BYU vs. Northern Iowa Game Story
BYU vs. Northern Iowa Box Score
Player Notes
- Kyle Collinsworth tied his career high with 16 rebounds to go with 12 points, 6 assists, 3 steals and a block. It is his 27th career double-double tying Russell Larson for 8th all-time at BYU.
- Collinsworth passed Fred Roberts, Brandon Davies and Greg Kite to move into 4th place all-time in rebounds at BYU with 854 rebounds. He also tied Lee Cummard for 12th in double figure scoring games with 77 in his career. His 3 steals passed Marty Haws for third in career steals with 183.
- Fischer followed up his 41 points with 26 on 4 of 11 from 3-point range and a perfect 8 of 8 from the free-throw line. The last time someone was perfect from the free-throw line with at least 8 attempts was Tyler Haws against San Diego last February.
- Fischer also passed Andy Toolson for ninth in career 3-pointers made with 143. It was his 27th career three 3-pointer game passing Matt Carlino for fifth in BYU history.
- Davis again scored in double figures with 10 points and 9 rebounds along with 2 assists, a block and a steal. Davis has scored in double digits in every game this season.
- Zac Seljaas has made multiple 3-pointers in five straight games after hitting 3 of 3 from behind the arc. Seljaas finished with 12 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal.
- Nate Austin started for the second straight game and his block passed Fred Roberts for 13th in career blocks at BYU. Austin added 4 points, 3 rebounds and an assist.
- Austin played in is his 129th game tying him with Russell Larson, Nathan Call and Anson Winder for 10th most games played at BYU.
- Nick Emery was a perfect 6 of 6 from the free throw line. He has now made 20-straight free throws.
Team Notes
- It was the first time since March 19, 2013 against Washington that BYU shot 90 percent or better from the free-throw line.
- BYU finished the Diamond Head Classic with a 2-1 record with wins against Northern Iowa and New Mexico.
- The victory gives BYU the most nonconference wins of any West Coast Conference team with nine. Saint Mary’s and Gonzaga each finished with 8 wins during their nonconference schedules.
- BYU is 5-3 in December with its first conference game against Saint Mary's on New Year’s Eve to close out the month.
- For the second consecutive game, Collinsworth (13 season/107 career), Fischer(13/46), Emery (8/8), Davis (13/13) and Austin (1/55) started for the Cougars. BYU is now 2-0 with that starting five.
First half
- A 15-0 run put BYU up 27-12 with 7:40 left in the first half. Fischer, Seljaas and Chatman hit 3-pointers, while Collinsworth, Davis and Fischer added baskets.
Second half
- After UNI cut the lead to one at 45-44, a 5-0 run put BYU back up six at 50-44 on a Seljaas 3-pointer and two free throws.
- An 8-0 run all from Fischer put BYU up by 11 with 6:46 left after which the Cougars never let Northern Iowa get closer than six.
Quotes
BYU head coach Dave Rose
“This was really a good performance from our guys…I think when you take the last eight minutes of this game especially, we played hard enough, they played hard enough. It was a two- to three-point game and we needed to execute to win and that’s why I’m happy for my guys. We were able to execute down the stretch, we got guys to the foul line and we made every one in that 8-minute stretch.”
“It will be really good for their confidence going into conference beating a team whose beat the No. 1 team at one time and the No. 5 team at one time.”
Free-throw shooting:
“It’s such a big factor in close games, most games are close games. The game against New Mexico ended up being a 30-point game, but there were two stretches where guys just needed to step up and make plays. Free throws were good tonight.”
Another good start:
“Consistency is the key and having Kyle Davis in the low post gives our guys a lot of confidence. They came hard with the double team today and we were able to get good shots out of that double team.”
“We’ve had a lot less defensive errors in the first four or five minutes of a game which has helped us.”
On getting back on the floor after a sprained ankle against Utah:
“It feels amazing. I’m probably 85-90 percent, still trying to get that to 100, but I’m playing so thats good.”
On playing with Kyle Davis down low:
“He’s just a bull. I love playing with him whenever I get with him we just crash the boards hard and it’s a good feel.”
On coming back after Harvard loss:
“It’s how you deal with adversity and we came together as a team.”