KISSIMMEE, Fla. — BYU just celebrated Thanksgiving with a victory.
The Cougars rallied from a shaky start to take command in the second half against Miami, securing a 72-62 win Thursday in the ESPN Events Invitational at Walt Disney World in Florida.
3 takeaways
BYU came alive in the second half. The Cougars trailed by four points at intermission, having missed nine layups and struggling at times to contain the Hurricanes down low.
But similar to plenty of other outings under Kevin Young, BYU came out of halftime with strong adjustments to look like a completely different team.
The Cougars opened the second half on a 30-12 run. After being tied at 37 points apiece, BYU then made 6 of its next 7 field goal attempts.
Beginning with a go-ahead 3-pointer from Kennard Davis to make it a 42-40 ballgame, the Cougars went on a 10-0 run and didn’t allow a single Miami bucket across a five-plus minute stretch.
Though the Hurricanes did cut the deficit to seven points late, BYU’s win was never truly in jeopardy following the long scoreless run for Miami.
It was a gutsy, grit-filled victory for the Cougars — one they’ll likely need to replicate a few times in Big 12 play.
Kennard Davis was a difference maker in his return. Back on the court following a 2-game suspension for violating team rules, Davis enjoyed his finest performance as a Cougar to date.
The junior swingman led all scorers with 18 points, adding five rebounds, an assist and finishing with a plus/minus of +10 — the second best mark for BYU.
Davis also shot 7 of 10 from the field and hit four catch-and-shoot 3-pointers, with one such make giving the Cougars a second half lead they would never relinquish.
Arguably BYU’s top defender, Davis also excelled on that end of the floor and was a key piece to holding Miami scoreless for a five minute stretch in the second half.
BYU’s defense delivered. Coming into Thursday, Miami was averaging 92.2 points per game on the season.
Against the Cougars, the Hurricanes managed a season-worst 62 points. They ended up shooting 37.9% from the field, 22.7% from 3-point range and a shocking 41.2% from the foul line.
Typically elite in transition, Miami was held to just seven fast break points. Though the Hurricanes did get 34 points in the paint, that number was 32% less than their average such output on the year.
Keba Keita swatted seven blocks, Rob Wright swiped three steals and BYU forced a total of 10 Miami turnovers.