Haws Breaks Scoring Record as BYU Defeats Portland

Dec 10, 2014; Provo, UT, USA; Utah Utes guard Kenneth Ogbe (25) dribbles the ball while being guarded by Brigham Young Cougars guard Tyler Haws (3) during the first half at Marriott Center. Utah Utes won the game 65-61. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports

Tyler Haws scored 21 points and easily broke Jimmer Fredette’s career scoring record as got a crucial victory at Portland, 82-69.  Haws broke the record with a layup off a feed from Ryan Andrus with 14:39 left in the first half.  Maybe the Cougars were too excited for Tyler, but they let their focus down towards the end of the first half, allowing Portland to finish on a 9-0 run to take an 8 point lead into the locker room.  In the second half, Skyler Halford did his thing once again.  He scored 16 points in the last 13:29 of the game and really helped BYU break open a close game.  Kyle Collinsworth had one of his better games of the season with 15 points, 6 rebounds, and 11 assists.  Despite struggling from the inside against Portland’s size, KC still managed to work his way to the free throw line, going 7/7 at the charity stripe.  Anson Winder also struggled to finish around the rim, but his 5 steals were key limiting the Pilots to 28 second half points.  Ryan Andrus is making the most of his limited playing opportunity before his LDS mission, scoring a career high 8 points against Portland.

Portland guard Bryce Pressley was as hot as the sun in the first half, scoring 16 points on 6/6 shooting.  In the second half, he did not score on 0/1 shooting.  Kevin Bailey had a poor shooting night but still finished with a team-high 18 points due to his prowess at the free throw line.  On the contrary, Thomas van der Mars really hurt his team’s chances to win by going 2/8 from the free throw line.  He still finished with 8 points, 13 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 3 steals, but left too many points on the board.  Alec Wintering had solid game with 13 points, and 7 assists, showing the continued development of the sophomore point guard.

News and Notes

• BYU’s minutes breakdown at Center: Andrus 20, Kaufusi 15, Worthington 3, Neilson 2.  For the past few games Dave Rose has made it clear that Andrus and Kaufusi are now the two primary big men with the other two seeing spot minutes.
• Tyler Haws continues to be the most consistent player in the country.  He’s now scored at least 20 points in 13 of his last 14 games.
• When Josh Sharp is not in the game, BYU is using four guards, effectively pushing Dalton Nixon out of the rotation.
• Bobby Sharp’s shooting strggles have continued for Portland, going 0/3 from beyond the arc against BYU after 27 points against the Cougars last year.
• Portland also played a lot of four guard lineups, with Jason Todd often subbing in for Voldymyr Gerun.

Moving Forward

BYU will have their toughest WCC game of the season at Gonzaga, where the Cougars will try to lock up an NCAA Tournament bid with a victory.  The Cougars are squarely out right now, but a win over the Zags would change everything.  Portland and San Diego have matching 7-10 WCC records, and the two teams will battle for the #5 seed in Vegas next week when San Diego comes to the Chiles Center to play the Pilots.