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The Cougar hoopsters welcome the Wildcats of Central Washington to the Marriott Center tonight in the second of two exhibition games.
Look for BYU to experiment with different lineups this evening, as coaches get a feel for the most productive and effective combinations.
The radio broadcast of tonight's game can be heard exclusively online at ksl.com via the X-Stream audio channel. Simply scroll down until you see the X-Stream audio stream options on the right-hand side of the page, and tune in starting at 7:30pm tonight.
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Sophomore forward Noah Hartsock is expected to play tonight; he missed the exhibition opener with a sprained ankle. Everyone else is healthy and should be on the floor tonight.
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BYU associate head coach Dave Rice will be on the Cougar bench tonight, but he will be missed in Las Vegas, as UNLV honors the 20th anniversary of the Rebels 1989-90 National Championship basketball team. Rice and the other Rebel titleists will be recognized at halftime of UNLV's exhibition game with Washburn.
While he is unable to be with his former teammates at the Thomas and Mack Center for tonight's festivities, Rice was in Las Vegas Monday night for an anniversary gala at Green Valley Ranch.
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With New Mexico next up on the Cougars' football agenda, I would expect the Cougars to keep the heat on the quarterback, much as they did in Laramie. New Mexico has given up 30 sacks and 68 tackles for loss this season; both numbers are worst in the conference and 114th nationally.
If I were to ask you to choose the more mobile quarterback, from between Donovan Porterie and Max Hall, you might choose the New Mexico signal-caller. Yet, the numbers say Max is better at avoiding pressure, taking big losses, and making something out of nothing. The numbers also say Hall also has a better offensive line in front of him.
Hall: 164 rush yards gained, 90 rush yards lost, net 74 rush yards; long rush 20 yards; 15 team sacks allowed.
Porterie: 149 rush yards gained, 190 rush yards lost, net -41 rush yards; long rush 11 yards; 30 team sacks allowed.
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I have this nagging feeling about TCU as it gets set to host Utah in the MWC "Game of the Year" on Saturday night, and the feeling is this: it's all coming pretty fast for the Frogs.
The debut of new uniforms, the rare stadium sellout, ESPN College Gameday in town, the national buildup, the BCS stakes on the line, the "60-minute season" aspect of the Utah game; can TCU handle it?
You may think it's a silly question, but I think it's valid. Utah has dealt with everything I've already listed, and thrived under those pressures; in a lot of ways, this is all new for the Frogs. You add in TCU's three-game losing skid to Utah, and that 17-point spread looks a little generous.
If TCU wins a blowout, I'll be happy to admit that my speculations were unfounded. But, I'm just sayin'...it may not be the Frogs' first rodeo, but Cowtown has never seen a night like this--let's see how the purple people handle it.
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