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PROVO — Dave Rose has tinkered with the BYU basketball starting lineup multiple times this season, and they have produced positive results.
On Thursday night, he may have made his most unexpected adjustments of the season by inserting juniors Anson Winder and Josh Sharp into that group in a 73-65 BYU win over Gonzaga.
Winder led all scorers with a personal conference-play best 17 points. Rose said he began considering changes on the plane trip home after the Cougars’ win at Saint Mary’s.
“I really thought that Anson had been playing really well and gave us a huge lift when we started him in the second half over there (Saint Mary’s). Defensively is kind of where he’s stood out for us in practice. We thought the matchup with he and (Kevin) Pangos would be good to start the game.”
Rose, in a somewhat surprised demeanor, then addressed Winder’s performance on the offensive end.
“He responded really, really well not only on the defensive end, but he drives it, scores it, hits a big three and then hits 10 free throws. That’s a big lift for our guys.”
The Las Vegas native helped BYU hold the best 3-point shooting (39.8 percent) West Coast Conference team, which has three players that shoot over 40 percent, to just 4-of-18 (22.2 percent) behind the arc, while giving the Cougars some much-needed consistency at the foul line.
Sharp, tasked with the heavy challenge of defending 7-foot-1, 296-pound Przemek Karnowski from the get go, lasted only 2:54 before giving way with two fouls to freshman Eric Mika, who after receiving his LDS mission call to Rome, Italy, this week, looked determined to establish himself on both ends of the floor against a talented Zags frontcourt.
“Mika hurt us, especially when Przemek wasn’t in there,” Gonzaga head coach Mark Few said.
I kind of liked (coming off the bench). It was nice to kind of see how the game was going – how the flow was – for a minute or two and then be able to go. All the other big guys on the other team were a little bit tired after a couple minutes, just because of the pace of the game. So I think it helped my start. It definitely gave me an advantage.
–Eric Mika
Over his first 8:47 of playing time, Mika drew five fouls, resulting in all nine of his free-throw attempts. Winder and Mika drew all four fouls called against Karnowski by attacking the basket, causing the massive center to tie a personal-low since WCC play began by logging only 19 minutes.
“I kind of liked (coming off the bench),” Mika said. “It was nice to kind of see how the game was going — how the flow was — for a minute or two and then be able to go. All the other big guys on the other team were a little bit tired after a couple minutes, just because of the pace of the game. So I think it helped my start. It definitely gave me an advantage.”
Mika said Rose told him he wanted to use him as a reserve to avoid a similar situation to the Saint Mary’s game when the Gaels went right at him and he was charged with two fouls in less than two minutes.
The athletic forward has battled an extreme variation to foul rules in his first taste of collegiate basketball and despite a few lapses in judgment, he was able to give BYU 24 meaningful minutes, many of which he dominated, finishing with 13 points, eight rebounds and a block.
The balanced effort didn’t end, however, with Mika and Winder. Junior Matt Carlino, who transitioned into a bench role at a pivotal point for the Cougars in 2014 — an 87-53 win over San Diego that snapped a four-game losing streak — chipped in 15 points, six assists and four rebounds. The lefty used picture-perfect bounce passes to set up his teammates in space, leading to Karnowski and fellow Gonzaga low-post player Same Dower’s foul trouble.
Sophomore Kyle Collinsworth contributed five assists of his own to go with eight points and five rebounds. He still isn’t 100 percent healthy coming off a knee injury against Saint Mary’s, according to Rose.
And a detailed Zags game plan centered on stopping junior Tyler Haws still couldn’t prevent the WCC leading scorer from reaching double figures (12 points) while grabbing five boards and dishing out two assists.
Perhaps even more impressive than BYU’s execution offensively was the way it implemented its zone defense — a scheme that has been burned for 10 or more 3-pointers four times this season.
“There were times in that game tonight that I thought we were as active in that zone as we’ve been all year long,” Rose said. “I mean guys anticipating the next pass to the next pass, to guys coming off screens and then getting back in a good defensive position.”
The Cougars poured in 18 points off the Zags’ 16 turnovers.
By sweeping Saint Mary’s and splitting with Gonzaga, BYU has re-emerged in the NCAA at-large conversation. ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi as well as NBC Sports’ Rob Dauster have the Cougars in their projected fields of 68.
Last time BYU played the Zags, Rose’s squad ran out gas in Spokane, Wash., having come off a triple-OT, three-plus hour marathon against Portland.
The Cougars can avenge that loss Saturday at 7 p.m. when the Pilots (15-12, 7-8) visit the Marriott Center.
