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PROVO — Yoeli Childs was feeling under the weather Wednesday night, whether tired after exploding for 31 points in three-straight games, a flu bug, or a combination of the two.
TJ Haws was plenty able to pick up the slack.
Haws scored 18 of his career-high 30 points in the first half, and BYU cruised to its third-straight victory with an 85-66 over Portland State at the Marriott Center.
Childs finished with 13 points, and Zac Seljaas supplied 11 points and four rebounds for the Cougars (8-4). Freshman Connor Harding supplied 11 points, and Nick Emery dished out six assists.
"I'm happy for the win," BYU coach Dave Rose said. "I like the balance we had. They were athletic, and they play with real purpose defensively. I thought we handled the press well and got some good shots."
Haws made 9-of-15 shots, including five 3-pointers, to lead the way for BYU, which was out-rebounded by the Vikings 56-32.
The Cougars used a 16-0 run, including nine from Haws, midway through the second half to turn a 22-21 edge into a 38-21 advantage with 5:31 left in the half.
On a night when Childs, who scored 31 points in back-to-back-to-back games, struggled from the field, Haws more than made up for it.
The junior also had three rebounds and two assists, and teammate Zac Seljaas finished with 11 points.
The Cougars then opened the second half on a 7-2 run, capped by Childs’ thunderous dunk that put BYU up 52-32 less than three minutes after the break.
But the Vikings didn’t go away, using a 9-0 run over four minutes to cut the deficit to 55-48.
Then Haws swished back-to-back 3-pointers with 11:53 remaining, and the Cougars were back in control.
Haws made five of BYU’s seven 3-pointers.
