We are back this week! Life got a little crazy last week, so I was unable to get this out, but we are not too busy this week.

BYU beat Kansas by 34 last night. Yes, Kansas, with Bill Self. Yes, Kansas, a top 25 team. It was tied for the worst loss under Bill Self as the Kansas coach and hes coached 776 games with Kansas. Kansas was also down by more than 35 points in the game at one point marking it the first time in 7 seasons that they were down by more than 35 points in a game. That is crazy!!

BYU was unbelievable last night. I think they played their best game of the season and possibly their best game in the past couple of seasons. BYU also beat Kansas St on Saturday and West Virginia last Tuesday, so BYU is currently on a 3 game win streak.

Game Recap vs #23 Kansas

Kansas never led in the game and BYU jumped out too an 8-0 start. BYU just played this game with so much more energy and were way more aggressive. They forced Kansas to shoot a lot of 3s, and they have the worst 3 point attempt rate in the Big 12. They are not a good shooting team. Kansas ended up shooting 32 threes and only made 9, thats 28%, not good.

Whats also crazy is that BYU is playing a 10-11 man rotation every game. Last night it was 10 guys. Guys like Boskovic and Stewart have elevated their games the past week and made their way into the rotation. Its hard to keep guys out of the rotation when youre playing well.

Team Stats

BYU only had 10 turnovers this game. They took much better care of the ball and seemed to make the most of it. BYU shot 52% overall from the field, 39% from three, and 75% from the FT line. Thats a pretty good shooting night from everywhere. One of the more impressive stat lines of the night is the rebounding numbers. BYU outrebounded Kansas by 10. Kansas’ top 3 rebounders are 7’2, 6’9, and 6’7. Those 3 guys for Kansas against BYU combined for 19 rebounds. BYUs top rebounders are 6’8, 6’6, and 6’5, and they combined for 23 rebounds. Just a slight difference, but you expect Kansas to have a much better rebounding edge.

Box Score

BYU had 5 guys in double digit scoring for the game. Saunders led the way with 22. He was 4-8 from three and 9-13 overall. Knell had 15 and was 4-7 from three. Mag had 13 and he was 3-4 from three. Keita and Hall both had 10. Aside from Demin, Stewart, and Baker, who shot a combined 1-11 from three, everyone else was 13-25 from three. If you can shoot over 50% from three, thats pretty good. Keita led the way 9 rebounds, Knell had 8, and Fouss had 6. Hall was also a big force off the bench. He had 10 points and 8 assists.

Game Preview vs #19 Arizona

Now BYU goes on the road, which hasnt been too kind to them. They are 13-2 at home this season and 3-5 on the road. They did pick up a big road win against West Virginia last week though. The Cougs go to Arizona and visit the Wildcats on Saturday at 8pm MT on ESPN. Another top 25 matchup and another ESPN game. Its a big week for the Cougs. If BYU can beat Arizona this weekend, they will most likely solidify themselves in the Big Dance. They also will have a possibility of being ranked.

Arizona Analysis

The last time BYU played Arizona, it was at home, in the Marriott Center, where the Wildcats came away with an 85-74 victory. Arizona just dominated the Cougars from start the finish. I wonder how this game will start. BYU is coming off a big win and on a 3 game winning streak. Going into the Arizona game last time, BYU was also on a winning streak, a 4 game one. Arizona has lost 2 of their last 3 games, but won their most recent game on Monday against Baylor. Going into the BYU game last time, they had won 4 in a row and had just upset Iowa St.

So Arizona may be on a little bit of a downward trend more than last time these two teams met, but Arizona is still ranked in the top 25 and at home. It will be a tough test for BYU.

Keys for BYU

In Arizonas last game against Baylor, they didnt shoot the ball particularly well, but they were on the road. If BYU can shoot the ball well enough, they have a shot in this game. Arizona can sometimes force bad shots, so if BYU gets quality shots and shoots well, they can win this game. What went wrong for BYU last time against Arizona is they didnt shoot the ball well. You dont really see that from a team who was at home. Now BYU has to go on the road and work more for some of those quality shots.

BYU also got horribly outrebounded by 15 last game. I expect BYU to have some energy and fight to start this game coming off of last nights win. I look for Keita, Mag, Saunders, and Demin to be more aggressive on the glass. The 7 footer Veesaar for Arizona killed BYU last game. He was the energy bunny on the glass and played great defense as well. BYU has to limit him. Those two things, rebounding and getting quality shots and making those shots, will be huge for BYU. Thats what doomed them the last time these two teams met.

Prediction

I didnt expect BYU to win this game when the schedule came out and I dont expect them to win now. But I have more belief in them after seeing how they played against Kansas and especially the last 3 games. They have a lot more right recently. BYU usually plays better at home and struggle on the road, but I think the last road game win against West Virginia showed that these guys can compete.

I think itll be closer than some people think. ESPN Analytics gives BYU only a 23% chance to win. I think thats a little low. I see BYU making it close, but being on the road against a more talented team than West Virginia will prove too much. Arizona wins by 6. (Please prove me wrong BYU)

Bracketology Predictions

Now that we are in the second half of February, we are only about 3 and a half weeks away from the best time of the year, March Madness! BYU is currently on the bubble in most of the projections.

I usually like to pay attention to 3 guys for bracket predictions. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi, NCAA’s Andy Katz, and FOX’s Mike Decourcy. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has BYU just barely in. He has them as part of the “Last Four Byes” group and a 10 seed vs 7 seed Memphis. NCAA’s Andy Katz has BYU also just off of the last 4 in but still an 11 seed vs 6 seed Illinois. FOX’s Mike Decourcy has BYU as one of the last 4 teams in and playing in the first 4 game vs Wake Forest. All of these were not updated after last nights blowout, so I am sure they are going to change later this week.

With the Kansas win, BYU should be closer to being in. If BYU can beat Arizona, they will for sure be a lock in the tournament. As long as they dont have anymore bad losses.