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MORAGA, Calif. — Dave Rose and the BYU men's basketball team learned a lot from the Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii, where it went 2-1 in its final tuneup before West Coast Conference play begins late Thursday night at Saint Mary's (9 p.m. MST, ESPNU/KSL NewsRadio).
The Cougars (9-4, 0-0 WCC) knew that leading scorer Chase Fischer and his 3-point shot would be important on the perimeter. They also knew that versatile guard Kyle Collinsworth could do a little bit of everything, and Utah State transfer Kyle Davis had the potential to be a double-double machine.
But redshirt senior Nate Austin emerged as a strong starter for BYU — and even if his statistical output didn't necessarily show it, his role on the floor proved critical.
"What we get from Nate is energy and execution, and those are probably the two most important things from that position," Rose told KSL NewsRadio's Greg Wrubell. "We are getting a lot of scoring from other positions. But we were getting off to some slow starts … and the last two games he's started, we were able to start a little better."
Austin played just 10 minutes in BYU's 85-82 loss to Harvard to open the tournament, registering one rebound and one block in a game when the team struggled early and faltered down the stretch.
But Rose moved Austin into the starting lineup for his first two starts of the year. Though the veteran played only a few additional minutes, 13 against New Mexico and 14 against Northern Iowa, the Cougars went on an early run and came away with two wins over quality mid-major programs.
"I think it just shows that coaches have trust in me to play and know our system," Austin said of the coache's decision to start him in both games. "It shows that coach has trust in me."
Austin admits he could've played better in both games — he had four rebounds against the Lobos, and scored a season-high four points with three boards, an assist and a block against the Panthers. But he's happy doing whatever he needs to do to add to the Cougars' success.
The unabashed senior has been a bit of a do-everything in his five seasons at BYU. Known as a tenacious rebounder, Austin has also shown his ability to block shots, defend the high post — and even step out and make a few 3-pointers (he's canned 13 treys in his career).
"My No. 1 goal coming into the season was to practice in every practice and play in every game," said Austin, who missed most of last year after a hamstring injury in the Cougars' loss to Utah. "That's been my goal, and I'm staying on top of treatments to make sure I can play in each game. I have personal goals that I'm not meeting (statistically), but I'm glad that I can play and be healthy enough to help the team."
But when the NCAA cleared Austin for one more season because of the early occurrence of the injury, the Lone Peak graduate returned — in big part to provide leadership to a team that has just three seniors and one junior.
"He's aggressive as a player, and he's vocal — all things you need to be a leader. And the guys like him," Rose said. "Nate's a guy that people like and come to him for advice on the game and also for the young guys who need help in their basketball IQ and advancing our system. Nate's been through four and a half semesters at BYU, and he's had a lot of issues he can help the guys with."
That leadership will also be tested as the Cougars begin conference play, which features six of the first eight games away from the Marriott Center. BYU went 0-3 in true road games during the non-conference portion of the schedule, but rebounded to finish 3-1 away at neutral sites — providing a little bit of consolation going into McKeon Pavilion, where Saint Mary's owns a 4-2 advantage despite BYU's 11-7 overall record in the series.
"The big challenge will be playing consistent for us," Rose said. "They've been really good at home, and hopefully we can break that streak."
