PROVO — What a way to begin a new month — and the back half of the West Coast Conference schedule.
As the calendar flips to February, BYU coach Mark Pope knows everything is at stake. So it seems fitting that next up is a showdown against WCC nemesis Saint Mary’s.
“We’re chasing big things right now,” Pope said.
The Cougars and Gaels tangle Saturday (8 p.m., MST, ESPN2) at the Marriott Center. It’s a matchup between the top two 3-point shooting teams in the country.
Meanwhile, BYU is No. 28 in the NCAA’s NET rankings, while Saint Mary’s is No. 34. With a win, the Cougars (16-7, 5-3) will climb into a tie for second place with the Gaels (19-4, 6-2).
Both teams are fighting for the No. 2 seed in the WCC Tournament in Las Vegas in March, as the first and second seeds receive a bye into the semifinals.
Not to mention that BYU is seeking its first NCAA Tournament berth in five years.
While the Cougars rolled past Pepperdine 107-80 Thursday, Saint Mary’s throttled Portland 86-64. BYU knocked down 17 3-pointers, tying a school record. The Gaels hit 18 3s, one shy of a school record.
Saint Mary’s is No. 1 in the nation in 3-point shooting (207 of 488, 42.4%) and BYU is No. 2 (243 of 575, 42.3%).
“It’s going to be a grind-it-out, punch-you-in-the-mouth, physical, high-stress game. It’s awesome,” Pope said. “That’s what we live for. I hope this joint is rocking. I hope everybody’s excited to come out because this is a big-time, high-level game against a great coach, one of the best coaches in the country and a veteran team that’s won a boatload of games and is the defending conference tournament champion that’s already beat us one time this year. It’s on. It’s a big-time game. It doesn’t get much bigger than this.”
BYU visited Saint Mary’s on Jan. 9 and, without injured forward Yoeli Childs, lost 87-84 in overtime. TJ Haws scored a game-high 29 points and Jake Toolson added 24 for the Cougars. Jordan Ford recorded 24 for the Gaels.
“It was super tough, super painful. I just want to be out there to help my guys, really,” Childs recalled about being sidelined for that contest, the first of four due to a finger injury. “It’s been really frustrating to be out so many games this year. But I think I’ve been able to learn from it and grow from it and the team’s been able to learn and grow as well.
“We are confident and have faith that all these hiccups and these things that have happened to us are going to work out in our favor later on. We’re learning from everything. We took a lot from that Saint Mary’s game and we’re really excited to go back out there and play them again.”
Pope wants to see his team maintain its edge for the rest of the regular season, which starts with playing tough defense.
“February needs to be an angry month. It’s gotta be an angry month. It’s not supposed to be fun. ... It’s supposed to be, we come out with a real determination to get stops on every single possession,” Pope said. “We have to somehow get that fatigue and frustration that wants to get into our mind and replace it with some anger and determination. … That’s where we have to live. February, if you do it right, is not the most fun month. But if we do it right, then it’s going to be really fun to see where we get.”
Thursday against Pepperdine, the Cougars saw a 21-point lead melt to eight at halftime. In the locker room, BYU coaches and players issued a challenge about the team’s identity. In the early moments of the second half, the Cougars quickly pushed their lead back to 20-plus points.
“Who are we? Are we going to show that we are a team that grows and a team that learns from mistakes and get better?” Childs said about the halftime message. “Are we going to be an elite team that’s going to go to the NCAA Tournament and make a run? Or are we just going to be a really good team? I think we proved tonight that we’re capable of growth and we’re going to continue to grow.”
BYU has another chance to grow, move up in the WCC standings and enhance its NCAA Tournament resume Saturday night against Saint Mary’s.
“We’re fired up. I think we’re locked in. We definitely got better (Thursday) and we’re really excited to put 40 minutes together,” Childs said. “Saint Mary’s is a great team. They’re great every year. They’re well-coached and they play the right way. But we’re a great team too and we’re excited for the battle.”
Cougars on the air
Saint Mary’s (19-4, 6-2)
at BYU (16-7, 5-3)
Saturday, 8 p.m. MST
Marriott Center
TV: ESPN2
Radio: KSL 1160 AM, 102.7 FM