SALT LAKE -- In their second annual trip to the Delta Center, the Cougars could not hang on to an eight-point lead as Washington State fired back in the second half to edge BYU, 49-46.
"We need more than two guys making baskets," BYU head coach Steve Cleveland said. "We have not figured out how to play two halves. Somebody's got to step up and make shots, and no one's doing that."
After trailing by six points in the second half, Austin Ainge sparked the Cougars' comeback, scoring the last nine points for BYU including a clutch three-pointer with 18.3 seconds left in the game. Although Ainge's trey put the Cougars within two of Washington State, BYU's 5-3 run could not help them pull ahead in the last few seconds. Ainge finished with a team- and career-high 16 points after playing 31 minutes off the bench.
Despite a rough beginning, BYU soon found its range in the first half, recording a 20-3 run early on with the help of Mike Rose, who came off the bench to score 10 points in the first 13 minutes of the game. Rose continued his firepower and led the Cougar offense, going 5-for-7 from the field while hitting 50 percent beyond the arc in the first half. Rose came away with 15 points as well as picking off three steals.
Ainge also made an impact early for the Cougars, who struggled offensively throughout the contest. In the first half, Ainge tallied seven points while grabbing two rebounds and dishing out two assists.
Washington State's Thomas Kelati, who led WSU with 15 points, started the second half with a three, but Mike Rose answered back with a trey of his own after center Derek Dawes went 1-for-2 from the charity stripe. Dawes played some key minutes for the Cougars and finished with six points and seven rebounds while Garner Meads led the team with 10 rebounds, tying his career high.
Now 2-6 on the season, the Cougars will look to bounce back as they face Utah State next Saturday at 7 p.m. in the Marriott Center.
Official Basketball Box Score -- GAME TOTALS -- FINAL STATISTICS
Washington State University vs Brigham Young
12/11/04 4:00 PM at Delta Center, Salt Lake City, UT
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
VISITORS: Washington State University 4-3, 0-0 Pac-10
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
34 COWGILL, Robbie..... f 1-2 1-1 0-0 0 2 2 4 3 0 0 2 0 12
45 VAREM, Jeff......... f 2-8 0-1 4-6 3 8 11 1 8 3 5 0 1 32
14 HENRY, Chris........ c 1-4 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 15
02 LOW, Derrick........ g 0-2 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 15
11 KELATI, Thomas...... g 5-9 3-6 2-3 2 5 7 1 15 3 3 0 1 34
01 AKOGNON, Josh....... 3-8 3-4 0-0 0 1 1 0 9 0 1 0 1 14
05 SCHLATTER, Chris.... 1-3 0-1 0-0 0 4 4 2 2 3 1 0 0 26
12 GREEN, Randy........ 2-4 2-4 0-0 0 0 0 0 6 0 1 0 2 14
22 GILL, Shami......... 0-5 0-0 1-2 3 2 5 2 1 0 2 0 1 22
24 WEAVER, Kyle........ 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2
25 SIMMONS, Isaiah..... 1-2 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 7
32 HARMELING, Daven.... 0-2 0-1 0-0 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 7
TEAM................ 2 2 4
Totals.............. 16-49 10-19 7-11 10 26 36 11 49 13 15 2 6 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 7-22 31.8% 2nd Half: 9-27 33.3% Game: 32.7% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 3-7 42.9% 2nd Half: 7-12 58.3% Game: 52.6% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 1-3 33.3% 2nd Half: 6-8 75.0% Game: 63.6% 2
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HOME TEAM: Brigham Young 2-6, 0-0 MWC
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
23 BALDERSON, Jimmy.... f 0-4 0-3 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 15
41 MEADS, Garner....... f 0-2 0-0 2-2 1 9 10 2 2 2 2 0 0 28
52 JENSEN, Jared....... c 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 6
01 HALL, Mike.......... g 1-10 1-6 0-0 0 1 1 4 3 2 3 0 2 36
10 NASHIF, Terry....... g 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 6
02 ROSE, Mike.......... 6-13 3-9 0-0 0 2 2 3 15 1 2 0 3 25
03 YOUNG, Keena........ 1-3 0-0 0-0 0 3 3 0 2 0 0 1 0 15
13 AINGE, Austin....... 7-12 2-6 0-0 0 2 2 1 16 4 1 0 0 31
20 BURGESS, Sam........ 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 4
43 DAWES, Derek........ 1-1 0-0 4-7 3 4 7 1 6 1 1 2 0 25
54 MILES, Chris........ 1-1 0-0 0-0 1 1 2 1 2 1 1 0 0 9
TEAM................ 1 3 4
Totals.............. 17-48 6-25 6-9 6 25 31 14 46 11 14 3 6 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 10-26 38.5% 2nd Half: 7-22 31.8% Game: 35.4% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 4-14 28.6% 2nd Half: 2-11 18.2% Game: 24.0% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 1-2 50.0% 2nd Half: 5-7 71.4% Game: 66.7% 2
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Officials: Jim Danner, Tim Gabutero, Bill Gracey
Technical fouls: Washington State University-None. Brigham Young-None.
Attendance: 10283
Score by Periods 1st 2nd Total
Washington State University... 18 31 - 49
Brigham Young................. 25 21 - 46