PROVO — BYU had just watched Colorado rally from a double-digit deficit earlier in the second half to take a three-point lead, 58-55, with 9:43 remaining Saturday night at the Marriott Center.
Despite leading the lion's share of the game, the Cougars needed an answer to have a shot at upending the Buffaloes, and they found it en route to a 79-71 victory.
From the 9:31 mark of the second half until 4:16 remained in the game, the Cougars outscored the Buffaloes 18-6 to overcome Colorado's largest lead of the night and put away the visiting Pac-12 team.
It was a combination of strong defense and a group of guards making plays on offense that fueled the run. BYU kept the same personnel on the court, as big men Eric Mika and Yoeli Childs and guards Nick Emery, TJ Haws and Steven Beo played together from the 10-minute mark of the second half until there was 1:05 left in the game.
The Cougars (7-3) shot 5 of 9 from the field, including 2 of 3 from 3-point range, during the 18-6 run. The Buffaloes (7-3), meanwhile, made just 1 of 5 shots, including 1 of 2 on 3-pointers, and went 1:46 without attempting a shot attempt.
At one point, Colorado scored only a lone free throw in a 4:45 span, going from up three to trailing BYU by seven before scoring again as the Cougars went on an 11-1 surge.
Here's a look at the stat line for each Cougar player during the 18-6 stretch:
Beo: 3 points (1 of 2 field goals, 1 of 1 3-pointers), 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 steal
Mika: 4 points (0 of 1 field goals, 4 of 4 free throws), 1 offensive rebound, 1 blocked shot, 1 assist, 1 turnover
Emery: 5 points (2 of 3 field goals, 0 of 1 3-pointers, 1 of 2 free throws), 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 steal
Haws: 6 points (2 of 3 field goals, 1 of 1 3-pointers, 1 of 1 free throws), 1 steal
Childs: 0 points, 2 rebounds, 1 offensive rebound, 1 turnover
A few plays defined this key stretch of the game:
— Beo's 3-pointer
Just 12 seconds after Colorado took its largest lead of the game at 58-55 on a Wesley Gordon jumper with 9:43 to play, Beo found the perfect time to score his first collegiate 3-pointer. After taking a pass in the post and drawing in a second defender, Mika dribbled once, then passed out to Beo along the 3-point line, just in front of the Cougar bench. Beo didn't hesitate and drilled the 3 to tie the game.
"That 3 he made was really, really big," BYU coach Dave Rose said. "The guys who had been in the game were having a tough stretch, and we needed that shot to lift us."
🎥 No. 1 of 5 from @BYUbasketball's game-clinching 18-6 run last night to beat Colorado 79-71: Steven Beo's 3-pointer to tie it at 58-all pic.twitter.com/kw5qk3Nwva
— Brandon Judd (@brandonljudd) December 12, 2016
— Haws' six straight points
The Buffaloes needed little time responding to Beo's game-tying 3, as Thomas Akyazili hit a 3-pointer on Colorado's next possession. After missed 3-pointers by both teams, Haws got the game back to a tie with a 3-pointer of his own off an assist from Beo, knotting the game at 61-all.
After Gordon put the Buffaloes back up one with a free throw, Haws struck again on BYU's next possession as Emery hit a driving Haws with a well-timed pass that led to a layup and a foul on Akyazili. Haws hit the resulting free throw, putting the Cougars ahead 64-62.
BYU never trailed again.
🎥 No. 2 of 5 from @BYUbasketball's 18-6 run to beat Colorado 79-71: TJ Haws scores 6 straight for BYU, Cougars never trail again pic.twitter.com/lwIyiY8BnP
— Brandon Judd (@brandonljudd) December 12, 2016
— Mika's blocked shot in transition
Colorado's Bryce Peters stole a pass from Childs with 7:20 remaining and the Cougars up two. With the chance to make it a tie game again, or give the Buffaloes the lead, Mika came up with the big defensive play.
After Beo stole a pass on the defensive end and missed a transition layup, Childs came up with an offensive board. Caught along the baseline, he tried to pass out to Mika, but Peters stole the ball and raced upcourt. Peters then threw a pass to Akyazili near the basket, but a hustling Mika swatted the Akyazili layup attempt off the backboard, which Emery corralled.
🎥 No. 3 of 5 from @BYUbasketball's game-clinching 18-6 run to beat Colorado 79-71: Eric Mika's hustle, blocked shot to prevent a tying score pic.twitter.com/eFWybS2fgs
— Brandon Judd (@brandonljudd) December 12, 2016
— Emery steal
Emery made a key defensive play with BYU nursing a four-point lead, tipping away a Gordon pass and getting the steal, then racing upcourt to get the Cougar offense started, where he was fouled by Akyazili.
Emery's free throw gave the Cougars a five-point lead and started with one of the Cougars' three steals during this stretch.
🎥 No. 4 of 5 from @BYUbasketball's game-clinching 18-6 run to beat Colorado 79-71: @NickEmery04 steal that leads to FT on the other end pic.twitter.com/WfVGi5vkzZ
— Brandon Judd (@brandonljudd) December 12, 2016
— Emery driving layup
Even while the Cougars were going on their game-defining run, BYU went nearly two minutes without a field goal before Emery's impressive move. Peters had turned the ball over on Colorado's previous possession and Haws missed an ensuing jumper, while Mika came up with a big offensive rebound to keep BYU in possession of the ball.
Then Emery gave the Cougars a seven-point lead at 69-62 with 5:56 to play, taking a pass from Childs above the 3-point line and weaving his way to the basket, skillfully hitting a layup between two defenders.
🎥 No. 5 of 5 from @BYUbasketball's game-clinching 18-6 run to beat Colorado 79-71: @NickEmery04's driving layup that puts BYU up 69-62 pic.twitter.com/cIpTBMNZXM
— Brandon Judd (@brandonljudd) December 12, 2016
Here's a look at the stats from BYU's 18-6 run: