BYU 72, SDSU 50
SAN DIEGO, Calif. -- The San Diego State University Aztecs are to college basketball what Montezuma's Revenge is to camping.So, going into its game with SDSU Thursday night at Cox Arena, it might have been easy for BYU to dwell on the Aztecs' winless record in the Mountain West Conference and seven-game losing streak. Or to entertain the thought that SDSU's most recent victory was against, fittingly enough, a school named High Point.
But with the memory of last week's painful defeat at Air Force fresh on their minds, no way the Cougars were going to look past the Aztecs Thursday night at Cox Arena.
BYU pounded SDSU, 72-50, to halt the Cougars own two-game losing skid, and the Cougars did not care that it came against the league's worst team. After all, it was the Cougars' first victory in 12 long days.
"Any win on the road is good for us," said coach Steve Cleveland. "You lose a couple of games, and you're not sure if you'll ever win again."
"It feels good to get back on track," said junior guard Terrell Lyday. "We got our focus back. We're not overlooking anybody."
BYU improved to 15-5 overall (tying the mark for most wins by a Cougar team since 1995-96) and 4-3 in the MWC, while SDSU dropped to 5-14 and 0-6.
Then again, BYU was less-than-sharp at times against the Aztecs. They won thanks to two weapons that helped lift them to their best start in years but abandoned them last weekend -- solid outside shooting and good defense.
BYU was only 8-of-46 in 3-point shooting in its previous three games but found its stroke against SDSU. Todd Christensen drilled three of four 3-pointers, and Michael Vranes knocked down a pair as well. As a team, BYU was 7-of-13 from behind the arc.
"When the game counted," Cleveland said, "we shot the ball really well."
More impressive was BYU's defensive effort against the Aztecs' leading scorer, Myron Epps, who was coming off a career-high 32-point performance at Wyoming. The strategy was to double-team Epps, and it was successful. The 6-foot-6-inch sophomore finished with only three points on one-of-four shooting. His first, and only, basket of the contest came with 13 minutes remaining.
"Coaches stressed on us playing tough in the post," said forward Eric Nielsen, who helped defend Epps. "I saw the game film of him at Wyoming, and it woke me up."
The Cougars needed a wake-up call midway through the first half against the Aztecs, however. They were struggling offensively and their big men -- Nielsen, Mekeli Wesley and Silester Rivers -- got into early foul trouble, which has become an ominous trend for BYU. (Nielsen and Rivers eventually fouled out. Rivers' exited with 16 minutes left in the game.)
After SDSU went up 21-16 on a 3-pointer by San Diego State guard Donte Wilson, BYU scored 14 unanswered points over the next five minutes, including 3-pointers by Lyday and Christensen, to grab a 30-21 edge.
The Aztecs countered with back-to-back baskets but finished the half hitting just one of their final 11 shots. Meanwhile, the Cougars scored seven unanswered points, including another Christensen 3-pointer, to take a 37-26 lead into intermission.
Epps' line? Zero points, three personal fouls in 14 minutes.
SDSU's woes spilled into the second half as BYU built a 49-29 advantage. An Epps layup was the Aztecs' third field goal over a 16-minute span, and it got even worse for the Aztecs. At one point, the Cougars sunk three 3-pointers in a row. Wesley -- who, despite battling the flu all week, ended with a team-high 15 points and nine rebounds -- Christensen and Vranes had one each.
BYU watched its lead balloon to as many as 27 points, and Cleveland emptied his bench. When the final buzzer sounded, the Cougars celebrated.
Cleveland says he feels for SDSU coach Steve Fisher. Fisher, who has guided three teams to the NCAA title game when he was at Michigan and owns one national championship ring, is trying to turn around a bad program.
"I empathize with him. I went through the same thing a couple of years ago," Cleveland said.
Vranes was less sympathetic. "BYU's been in that position," he said. "It's their turn."
NOTES: Attendance was 3,658 . . . Next up for BYU is arch-rival Utah. The two teams will meet Feb. 12 at the Huntsman Center . . . The Cougars shot 54 percent from the floor and 56 percent in the second half.