BYU holds off determined Braves in season opener

60	70

Normally double-digit losses leave fans angry, disappointed and frustrated. But as BYU (1-0) left the court with a 70-60 victory, the road team had to feel pretty encouraged about the upcoming season.

Consider the circumstances: Bradley (0-1) had to open up the season against a team that has only lost three home games in the past four seasons. BYU was picked to win the Mountain West Conference and some think the team could win a few games in the NCAA tournament as well. Then starting forward Taylor Brown was listed as ineligible ▬ this could have been a blowout.

The Braves couldn't shoot in the first half (6-of-22, 27.3 percent) and only trailed 32-25 at the break. After a timeout, head coach Jim Les ran one of his familiar alley-oop plays for senior guard Chris Roberts. The slam tied the game at 39-39 with 14:48 left.

The Cougars responded with a 15-6 run that was the defining moment of the game. The 5 1/2 minute stretch included two Bradley turnovers, a missed free throw (the team only hit 4-of-10 in the second half) and huge momentum swing.

Les' teams always seem to have one last push in them and in this game, that allowed Bradley to keep the game within 7-8 points for most of the remaining half. Other teams may have folded after that run but credit Bradley for hanging in there against a very good team.

The combination of BYU's star players, forward Jimmer Fredette and forward Jonathan Tavernari, were too much for Bradley to handle. Fredette made 12-of-14 free throw attempts and scored a game high 25 points. Tavernari didn't have his best shooting game, but still hit three 3-pointers and finished with 13.

Though not as dynamic, Bradley's top trio also had a pretty good game. Roberts had a team-high 16 points, but still showed why he can be such a frustrating player. The good certainly outweighed the bad, as he had five rebounds, two steals, a block and that big dunk. But, at a critical stretch in the game where Bradley trailed by 5-7 points, Roberts missed three opportunities at the free-throw line.

Junior guard Sam Maniscalco had 15 points, hitting 3-of-5 attempts from behind the 3-point line and all six of his free throws. Fellow junior guard Andrew Warren, who played in his first regular season game since sitting out all of 2008-09 with a foot injury, also finished in double figures with 13. Warren was clearly a bit rusty, but the potential is obviously still there for a big comeback season.

From a team stats perspective, these teams played very evenly. Bradley hit 7-of-18 and BYU hit 7-of-19 from 3-point range. The Cougars held a slight advantages in rebounding (24-22) and turnovers (11-15). If the home team could have shot better from the free-throw line (70.4 percent), it might have won more easily.

BYU simply hit more shots than Bradley did (22-of-55 versus 18-of-50 for the Braves). In a game where most other factors were even, that was the difference.

Noteworthy performances

Sophomore forward Taylor Brown was held out of the game by head coach Jim Les as a result of a violation of team rules. This likely is a result of an on-campus incident in September where Brown was arrested on a battery charge. In the big picture, this was a good move by Les as he continued to show that inappropriate conduct (no matter the severity, circumstances, etc.) needs to be handled with proper discipline. Brown surely would have helped tonight but most likely woudn't have changed the outcome. All indications at this point are that this will be the only game Brown will miss.

Freshman guard Dyricus Simms-Edwards surprised with a very good performance in his first game. His stat line doesn't look gaudy (two rebounds, two assists, two turnovers), but he really provided valuable minutes, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Expect him to continue to receive 10-15 minutes per game if he continues his steady play.

Sophomore center Anthony Thompson really needs to start turning the corner this season. After a disappointing rookie season, he started out 2009-10 with a two-point, three-rebound performance. Again, nothing eye-dropping here but his play showed some early progress that should hopefully lead to more regular minutes.

Senior guard Dodie Dunson was nearly invisible, getting shut out from the scoreboard in 25 minutes and grabbing just two rebounds. But the good news most Bradley fans know about Dunson is that he's a streaky player and could go for 18 on Sunday against Idaho State.

Coming up next

After an encouraging performance on the road, the Braves come home looking for their first win of the season on Sunday against Idaho State. The Bengals lost tonight to another common Bradley opponent, Iowa State, 88-68 in Ames, Iowa.