After struggling in win, schedule doesn't lighten up for Cougar cagers


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PROVO — BYU hasn't started the 2015-16 men's basketball season with a murderers' row of opponents, but it hasn't been easy pickings for the Cougars, either.

After a bigger struggle than expected in a 75-68 win over winless Mississippi Valley State, the Cougars (3-1) face a much different schedule going forward.

The Delta Devils (0-5) rank No. 349 in Ken Pomeroy's rankings of every Division I basketball team going into the weekend, while BYU's only other D-I win, Utah Valley, is No. 330. Adams State is a Division II school, while Long Beach State (which beat BYU 66-65 on Nov. 16) is rated 206th.

BYU currently ranks 72nd in KenPom's latest rankings.

"I don't think too far ahead. But our practice needs to be a lot better than how we played, and hopefully we can improve and progress," BYU coach Dave Rose said after the win over Mississippi Valley. "I think we are a better group than how we played for 40 minutes. We played some minutes tonight of what I think this group can be. Hopefully we can find a way to do that for 40 minutes; right now, we aren't doing it."

The Cougars' next slate begins with Belmont, a regular NCAA Tournament team that is among the top teams in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Bruins (4-2) have a Power 5 conference win at Marquette in the season opener, but also lost at Arizona State on Nov. 16.

Belmont currently ranks 84th in KenPom's ratings, with an adjusted offensive rating of 110.7 and an adjusted defense of 103.6. BYU's offense is currently 106.3 on offense and 98.7 on defense.

BYU head coach Dave Rose yells instructions to his team during NCAA basketball against Mississippi Valley State in Provo, Nov. 25, 2015. (Photo: Ravell Call, Deseret News)
BYU head coach Dave Rose yells instructions to his team during NCAA basketball against Mississippi Valley State in Provo, Nov. 25, 2015. (Photo: Ravell Call, Deseret News)

The Bruins are led by 6-foot-7 forward Evan Badds, who averages 21.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game, as well as 6-3 guard Craig Bradshaw's 15.0 points per game.

The Cougars dropped nearly 20 spots in the rankings following the win over the Delta Devils. But point guard Kyle Collinsworth said there is very little to take out of that win, and the Cougars are ready to move on.

"In a game like this, all we can do is take what we did well and keep doing that. We'll find ways we can improve and keep getting better every day. You can't dwell too much on great games and wins and you can't dwell too much on not-great games and losses. It's on to the next day, the next practice, keeping going, one day at a time."

After Belmont visits the Marriott Center, the Cougars play three straight games in the state of Utah. After a Dec. 2 trip to Utah's Huntsman Center, BYU hosts Weber State at Vivint Arena on Dec. 5 and then hosts Utah State on Dec. 9.

KenPom currently ranks the Utes at No. 35, Weber State at No. 119, and Utah State at No. 117. Next up is Colorado (KenPom 59) and Central Michigan (KenPom 154)

Four-straight games against top-115 teams will do a lot to show where BYU is before the Cougars head to the Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii.

To show improvement from Wednesday night, though, the Cougars will need help from each player and member of the coaching staff, Rose said.

"They'll need help from the coaching staff," he said, "from each other and individually stepping up with urgency."

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