Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
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The BYU hoopsters open their two-game exhibition campaign tonight at the Marriott Center, hosting Trinity Western University, out of Langley, British Columbia.
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The Spartans spanked Utah Valley 77-58 Tuesday night in Orem, and conclude their three-game Beehive State swing Saturday at Utah State. TWU took more than half of their shots from beyond the arc the other night, hitting on 14/33 deep tries overall. Prior to that game, the Spartans were hitting only 29% of their three-point attempts, and on the season, Trinity Western is only a 40% shooting club from the field; they won't have the guns to return fire for 40 minutes with the Cougars tonight.
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BYU will not have forward Noah Hartsock on the floor tonight; he's being rested while rehabbing a sprained right ankle. It is not the same ankle Hartsock severely sprained last season, nor is it as serious an injury this time around.
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Freshman Tyler Haws is available to play after sitting out last week's Cougar Tipoff with a sore knee. He's practicing without a wrap or band on the knee and playing well since his return to the practice floor.
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The radio broadcast of BYU's two exhibition games can be heard exclusively online at ksl.com via the X-Stream audio channel. Simply scroll down until you see the X-Stream audio stream options on the right-hand side of the page, and tune in starting at 7:00pm tonight; 7:30pm next Tuesday (BYU v. Central Washington, a 77-48 loser at Washington last night).
I'll be flying solo courtside for the exhibition games; Mark Durrant will join me starting with BYU's regular season opener next Friday home to Bradley.
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BYU has received a verbal commitment for next year's hoops team.
BYU associate head coach Dave Rice's brother Grant has developed a southern Nevada powerhouse at Bishop Gorman, and if there's a Gaels player worth checking out, BYU will always be in the mix.
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Here's a brief recap from last night' Bronco Mendenhall Show, but I encourage you to listen to the entire program from last night by clicking here.
: the coach says Wyoming is playing with "renewed toughness" and "more discipline" on their way to a 4-4 record.
: Bronco said there were three specific benefits of the bye week; a) his team comes off the bye week with renewed "physical and mental health," b) the staff was able to do a more thorough scheme and self-analysis examination, and c) the team got an extra day or two of lead-up practice time ahead of the Wyoming game.
: Mendenhall said it's too early to say how much of an impact the 38-7 loss to TCU will have on the program this year or beyond, but that "subtle" changes are the most likely outcome. He said in the fifth year of his leadership, the football program is only about "halfway" to where he hopes it will ultimately be.
: the coach says what bothered him most about the TCU game was that that "it was too reminiscent of the year before," adding that he is "not patient and loves to see immediate change and progress over a given strategy or scheme."
: Bronco noted that his team is being judged by the standard of "which games 'didn't you win,' not which games 'did you win.'"
: he reiterated that a "Riley Nelson" package will likely not be a part of the BYU offensive game plan at any point this season. The coach says he likes the consistency of going with one starting quarterback, saying Nelson will be give time in "clean-up action" for the remainder of the year if BYU builds up a significant enough lead.
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