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PROVO — It’s a simple problem without a simple solution: BYU basketball is too dependent on the 3-pointer right now.
In conference, BYU has shot a whopping 151 3-pointers with varied success. When the shots have fallen, they’ve fallen often. Such was the case against San Francisco when the Cougars made an incredible 15 of 29 shots from beyond the arc. Then there are the days where the shots don’t fall. And when the shots don’t fall, they really don’t fall. Such was the case when Cougar ballers shot an unsightly 6 of 26 from deep in an embarrassing home loss to Pepperdine.
Another telling statistic against Pepperdine was that the Cougars only attempted eight free throws in a 67-61 loss. The only other game where the Cougars had such a low point total was against Utah, a game where the team shot only 10 free throws. Such a low number of shots from the charity stripe, mixed with the abundance of 3-pointers, is evidence that BYU players were not aggressive enough on the offensive side of the ball and were standing around the 3-point line too much.
So the question becomes: What can BYU do about it? Again, the answer is not simple. The Cougars have been going with a four-guard lineup to take advantage of their abundance of talent in that position. Overall, I think it is a good strategy. Coach Dave Rose has been faced with the unfortunate truth that he does not have any big man who can consistently score. That problem will still exist even when BYU’s top big man, Nate Austin, comes back.
Since the team is without a real post presence, my suggestion is that Kyle Collinsworth, Tyler Haws and Anson Winder need to take the ball to the hoop more and get to the free-throw line. After driving, the players can then dish out to Chase Fischer, who has not shown the ability to do anything but shoot 3-pointers thus far. This is simple in theory, but in Cougar losses this style of play has been nonexistent. The team will need to figure it out quickly with St. Mary’s looming.
Dylan Cannon is a regular KSL.com contributor and can be reached at DylanCannon86@gmail.com or via twitter @DylanCannon11. Listen to his weekly podcast, "Cougar Talk," on iTunes.
