Ally Atiki's career night helps No. 14 BYU overwhelm Wyoming to move to 12-1

PROVO — Before the closing moments of BYU's double-digit win over Wyoming, the Cougars' roster went 10 deep and must've felt like a mile wide.

Trevin Knell had 17 points, five rebounds and two assists, and four players scored in double figures as the 14th-ranked Cougars overwhelmed the Cowboys 94-68 in BYU's nonconference finale in front of an announced sellout crowd of 18,987 Saturday afternoon at the Marriott Center.

Noah Waterman added 17 points and eight rebounds, and Atiki Ally Atiki supplied a career-best 14 points and eight boards on 70% shooting for the Cougars, who got scoring contributions from 10 players.

Jaxson Robinson returned from treatment on a weeklong ankle injury to score 10 points and three rebounds off the bench, and Aly Khalifa supplied 9 points, eight assists and five rebounds without a turnover until the closing moments for BYU (12-1).

Robinson generally steals the headlines off the bench as BYU's leading scorer, averaging 16.5 points per game. But Ally Atiki put in the best scoring night of his career, an efficient 7-of-10 from the field that included everything from lob dunks to mid-range jumpers as he strung together consecutive double-digit scoring games for the first time in his career.

"I'm more comfortable now," the native of Mwanza, Tanzania, said. "My team trusts me and I trust my team, too. I feel like it's really important to trust yourself, and I've put the work in, coming here all the time."

And like several of his teammates — Fousseyni Traore (hamstring) and Marcus Adams Jr. were both sidelined with injuries, and Dawson Baker had 4 points and two assists in just over 10 minutes off the bench while managing a foot injury — Ally Atiki isn't playing at full strength, either.

"Atiki was 14 points, eight rebounds, zero turnovers, a big steal, 7-for-10 from the field," BYU coach Mark Pope said. "These are all incredible numbers, and he was doing it all with a broken thumb; it's pretty incredible. He's doing great things for this team; he should be proud, and we're super grateful."

Shane Griffin had 25 points, five rebounds and five assists for Wyoming (7-6), and Mason Walters added 12 points for the Cowboys in their first trip to the Marriott Center since the 2010-11 season.

After a slow start that included Khalifa scoring 5 of the Cougars' first 8 points, Knell drained a 3-pointer, and Robinson capped an 18-0 run to push BYU to a 27-10 advantage midway through the first half.

The Cougars held the Cowboys scoreless for over seven minutes until Akuel Kot's layup pulled Wyoming within 10 with 8:34 remaining following a drought that included eight missed shots and three turnovers.

Waterman had 9 points and three rebounds, and Ally Atiki added 8 points and three boards off the bench as BYU outrebounded the Cowboys 20-16 and assisted on 13 of 18 made field goals before the break.

Griffin came free for 15 points, and Wyoming ended the half on a 9-3 run to pull within 44-33 at halftime.

But the run didn't last long.

Trey Stewart capped a 19-3 run midway through the second half to stretch the Cougars' lead to 75-48 with 9:10 remaining after a run that included 3-pointers by Knell and Khalifa, and a posterizing dunk by Ally Atiki.

"Everybody has this DNA now," said Knell, who shot 7-of-10 with three 3-pointers to go along with five rebounds, two assists and a steal. "We believe in who we are. We make adjustments, and everybody is trusting everybody. … To have Fouss go down and Aly and Atiki step up is amazing. It's super fun for us, because they're different players.

"To throw it up to the rim to Atiki is nice, but it's also going to be fun when Fouss is healthy to have him back. I think we're going to be a scary team in the front court with Fouss, Aly and home boy Atiki right here."

All 10 of BYU's players to see the floor before the closing minutes made at least one field goal. Only the walk-on contingent of Townsend Tripple, Tanner Hayhurst and Jared McGregor finished without a field goal on a team that finished with 27 assists on 39 made field goals and just nine turnovers.

"I think we did a good job of sharing the ball and playing together as a team," Ally Atiki said. "When we play, we're not selfish and just pass the ball to our teammates; if someone is open, just share the ball. I think that's really important for us to share the ball a lot. It makes us harder to guard."

BYU opens Big 12 play Jan. 6 against Cincinnati (8 p.m. MST, ESPN2).

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