BYU did its best to stop the streaking Utes, but not even the archrivals could keep Utah from their 13th straight victory, as the U came out of Provo a 72-58 winner Monday night.
The Cougars rotated big men all night, but never had an answer for Andrew Bogut, who poured in 20 points on 7-10 shooting, all while battling a lingering migraine.
“(Bogut) threw up 10 different times today,” Giacoletti said. “We put two IVs in him at nine o’clock tonight. People have no idea how tough that kid is.”
The sophomore center led four Utes in double figures, as the Utes shot 70.8 pct. in the second half. While the overall shooting percentage was well below its school record 80 pct. in the previous game, the U still ended up with an impressive 61.9 percent from the field.
“We made some changes for the second half, and we executed them,” Ute guard Marc Jackson said about the big turnaround.
Austin Ainge led the Cougars with 15 points, helping BYU to keep it close in the first half. Backcourt mate Jimmy Balderson added 13 points, on 3-4 shooting from beyond the three point arc.
It was a forgettable night for Cougar star Mike Hall, who was held to four points, his second lowest scoring output of the season.
The Utes opened up the second half with an 16-3 run, and never looked back.
After scoring only two points in the first half, Bryant Markson busted out from the get-go in the second, netting seven points in the first nine minutes.
“We gave it to [Markson] to start the second half, and it blew the game open,” Bogut said.
A string of three quick Ute buckets left the U with a 52-38 lead with 10:28 left in the game, prompting BYU coach Steve Cleveland to call a timeout.
The pep talk didn’t do much good, as the Cougs couldn’t draw closer than eight the rest of the way.
Eventually the mounting deficit frayed BYU’s nerves. Bogut got an open dunk in the midst of a big Ute run. After getting tangled up on the ground, Cougar Chris Miles kicked Bogut in the back, drawing a technical foul and momentarily starting a shoving match between the two teams. Order would be restored after offsetting technical fouls were called on Markson and BYU’s Mike Hall.
The Cougars proved resilient in the first half. After the Utes jumped out to a 7-5 lead, BYU answered with an 8-0 run that featured three-pointers by Austin Ainge and Mike Rose.
“BYU came out and they were the aggressor early,” Giacoletti said. “They put us back on our heals.”
Ainge matched his season average for points in a game with his nine points in the first half.
The Cougars would hold the advantage until the 6:15 mark, when a Mark Jackson gave the Utes a 20-19 lead.
The teams would go back and forth the rest of the half, with neither getting a lead of more than three points.
The Utes managed to go to the locker room down 29-28, even while committing nine turnovers in the half.
Player of the game: Andrew Bogut
Apparently, even a bad migraine can’t slow Bogut down. He may have been ill, but the Aussie still managed to notch 20 points, along with 9 rebounds and 5 blocked shots. Cougar center Chris Miles showed appreciation for Bogut’s efforts for classily kicking him in the back.