Though it snapped a three-game losing streak, BYU isn't quite a mile high after Tuesday's 89-71 drubbing of Denver. There's more work to do.
Next up: road games at Oregon and Washington State -- two teams that defeated the Cougars (2-3) in the Marriott Center last season."It's certainly a challenging road trip," said BYU coach Steve Cleveland. "We're going to have to be ready and get after it."
The journey begins tonight at McArthur Court in Eugene, a venue Cleveland considers one of the toughest places in the country to play. The game will be televised on KSL-Ch. 5 at 8 p.m.
Oregon, off to a 2-1 start with victories over Coppin State and Southern Illinois and a loss to Minnesota, has a situation similar to BYU's. Second-year coach Ernie Kent is rebuilding a downtrodden program. The Ducks, however, made his first game a success with a 74-67 win in Provo a year ago. BYU missed 21 3-pointers in the contest and made just six free throws.
Brian Hamilton was the lone bright spot for the Cougars. He finished with 24 points and was 6-of-10 beyond the 3-point arc.
Unfortunately, Hamilton isn't available this time around. The senior has yet to practice this season because of a back injury. BYU will also face Oregon without starting center Bret Jepsen. He's still recovering from an elbow to the head suffered in the Arizona game.
Injuries haven't hampered the Ducks. Junior forwards A.D. Smith and Alex Scales have combined to average 31.3 points per game, while senior guard Terik Brown (whose father is former NBA star "Downtown" Freddie Brown) is a threat from 3-point range. He hit five against the Cougars last season.
BYU's hopes center around the long-range shooting of Todd Christensen, who made four treys against Denver, and inside play of forward Silester Rivers. He finished with 26 points in the win over the Pioneers as the Cougars had their highest offensive output in the Cleveland era.
Following the trip to Oregon, BYU heads to Washington State for a meeting Tuesday. The other Cougars welcomed Cleveland to Division I basketball with a 78-49 victory in last season's opener in Provo. Washington State is off to a slow start this time around. Among their preseason losses, the Pac-10 Cougars dropped an 88-75 decision to Alaska-Fairbanks.