Huge win for BYU in the Hunstman

Ordinarily, BYU’s win over Utah in the Huntsman Center could be classified as a very good effort, a neat little victory by a superior team that’s got a leg up on its rival.

But BYU’s 55-52 win was a little more than in the big picture. BYU played horrible and still won.

For the past month, BYU’s basketball team has been in at a low point of the season. They are struggling to shoot the ball. Trent Plaisted has been nothing like himself for a few weeks, the 25-point effort against an undermanned CSU team aside. Jonathan Tavernari cannot buy a field goal if the net were stretched across the 1-15 free way. That’s just the way things have gone in recent weeks.

But somehow, some way, BYU led Utah at the half 26-23 after shooting just 28 percent in the first half on a court and in an arena that some of the best and most talented BYU basketball teams have played and lost regularly the last 30 years.

To put it in perspective, Plaisted and his backup Chris Miles went 3 for 17 and Tavernari was 0 for 6 from the field, 0-3 from the three-point line and Tavernari was actually playing conservative offensively.

For BYU to leave the Jon Huntsman Center with a three-point win over Utah with that kind of help from some of their stars is short of a minor miracle.

Perhaps that says a lot about this team, which many BYU fans have grown cool with since the loss at Boise State and setback against Michigan State. The 29-point ugly beating at UNLV looked to about take it all out of the Cougars.

I had the Cougars losing both MWC games on the road to open this season. They are not playing well. UNLV is a place BYU lost at twice last year and they had Kenna Young. So, as it stands now, a split puts BYU ahead of what I thought they’d be at this stage in the season. Traditionally, BYU has had blowouts like the UNLV game in January. Last year it was at SDSU. A previous year it was at North Carolina State.

Lee Cummard was a stud Saturday. He canned 19 points, was perfect from the line. It is his tough attitude that is carrying his teammates right now. Sam Burgess’ 3-point shot to break a 50-50 tie with 2:32 was the play of the game.

“We may not have shot well, but we did play defense,” said Plaisted.

“This may have been our most complete game of the season as far as playing hard and playing on defense the entire game,” said Cummard.

Offensively, BYU was off. I think Utah was also.

“I think this (Utah win) could be a springboard for our team right now,” said Cummard. “We were hurting after the UNLV loss. We felt we needed to right the ship and return to our winning ways.”

One assistant coach put it more clear as he sat with other staffers in the Huntsman Center, enjoying every second of the win.

“This team can play far, far better than it’s showing right now. And they all know it.”