No. 21 BYU hits 64 percent from the floor in rout of Texas

Field Level Media|published: Sat 27th January, 16:36 2024

Jan 27, 2024; Provo, Utah, USA; Brigham Young Cougars guard Spencer Johnson (20) drives to the basket against Texas Longhorns guard Ithiel Horton (9) during the first half at Marriott Center. credits: Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

Noah Waterman and Jaxson Robinson scored 17 points each to help No. 21 BYU roll to an 84-72 win over Texas on Saturday afternoon in a Big 12 Conference clash in Provo, Utah.

The Cougars bounced back from back-to-back losses by shooting a season-best 64 percent from the floor. BYU led by just three points at halftime but pushed its lead to double digits three minutes into the second half and decisively pulled away, going up by as many as 17 points with 8:31 left and never allowing the Longhorns to get closer than nine points the rest of the way.

Fousseyni Traore added 16 points on 6 of 7 shooting for the Cougars (15-5, 3-4 Big 12) while Richie Saunders and Spencer Johnson had 11 points each.

Dylan Disu paced the Longhorns (14-6, 3-4 Big 12) with 19 points and seven rebounds. Chendall Weaver added a season-high 15 points with Max Abmas scoring 12 and Tyrese Hunter hitting for 10 for Texas, which had a two-game winning streak snapped.

The Longhorns led by as many as seven points in the early minutes, going up 13-6 on Ithiel Horton's 3-pointer at the 15:40 mark of the first half. BYU rallied to tie the game at 19 on Saunders' jumper from beyond the arc with 11:14 to play before halftime and swept to a 41-31 advantage when Robinson hit a layup with 2:52 remaining.

Texas swung back, reeling off a 10-1 run capped by a jumper by Abmas with 20 seconds to go in the half to bring the Longhorns back to within a point. Johnson then drove the lane for a layup at the buzzer the granted the Cougars a 44-41 lead at the break.

Disu led all scorers with 11 points before halftime while Waterman and Robinson tallied 9 points each to pace the Cougars. BYU shot an amazing 65.4 percent in the first half and outscored the Longhorns 28-14 in the paint.

The Cougars took control of the game with an 8-2 run to begin the second half and stoked their lead to 72-55 when Saunders poured in a 3-pointer with 8:31 to play. Texas culled its deficit to single digits on Disu's layup with 4:24 remaining but it was far too little too late.

—Field Level Media

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