PROVO, Utah – Six different players scored in double figures to lead the BYU men’s basketball team to a 94-66 victory over in-state opponent Weber State Wednesday night in the Marriott Center.
"We were playing a very, very good Weber State team," BYU head coach Dave Rose said. "For the last two nights, for us as coaches, effort has been the storyline. We made a lot of mistakes but we executed well enough because of the level of effort. We still have a long ways to go to get better."
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Senior Noah Hartsock continued his streak of double-digit scoring with a game-high 19 points. Hartsock also snagged 12 rebounds to record his second-consecutive double-double. Charles Abouo, Nate Austin, Stephen Rogers and Brock Zylstra each added 15 points. Austin’s 15 points were a career high.
Junior Brandon Davies also scored in double figures. Davies scored all 11 of his points in the first half and managed to snag nine rebounds. Point guard Craig Cusick led with a career-best eight assists.
The Cougars scored the first five points of the game with a banked 3-pointer from Zylstra and a short jumper from Hartsock. Weber State came back quickly with an 8-0 that began with 15:57 left in the first half to take a 10-7 lead. BYU retook the lead minutes later at 15-12 following an 18-footer by Zylstra.
Zylstra hit another three at the 10:36 mark to give him 10 points in the first 10 minutes of game time. He would finish the first half with 13 points. Abouo helped swing the momentum BYU’s way with just under seven minutes remaining with a fast break lay-up and three-pointer on back-to-back possessions to put the Cougars up 31-22.
Hartsock and Davies dominated the post throughout the first half and recorded 14 and 11 points, respectively. Hartsock also brought down 10 first half boards to give him a double-double in the opening period. The Cougars scored a season-best 47 points in the first half and took a thirteen-point lead into the locker room.
Abouo led BYU out of halftime with two threes in the first four minutes. Austin added another trey, and the Cougars started the half on an 11-2 run to go up 58-36.
Rogers came off the bench midway through the half and went on a scoring spree. After scoring just two points in the first half, Rogers reeled off 13 points in the second, including 10-straight to put BYU up 79-50 with 7:23 to go.
Weber State went on a 10-0 run near the end of the game to get within 24 before the Cougars closed the game on a short 6-0 run. The Cougars shot 63.6% (21 of 33) and scored 47 points in the second half. Austin scored 13 points in the second half and snagged nine rebounds in the game to narrowly miss a double-double.
"I think we're starting to figure out how hard we need to play and how consistent our effort needs to be throughout the game," Rose said. "We are looking forward to the game on Saturday."
BYU continues its season on Saturday when the team heads to Salt Lake City to face off in a Deseret Duel matchup against Utah. The Fox Sports Network and KSL 1160 AM/102.7 FM will broadcast the game. Tipoff is scheduled for 12 p.m. MST.