BYU @ Santa Clara Game Preview
By James Pigott
Nov 22, 2013; South Bend, IN, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish center Garrick Sherman (11) grabs a rebound over Santa Clara Broncos forward Yannick Atanga (44) and guard Denzel Johnson (20) in the first half at the Purcell Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports
BYU Cougars (11-4, 1-1) @ Santa Clara Broncos (6-7, 1-1)
Date: Thursday, January 1, 2015
Location: Leavey Center, Santa Clara, CA
Time: 2:00 PM PT
TV: BYUtv
Livestream: byutv.org
Live Stats: http://stats.statbroadcast.com/statmonitr/?id=71485&a=1
PROJECTED STARTERS
BYU
Kyle Collinsworth, 13.6 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 5.6 APG
Tyler Haws, 22.1 PPG, 4.3 RPG
Chase Fischer, 13.4 PPG
Anson Winder, 14.9 PPG, 4.1 RPG
Luke Worthington, 3.1 PPG
Santa Clara
Brandon Clark, 16.2 PPG, 4.3 APG
Jared Brownridge, 15.2 PPG
Denzel Johnson, 8.2 PPG
Nate Kratch, 3.8 PPG, 3.9 RPG
Matt Hubbard, 7.8 PPG, 5.1 RPG
Keys to the Game for BYU
After the high scoring win over Portland, BYU needs to continue to push the tempo and move the ball around to share the wealth on offense. They have four high scoring guards compared to Santa Clara’s two, so the Cougars should look to get all of them involved on offense. Defensively, the Cougars need to pressure Clark and Brownridge and force them to put the ball on the floor. They are more lethal as 3 point shooters and if the Broncos pull off this upset, it will likely be because the Cougars aren’t able to find shooters on defense. I’d like to see more of Corbin Kaufusi in this game, guarding the paint and helping out if the Bronco guards get into the paint. Obviously getting Tyler Haws as healthy as possible continues to be an important trend for BYU.
Keys to the Game for Santa Clara
Matt Hubbard could be the X-factor because of his ability to shoot the ball from beyond the arc at the center position. He was 3/3 from distance in Santa Clara’s win over Pacific, and he has the ability to pull BYU’s centers out to the three point line. Only a freshman, he is starting to fill the void left by Marc Trasolini in 2013. Also, Brandon Clark has been in a horrible slump this season, shooting under 27% from distance, so he needs to help out Jared Brownridge, whose 3 point percentage is currently over 48%. With Yannick Atanga injured, the Broncos lose some defensive rim protection, so it will be crucial for Santa Clara to keep BYU’s guards (especially Winder and Collinsworth) out of the paint, which will not be easy.
Prediction
While BYU won’t be exploiting Santa Clara’s lack of interior scoring this year, they do have an advantage in the backcourt with their four guard starting lineup. Unless Santa Clara shoots out of their mind from the outside, the Cougars should get this victory fairly comfortably. BYU 85, Santa Clara 68.