PROVO -- Rivalry games always seem to live up to the hype. The BYU vs. Utah men's basketball game Saturday night did just that, as the No. 10 Cougars (21-2, 6-1 MWC) defeated the Utes (10-11, 3-4 MWC) 82-69 in an intense and heated matchup in front of a sold-out crowd of 22,644 in the Marriott Center.

Junior guard Jimmer Fredette produced another entertaining display of offensive prowess, scoring 23 points in the second half on the way to a game-high 36 points on 11-of-23 shooting. Fredette's game was reminiscent of his performance against Arizona; at times he seemed to hit shots from just about every spot on the floor. Even his teammates were impressed with the way he was able to take over the game.

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Fredette scores 36, No. 12 BYU beats Utah 82-69

Jimmer Fredette scored 36 points, including 23 in the second half, as BYU holds off Utah 82-69 on Saturday night for its sixth victory in the last seven meetings between the rivals.

BYU Head Coach Dave Rose said the poise of his star player late in the game is the thing that impressed Rose the most.

"What I was really pleased with him tonight was that he really played within himself late in the game when I know he was tired," Rose said. "He dug pretty deep tonight to find another gear and help his team win."

Utah Head Coach Jim Boylen had high praise for the Wooden Award candidate after the game.

"I think he's the best player we've had in the league in a long time," Boylen said. "I haven't been in the league that long, but he's the best player we've played against this year and we've played a heck of a schedule. He's a terrific player and a terrific competitor I think he represents BYU with a lot of class."

Boylen went on to say that Fredette will probably have a chance to play in the NBA at the end of this season should he choose to do so.

"He's gonna have a tough decision to make in the spring, I'll tell you that," Boylen said. "I was in the league for 13 years he's really good. Very few guys have the combination of ball skills, shooting ability, and what he's improved on is his strength he's better at playing through contact. I've been through 13 drafts and he's pretty good."

BYU roared out of the gate, jumping out to a 20-8 lead to start the half, and stretched it to as much as 18 before the break. Everything seemed to be working for the Cougars as they shot 71 percent from the 3-point line, and 50 percent from the field.

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Marshall Henderson scored 16 points, grabbed four rebounds and was thrown out of Saturday night's game against BYU at the Marriott Center in Provo.

As expected, Utah answered in the second half, cutting the lead to as little as four points before Fredette took over. The junior point guard broke the tension with his own 12-4 run with a barrage of 3-pointers and driving layups over a 1:20 span to stretch the lead to 13, and put the Utes away for good.

Although the game was out of reach, tempers flared in the final minute as Utah guard Marshall Henderson back-handed Emery after getting fouled, resulting in Henderson's ejection. Coaches and officials scrambled to separate the two teams before things escalated.

"It was a mistake by my guy. He feels bad about it and we'll move on," Boylen said.

Although Boylen said he felt the situation was handled well, apparently he wasn't pleased with the way one person from the BYU bench handled the situation.

"They had somebody come off their bench in a gray suit instigating everything," Boylen said. "Everything was fine. We've got to be the adults."

Freshman wonder Tyler Haws was the only other Cougar to score in double figures, finishing with 15 points shooting 7 for 11 from the field.

Emery continues to struggle to shoot the ball, but his contributions weren't felt in the scoring column. The junior guard did just about everything else adding seven rebounds, six steals, four assists and no turnovers to his eight points.

Charles Abouo was a spark plug off the bench helping the Cougars maintain their first half momentum. Abouo finished the night with six points and three rebounds in just 10 minutes highlighted by a monster dunk over the Utah defense.

The Cougars face a quick turnaround this weekend; they will face TCU in the Marriott Center Tuesday with a 7 p.m. tip-off.

The Horned Frogs (10-12, 2-5 MWC) lost Saturday night to New Mexico, 73-57.

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