BYU took advantage of a cold shot by the Saint Mary team during a key stretch of the second half, while the Cougars beat the Gaels 62-52 at the McKeon Pavilion in Moraga, California, on Thursday.
Here are three lessons from the game:
- BYU (10-3, 1-1 West Coast Conference) won in Moraga for the first time since 2014, despite losing by eight points with just under 11 minutes to play. The Gaels led for almost 27 minutes of playing time. The Cougars, however, turned the tide with a 16-0 run in almost 10 minutes to take a 59-50 lead in the final minute. Saint Mary’s missed 10 consecutive goals in that period and hit 7 of 23 in the second half.
- Alex Barcello, as usual, led the Cougars offensively, hitting 6 out of 10 on the field and scoring the game’s best mark 14 points, adding two rebounds, two assists and two steals. Brandon Averette added nine points, three assists and three steals, while Caleb Lohner had four points and nine rebounds, the best mark in the game.
- The Cougars had a 44-24 point advantage in the painting and had 11 second chance points against five for Saint Mary’s (9-4, 0-2 WCC).