Did the Cougars turn a corner by giving Texas the boot?

​When Texas star Dylan Disu turned a turnover into a layup with 4:24 to play to cut in half what had been a BYU 17-point lead, the No. 21 Cougars had a decision to make. 

Do they dig in, hold their ground and finish the job or will their limited history in the Big 12 repeat itself?

​As happy as the sold-out Marriott Center was to see BYU shoot 64% from the field, 41% from the 3-point line and make 86.7% of their free throws, anxiety still underscored what was on the scoreboard — and with good reason.

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​As recently as Tuesday against No. 4 Houston, BYU had fought toe-to-toe with the visiting Cougars before surrendering the last seven points of the game in an 75-68 defeat. A few days before that at Texas Tech, BYU led by as many as 17 before losing 85-78.

The Cougars also conceded big second half leads in defeats at home to Cincinnati 71-60 and at No. 18 Baylor 81-72.

Even in their lone 63-58 road victory at UCF, BYU saw its 13-point lead trimmed to one with 50 seconds remaining.

So, what would the Cougars do after Disu’s layup turned up the heat and gave the Longhorns some life? 

First, Fousseyni Traore sank a one-handed jump shot, two of his 16 points, to push the lead back to 11.

Second, BYU turned up its defensive pressure and allowed Texas only four points (all free throws) in the final 4:23.

Third, Traore, Dallin Hall and Spencer Johnson made all six of their foul shots during the last 1:37.

The Cougars (15-5, 3-4) dug in, held their ground and finished the job, giving the boot to Texas, which was coming off confidence building wins against then-No. 9 Baylor and at No. 11 Oklahoma.

Now, with the next conference game not until Saturday at West Virginia, BYU can catch its breath, get healthy and prepare for the fisticuffs of February.

Being favored by 7.5 points against the Longhorns and beating them by 12 bolstered the Cougars’ No. 5 NET ranking. The win is also expected to keep BYU in the AP Top 25, where it has been ranked since Nov. 27.

After a 3-4 January, which featured four teams in the Top 25, the Cougars will play eight games next month, including three ranked opponents — at No. 11 Oklahoma, No. 15 Baylor and at No. 7 Kansas.

The Jayhawks lost at No. 24 Iowa State on Saturday — the same Cyclones team BYU blew out in Provo 87-72 on Jan. 16.

​If there was a jury verdict one month into the Big 12, it would be that these Cougars not only look like they belong, but they are playing like it. 

Even BYU’s four defeats are by an average of 8.5 points. Most importantly, if the win over Texas is the one that teaches the Cougars how to close out a game, it could very well become the signature win of the season. 

​Turning the Longhorns upside down may cause a stir in the court of public opinion, but out on the floor, knocking Texas on its head is what has BYU looking up. 

Saturday’s game against the Mountaineers (4 p.m., ESPN+) is a chance to back it up and take another big step on the Cougars’ improbable march to the Big Dance.

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Dave McCann is a contributor to the Deseret News and is a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts “Y’s Guys” at ysguys.com and is the author of the children’s book “C is for Cougar,” available at deseretbook.com.