BYU Game Recap: Cougars Cruise to Win over UAA

March 02, 2012; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Brigham Young Cougars guard Matt Carlino (10) drives against the San Diego Toreros during the second half of the quarterfinals of the 2012 West Coast Conference Tournament at Orleans Arena. The Brigham Young Cougars defeated the San Diego Toreros 73-68. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

The BYU Cougars men’s basketball team cruised to a 99-68 win over the Alaska-Anchorage Seawolves on Saturday night at the Marriott Center.

Coach Dave Rose experimented with a different four-guard line up to start off the game: Matt Carlino, Tyler Haws, Frank Bartley IV, Kyle Collinsworth, and Nate Austin.  Much like last week’s game against Colorado College, BYU started out sluggish.  The Seawolves surged to a 10-4 lead in the early going, highlighted by a 3-pointer from Teancum Stafford and three free throws from Travis Thompson.

BYU would then start to get things together both offensively and defensively.  Matt Carlino and Eric Mika, who both registered 17 points on the night, were able to get some buckets inside to get the ball rolling for the Cougars.  The highlight of the first half came with 10:15 left when Nate Austin delivered an on-the-money entry pass to a cutting Mika who, in turn, threw down a thunderous dunk.  At that point, BYU’s lead stood at 22-15, and they would go on to lead 44-30 at the half.

Alaska Anchorage, known for their solid outside shooting, only managed to hit 8 of 34 three-point attempts on the night.  BYU crowded the perimeter and contested the majority of the Seawolves’ shots from deep.  The Cougars’ size and strength advantage also made it difficult for UAA down low, leading to an underwhelming 33% on field goals for the Seawolves.

To note, BYU’s size and strength advantage also led to a +40 (not a typo) rebounding margin and a 32-4 advantage in second chance points.  Eric Mika pulled down 14 rebounds, and Matt Carlino grabbed 11.

The Cougars wore down Alaska-Anchorage in the second half on the way to the 31-point final advantage.  Mika dominated down low, and Kyle Collinsworth weaved his way through defenders to get to the rim on multiple occasions.

BYU will start the regular season on Friday at 7 PM MST against Weber State.  The game will be broadcast on BYUtv, with streaming video on byutvsports.com as well.