10 in a row: Early deficit, missed FT’s doom USU Men’s Hoops in loss to BYU
New coach, new season. But the same struggles against the same team.
Utah State men’s basketball fell to BYU on Wednesday night in Provo, 82 to 71. It’s the 10th loss in a row for the Aggies against their in-state foe to the south.
The nightmares continued in the Marriot Center — a place USU hasn’t won in since 2004. As coach Ryan Odom said postgame, they “didn’t execute” defensively in the first half, surrendering 45 points. And where they have shined much of the season, at the free-throw line, they were abysmal all game long, shooting just 9-of-20.
But despite the woes — and an 18-point deficit with 10 minutes to play — Utah State still gave themselves a chance to win late.
From the 8:47 to 3:32 mark in the second half, the Aggie defense, which was aided by the presence of Sean Bairstow off the bench, kept BYU scoreless. Offensively, they’d try to take advantage.
Trailing 69 to 54 with 8:47 remaining, senior forward Brandon Horvath came alive. He hit back to back 3-point shots, then knocked down a layup to lead an Aggie 8-0 run.
For the first time all game, the Aggies had tangible momentum. The couple hundred Utah State students who had made the trip down to Provo began making some noise down from the rafters. The remaining 15,000+ clad in royal blue and white were unnerved for the first time all evening.
But it was short-lived, as any hopes of winning quickly withered away at the free-throw line.
Down 69 to 62 with 4:21 remaining, Justin Bean was fouled at the hoop and went to the line, missing back-to-back shots off the back iron. Moments later, down 71 to 62, Horvath missed the front end of a one and one. A bucket by BYU’s Fousseyni Traore on the other end and the Aggies trailed by double digits once again, all but ending the game.
“Sometimes it can be contagious,” Odom said about the missed free throw. “We’ve all seen it. You know you watch sports long enough, watch basketball long enough that happens. And the fatigue, don’t underestimate the fatigue when you’re out there on the court, and you’re down 20 and you’re chasing them around, and then all of a sudden, you’re beginning to get back in it. And that’s your time to relax. And sometimes you relax too much. And then you see your buddy miss one. And then it’s like, oh boy.”
Trying to force a comeback that required near perfection wouldn’t have been necessary if Utah State didn’t play as poorly in the first half.
The Aggie defense looked unorganized and uninspired early, failing to communicate effectively through screens and giving up several open looks. The Cougars took full advantage; BYU shot 16-of-28 from the field and 6-of-13 from three in the first half and led 45 to 33 at the break.
“They’re really tough to guard coming out of that left corner, going downhill right down the lane,” Odom said. “And we really struggled with that early in the game…But having said that, you know, we still were within striking distance, at that point. But didn’t play our type of basketball in the first half defensively. We were not really good at all.”
Beyond the free throw line, Utah State was effective offensively through stretches throughout the gaem, which helped keep them in it despite the defensive let down. As a team, they’d shoot 26-of-50 from the field, and 10-of-26 from 3-point range. Bean led the way with a game-high 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Horvath pitched in 14 and Bairstow, who recently returned to the court after injuries, had a season-high 11.
“I actually had a lacerated kidney that was more what kept me out, and the broken wrist,” Bairstow said. “So fatigue wise I was definitely feeling it. But as the game went on, I kind of got my wind back and fought through it.”
Utah State looks to regroup on Saturday, when they face New Orleans in the Spectrum.