Not so fast: Khalifa powers No. 20 BYU through Big 12 Tournament while observing Ramadan

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Aly Khalifa started hot, and so did BYU.

The Cougars' strong-passing, 3-point shooting center dropped a pair of triples and four assists in the first half of BYU's 87-73 win over UCF before finishing with 8 points and five assists in a Big 12 Tournament second-round game Wednesday.

It didn't seem like anything could cool off the 6-foot-11 junior from Alexandria, Egypt, who has been called the "Egyptian Magician" and "Egyptian Jokic" for his passing game that sometimes draws comparisons to the Denver Nuggets' Serbian star.

But on this day, Johnny Dawkins' UCF defense struggled to slow him down, and not even water could cool him off.

Not that he would've tried.

Khalifa was observing the third day of Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar that prioritizes fasting, prayer, reflection and community in commemorating the five scrolls of the faith's scripture.

As a practicing Muslim, the BYU center joined with most able-bodied believers of Islam around the globe in celebrating one of the five pillars of Islam and fasting from sunrise to sunset.

Ramadan runs from March 10 through April 9 this year, meaning Khalifa began his sun-up to sun-down fast just before the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City, and it will run through the Final Four in Phoenix.

But Wednesday morning marked the first time Khalifa has attempted to fast during athletic competition — not that many noticed while he shot 2-of-6 from the field and finished a team-high plus-25 in 18 minutes.

"I didn't think I would hold up that much, to be honest," Khalifa said. "I was pretty tired before the game, but once it started, the flip just switched and I was excited. Once you see the ball go in, you get more excited and you feel like you're doing the right thing. A lot of people doubted if I could fast and play, but once you start playing hard, it gets better. And coach was very good with communicating with me whenever I got tired or if he needed to make a change. The whole team was, really."

Khalifa has 28 assists with just three turnovers in the past seven games, while he leads the Big 12 and ranks fifth nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio with 3.8.

Plenty of high-level athletes would be slowed down by abstaining from food and water during competition. But BYU coach Mark Pope said Khalifa had "one of his better days" of practice Tuesday in Kansas City, and the fifth-year head coach had similar praise after Wednesday's game.

"He was incredible, and he sure didn't miss a beat to start the game," Pope said. "He threw one pass today, guys — that little pocket pass around the strong side. I was like, what is happening here? I thought he was absolutely terrific. He was great; he's a believer, and we're all believers, so let's go."

Khalifa woke up just after 3:30 a.m. MDT prior to BYU's conference tournament opener, when he met with former BYU big Nate Austin, the current director of basketball operations who helped him drink plenty of water and other liquids to provide a reserve for the day.

The BYU and Lone Peak grad who previously coached at Salt Lake Community College and Grantsville High brought breakfast for Khalifa's suhoor, the last meal eaten by Muslims before initiating their daily fast at sunrise with a prayer, or fajr.

From there, Khalifa will fast daily until sunset, breaking his fast with a nightly iftar.

BYU, which is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has supported Khalifa during his fast — the Christian version of which is a shared tenant of Khalifa's faith and the one held by more than two thirds of the Cougars' student population.

"A lot of people around here — my coaches, staff, and Nate, even my teammates and other players — have supported me and respect what I'm doing." Khalifa said. "I've met with our nutritionists, with (athletic trainer Rob Ramos) and Wiz (strength and conditioning coach Michael Davie) to put together a plan and to be able to know what we're going to eat, to have three meals, if I can.

"The sun goes down around 7:30, and it all goes from there, but there are a lot of Muslim athletes doing it right now … and it's good to know that you aren't alone. I'm used to fasting; I've done it since I was little, but I've never done it in-season or with competition, with the season on the line. It's kind of exciting to try to manage things the best that I can."

Khalifa is one of three Muslim athletes on the men's basketball team, though Fousseyni Traore from Mali and Atiki Ally Atiki from Tanzania have said they won't fast during the season.

They're part of a growing number of Muslims at the Latter-day Saint school, like defensive back Mory Bamba, who said he plans to begin fasting after the Cougars' football team winds down spring practices.

For Khalifa, his growth has strengthened since he opted to transfer to BYU from his previous school at Charlotte — even if he's not a member of the majority religion on campus.

"There aren't a lot of distractions around campus like at other schools," Khalifa said. "It gives me a lot of time to just be by myself and absorb my religion, to pray and stuff like that. In that way, I think it's gotten closer.

"To see people around me who are faithful and live their religion, not a lot of schools have that," he added. "That's what makes BYU unique: It makes you think about your own religion and how you can do better."

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