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PROVO — At home, the BYU men’s basketball team is as tough to beat as any in the nation — the Cougars are 11-1 with an average margin of victory of 17 points.
But the Cougars are a different team on the road, where they sit just 4-3, which includes last week’s loss to San Diego, 88-75.
“There is no question — if you follow us around — that we aren’t the same team outside of our building as we are inside of our building,” BYU coach Dave Rose said. “It’s getting late here; we’ve got to figure out how to do that.
“Even the one conference win we have, we weren’t the same team. Hopefully we can find a new attitude and a new execution to us when we go out on Saturday.”
BYU’s lone road win in WCC play came after a furious rally to top Loyola-Marymount 81-76 on Dec. 31. Even then, the Lions outshot the Cougars 6 percent, held a lead until late in the second half, and relied on TJ Haws’ 3-pointer in the final minute to seal the victory.
For a team that boasts just one senior on the active roster, perhaps it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the Cougars are having trouble translating their home form to road games. BYU averages just 74.7 points in true road games — 13 fewer than at home — by shooting 6.6 percent worse (49.5 percent to 42.9 percent).
Rose will try to solve those woes before the Cougars tip off Saturday at 4 p.m. MST at Pacific, a team that lost to BYU 91-62 in Provo on Jan. 7.
“(Pacific) is a very good home team,” Rose said. “They led Gonzaga when Gonzaga played at Pacific. It’s going to be a challenge.”
It’s no secret that college basketball boasts one of the most unique home-field advantages of any sport. Fans pack gyms of all sizes from coast to coast, and the young Cougars have taken note.
“It’s just that energy that comes with the crowd, and being familiar and comfortable in the Marriott Center with a loud group of people cheering for us,” said BYU center Eric Mika, who tallied his 12th double-double Thursday night against Pepperdine. “Both home and away, we can get a lead and a string of stops and scores. But it’s hard to keep it going (on the road). It’s a lot easier when the crowd can carry you and be a daunting cloud over the team.”
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Mika's 12th double-double leads BYU hoops by Pepperdine
Eric Mika had 22 points and 10 rebounds and Elijah Bryant scored 15 to go with three rebounds as the BYU men’s basketball team routed visiting Pepperdine 99-70 Thursday night in Provo.The Cougars’ road ills continue as they fare worse in every major statistical category.
BYU averages one fewer rebound per game away from the Marriott Center, distributes four fewer assists, posts one fewer block and grabs one fewer steal.
For true road games decided by an average of seven points, those differences add up.
“The crowd definitely helps,” sophomore Elijah Bryant said. “On the road, we are such a young team. When we get punched in the face, it’s a different mentality when we fight back.”
At home, BYU has been nearly unbeatable, save for a 114-101 upset to Utah Valley when the Wolverines shot 52.9 percent from the field with a school-record 18 3-pointers. The Cougars average 87.1 points on 49.5 percent shooting in the Marriott Center.
“If we can just find an energy, or they make a run, if we can stick together and stick to our principles like we do at home, then we can get through it,” Mika said. “It’s easier said than done. But we’ll get it done Saturday.”
