SALT LAKE CITY — BYU didn’t have to wait too long to get a chance to face another in-state rival.
Ten days after suffering an overtime loss at Utah, the Cougars meet Utah State Saturday (6 p.m., MST, BYUtv) at Vivint Arena in the final installment of the Beehive Classic.
The BYU-Utah State matchup is part of a doubleheader at the home of the Utah Jazz, with Utah and Weber State facing each other at 2 p.m. Earlier this week, the Larry H. Miller Sports & Entertainment Group announced that the Beehive Classic, which started three years ago, will not be continued next season.
Cougar coach Mark Pope loves these in-state matchups — despite that heartbreaking loss to the Utes last week.
“In-state games, I’m a huge fan of them and we lost our last one. It might have been the second-and-a-half worst experience of my entire life,” he said. “I don’t know if that’s really true but it was up there somewhere. But the games are great. They’re really important for us.”
This game against USU is really important for a lot of reasons for BYU, including the potential of enhancing its NCAA Tournament resume.
The Aggies (10-1), who have been ranked most of the season, are preseason favorites to win the Mountain West Conference championship. USU is led by guard Sam Merrill, who averages 17.7 points per game. Forward Justin Bean, who averages 14.7 points and 12 rebounds, leads the nation in double-doubles.
Meanwhile, 7-foot center Neemias Queta, who suffered a major knee injury over the summer, made his season debut last Saturday. Queta earned Mountain West Conference Defensive and Freshman Player of the Year awards a year ago. His status for Saturday is unclear.
The Aggies’ lone loss this season was an 81-73 setback at Saint Mary’s on Nov. 29 in Moraga, California.
Pope praised USU coach Craig Smith, who’s in his second season at the helm.
“What he’s done there has been astounding,” he said. “He’s been unbelievable. We’re excited to play a great, great team and see if we can come away with a victory.”
Guard Alex Barcello is looking forward to this in-state battle, on the heels of a pair of 33-point victories over UNLV and Nevada.
“I like it. There’s a bit of rivalry in it, and it makes both teams better,” he said. “It makes us learn more about ourselves, just like it did after that Utah loss. It really helped us learn what we needed to do, and we executed that the last two games.”
BYU has won 14 consecutive games at Vivint Arena. Three of those 14 victories came against Utah State. The Cougars beat UNLV at Vivint Arena last Saturday.
“We like playing up there. It’s fun,” Barcello said. “It’s a big arena and we shoot the ball well. I’m not sure if it does or not (give BYU an edge having just played there). We’re going to give ourselves an edge by playing really hard.”
BYU has made 10 or more 3-pointers in five consecutive games, which is a school record. And the Cougars have allowed just an average of 46 points in their last two games.
Pope expects to learn more about his team against Utah State, which is looking to avenge a 95-80 loss to BYU in Provo last December.
“We get another shot to play an in-state game. These in-state games bring everything out of you. In-state games exposed me last time,” he said. “They exposed our team a little bit and exposed for us a weakness that we didn’t think we had and hadn’t had up to that point. These games are great.”
BYU hopes to continue rolling Saturday.
“Just to get a win; that’s our main goal. We don’t like to lose,” said senior guard Jake Toolson. “We’re going to come and give it our all like we have the past two games.”
Cougars, Aggies on the air
Utah State (10-1)
vs. BYU (8-4)
Saturday, 6 p.m. MST
Vivint Smart Home Arena
TV: BYUtv
Radio: 1160 AM, 102.7 FM