BYU Basketball Takeaways From Tough Loss Against No. 20 Arizona
Feb 4, 2025, 11:56 PM | Updated: Feb 5, 2025, 1:17 am
PROVO, Utah – The BYU basketball team had their four-game winning streak snapped by the No. 20 Arizona Wildcats 85-74.
Caleb Love led all scorers with 18 points, including a key three-point basketball in the second half after BYU took a one-point lead with 11 minutes left.
Arizona last visited the Marriott Center back in 1998 when they defeated a Cougar team in overtime 78-74.
Here are my takeaways from a hard-fought Big 12 battle.
The battle of the boards hurt BYU
The Wildcats had a size advantage against BYU and that helped them win the battle on the glass.
BYU was out-rebounded in the first half by six and by nine in the second half. Arizona ripped down 45 rebounds whereas BYU pulled down 30.
Somehow the Cougars had more second-chance points, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the rebounding disparity.
#BYU is -10 on the glass with 7 minutes remaining. They'll need to crank up the effort on the glass to have a chance to win this one.
— Matthew Baiamonte (@baiamontematt) February 5, 2025
The Cougars never lost the rebounding battle during their four-game conference winning streak. They’ve thrived in games where they win that battle and they’ve struggled offensively when they lose it.
Fousseyni Traore led BYU in rebounding with seven off the bench, but they needed more rebounding from Keba Keita and Egor Demin who combined for the same number of rebounds as Traore.
Head Coach Kevin Young didn’t think the rebounding was the reason BYU lost. “We lost because we couldn’t get stops,” he said post-game.
BYU will have more quad-one opportunities. It’s not doom and gloom. However, they’ll need to crash the glass better if they want to win enough conference games to go dancing.
Dallin Hall came alive in the second half
It’s easy to forget that Hall was an honorable mention Big 12 player last season. He’s struggled to adjust with Demin taking more of an active ball-handling role in the offense.
However, his second-half performance provided a silver lining in the loss.
Dallin Hall has reached double figures for the fifth time this season and 28th time in his career.#BYUHoops #GoCougs
— BYU Game Notes (@BYUGameNotes) February 5, 2025
Hall scored nine of his 11 points in the second half.
More importantly, he was looking to score. This team needs Hall to be looking for his shot like he did in the second half where he hoisted 10 field goal attempts.
In addition to his scoring, Hall led the team with six assists and only one turnover.
There is an argument to be made that Hall needs to handle the ball more as the primary ball handler. His decision-making as a point guard is the best on the team currently.
Egor Demin aggressive on the offensive end
BYU is a better basketball team when Demin is a threat to score the ball. He found success against the Wildcat defensive by getting to the rim in the first half.
Assistant coach Chris Burgess told me and Mitch Harper on Cougar Sports Saturday that he monitors the amount of possessions where the ball finds its way into the painted area.
Egor Demin is getting to the basket with ease. Demin is up to 13 points.
Demin's high for scoring in Big 12 play is 15 (Baylor, Cincinnati).
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) February 5, 2025
In the first half, he did a great job of getting downline at the rim. The second half saw Demin attempt six of his nine three-point field goals. He only made two of his nine attempts on the night.
Some of those attempts were at the end of the shot clock, but others seemed forced. Demin hasn’t been efficient enough this season to be attempting 20 field goals, nine of them coming from deep.
BYU only scored 13 points in the final 11 minutes of the game after Kanon Catchings gave the Cougars a 61-60 lead.
Too many empty possessions offensively during the stretch, plus a few turnovers, helped the Wildcats close the door on the Cougars.
You can hear Matt Baiamonte every Saturday on KSL Newsradio for Cougar Sports Saturday from 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. or on Cougar Nation Monday nights from 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. You can also find him on Twitter @baiamontematt here.
Take us with you wherever you go.
