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PROVO — The biggest element of BYU’s game-changing momentum push in its win over Portland didn’t come from a particular stat or one play.
It came from the often intangible item that coaches and players love to cite but don’t often illustrated: hustle.
Eric Mika scored 14 of his game-high 23 points in the second half to go along with 11 rebounds, and Yoeli Childs added 15 points and 10 rebounds to help BYU rally past Portland 73-62 for Dave Rose’s 300th win as head coach of the program Saturday in the Marriott Center.
TJ Haws scored 11 of his 13 points in the second half for BYU (17-8, 8-4 WCC), which trailed Portland 34-28 at halftime but held Portland scoreless for the final five minutes of the game.
“We needed a lot of guys to play well, and that didn’t really happen,” BYU coach Dave Rose said. “We got in foul trouble, started to press a bit, and missed some free throws. But now that it’s over, it’s a good way to win a game for a young team.”
Gabe Taylor led Portland with 20 points, and D’Marques Tyson added 13. Jazz Johnson supplied 10 points and three assists for the Pilots (9-15, 2-10 WCC).
Childs opened the second half by pacing a 10-0 run for BYU, aided by a pair of 3-pointers from Haws. The Cougars held the Pilots without a second-half field goal until Taylor knocked down a 3-pointer with 15:40 remaining.
Jazz Johnson, who entered the game as the Pilots' leading scorer since Alec Wintering sustained a season-ending knee injury, capped Portland’s 12-2 run to retake the lead 53-49 with 7:45 remaining.
But BYU used a 12-0 run that included a 3-pointer from Davin Guinn and a fast-break layup from L.J. Rose to rally past the Pilots.
“I think Dav gave us tremendous minutes and brought minutes to us,” Rose said. “We had a group of guys with an ebb and flow of that game, where we needed more consistency from top to bottom. And it seemed like those guys ended up playing most of the minutes.”
By a combination of foul trouble and poor shooting, BYU finished the first half with starters Rose and Childs joined on the court by Steven Beo, Colby Leifson and Guinn as the rotation swelled to 10 players in the first half.
Mika, Nick Emery, Haws and Beo each had two fouls in the opening 20 minutes, when the Cougars made just 11-of-27 shots from the field and committed seven turnovers. Mika and Childs each had nine points and four rebounds, and Portland’s Taylor also tied the game-high with nine points.
Here are three thoughts on the occasion of Dave Rose’s 300th win as BYU head coach.
Davin Guinn, defense win out
Guinn’s line on the stat sheet was humbling compared to some on his teams: three points, two rebounds and two steals.
The former walk-on made just 1-of-3 shots — but what a bucket it was.
Guinn’s 3-pointer with 4:28 left started a 12-0 run, and the Cougars held the Pilots without a field goal for the final five minutes of the game with a switch to a 1-3-1 defense that included Guinn running the “point” of the system.
“When we run our defense and have to get stops, that’s all it is — It’s just working,” Guinn said. “We just tried to lock down, and we know we needed to do it to win. It’s all about effort.”
Foul-plagued, turnover-prone first half
BYU did not play exemplary basketball in the first half.
The Cougars shot 40.7 percent from the field, but did so making just 11 shots and going 0-of-7 from the 3-point line. In addition, BYU made seven turnovers, had just one block and lost the rebounding battle 22-17 to the Pilots.
“Saturday games are always a little tougher,” Childs said. “You want to give it your all, but you’re a little sore. But once we got the adrenaline going, I think we started working.”
BYU flipped the script in the second half, forcing Portland into eight turnovers and taking a 22-17 rebounding margin, including a 16-13 edge on the defensive glass.
“Be aggressive and be the team on attack,” Childs recalled from the halftime speech. “It felt like we were on our heels in the first half; they were the first guys to 50-50 balls, and they were making the plays.
Another first-time coach
With the arrival of former Portland Trail Blazers star Terry Porter in the Marriott Center, BYU has played each of the WCC’s four new coaches.
In addition to Porter, Santa Clara (Herb Sendek), San Francisco (Kyle Smith) and Pacific (Damon Stoudamire) all replaced their coaches in the offseason.
And Saturday night’s Pilots were as different as any the Cougars have faced, even without preseason all-WCC guard Alec Wintering, who sustained a season-ending knee injury a month ago.
“It felt like we were on our heels in the first half; they were the first guys to 50-50 balls, and they were making the plays,” Childs said. “That’s the thing about this league: it doesn’t matter if it’s the first team or the last team, everybody plays hard. If you don’t give it your all, anybody can beat you.”
