BYU faces Liberty on Christmas Day at Diamond Head Classic

BYU faces Liberty on Christmas Day at Diamond Head ClassicBYU faces Liberty on Christmas Day at Diamond Head Classic

HONOLULU, Hawaii – BYU play on Christmas Day for the second time in program history when they face Liberty in the third-place game of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu, Hawaii. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. MST at the Simplifi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.

Saturday’s contest will be broadcast on ESPN2. It will also be broadcast live on BYU Sports Network on the BYU Radio – Sirius XM 143/89.1 FM HD2 and KSL 102.7 FM/1160 AM.

BYU Notes (10-3, 0-0 West Coast Conference)

  • BYU suffered just their third loss of the season on Thursday evening with a 69-67 setback to Vanderbilt. The Cougars outperformed the Commodores in nearly every offensive category but were unable to overcome a season-high 19 turnovers in the loss.
  • Fousseyni Traore continues to impress as the freshman finished with nine points and a career-high 15 rebounds on Thursday. He has added two blocks to bring his season total to 15.

Head Coach – Mark Pope

  • Alma Mater: Kentucky, 1996
  • Division I Career Record: 131-73 (7th Season)
  • Record at BYU: 54-17 (3rd Season)

Liberty Notes (8-5, 0-0 Athletic Sun Conference)

  • Liberty enters Christmas Day at 8-5 following a 79-76 setback to Stanford in the early game on Thursday. Saturday will be the Flames eighth neutral site game of the season and fifth in their last six.
  • Liberty’s Darius McGhee ranks first in the nation in 3-point field goals and attempts. The senior guard is averaging 21.4 points per game after tying a Liberty and Diamond Head Classic record with 41 points against Stanford.

Head Coach – Ritchie McKay

  • Alma Mater: Seattle Pacific, 1987
  • Division I Career Record: 350-256 (20th Season)
  • Record at Liberty: 152-70 (7th Season)

Series Information

  • Series Record: BYU leads 1-0
  • Last Meeting: BYU won 73-59, December 28, 2006
  • H/A/N: 1-0/0-0/0-0

Broadcast Information

  • TV: ESPN2
  • TV Talent: Roxy Bernstein, Corey Williams
  • Radio: BYU Sports Network, BYU Radio Sirius XM 143/89.1 FM HD2, KSL 102.7 FM/1160 AM
  • Streamed Audio: BYURadio.org, BYUCougars.com/LiveRadio and the BYU Radio, BYU Cougars and BYU Gameday apps
  • Radio Talent: Greg Wrubell, Mark Durrant
  • Live stats: BYUCougars.com