSU raced past the hapless Utes 85-53 on Tuesday night behind 15 points apiece from D.J. Gay and Billy White, and another double-double by Kawhi Leonard. Gay helped key a 21-3 run that propelled SDSU to a 48-21 halftime lead.

The Aztecs (24-1, 9-1 Mountain West) won their fourth straight game since their only loss, 71-58 at BYU on Jan. 26.

If SDSU holds opponents under 50 points, fans get curly fries from a fast-food chain.

“I remember a timeout with seven minutes left, and I said, ‘They can’t score seven points in seven minutes. We’ve got to get them these fries,’” said big man Brian Carlwell, who had 10 points and played to the crowd several times. “It’s been games where teams have had 53 and I go home and some of my boys call me and they’re just mad. I told them, ‘We tried our best.’”

The Aztecs had their 10th sellout of 12,414 at Viejas Arena and set the school season attendance record at 137,785 after just 12 games. The old record was 126,420 in 18 games in 2008-09. SDSU has three home games left, which have been sold out for more than a month. Among them is a showdown against No. 7 BYU on Feb. 26.

“I probably should buy curly fries myself for all those students who were here,” coach Steve Fisher said. “They have been so good for us. Either that or they should give them to them anyway. That might be even better.”

Leonard, a sophomore forward, had 12 points and 14 rebounds for his 17th double-double of the season and 34th of his career. Freshman reserve guard Jamaal Franklin had his first double-double, with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Will Clyburn, the second-leading scorer in the conference at 18.3 points per game, had 18 for Utah (10-14, 3-7).

Gay, a senior guard, played in his 128th consecutive game, the most in school history. He came up big in the 21-3 run, which spanned 4 minutes and helped SDSU go from a 7-6 lead to a 28-9 advantage with 11:32 left before halftime.

Gay had a steal and a layup, and another steal and a pass to Carlwell for a fastbreak layup. Gay made a pretty left-handed reverse layup, and then hit a 3-point shot. Carlwell had six points during the run, nearly twice his average.

San Diego State made 9 of 11 shots during the run.

Utah’s only points during that span came on a layup by Clyburn and a free throw by Josh Watkins.

Series Notes

BYU leads the all-time series against Utah 126-125. The Cougars are 9-3 against the Utes under Dave Rose, including a 104-79 win in Salt Lake on Jan. 11, 2011.

CLICK HERE to see where Jimmer Fredette and Jackson Emery rank in the BYU and Mountain West Conference record books.