Basketball Betting

Beehive State showdown pits Utes against Cougars

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

01/30/2010 - Provo, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Coming off just their second loss of the season, the 12th-ranked BYU Cougars try to work their way back into the win column tonight as they face off against in-state rival Utah at the Marriott Center in Provo.

On Wednesday night, the Cougars had their lengthy 15-game win streak (the longest in the nation at the time) snapped as they took a minor tumble against the New Mexico Lobos, 76-72, in The Pit in Albuquerque. The defeat was the first in conference play obviously, so at this stage BYU is still at the top of the standings as the only program with a single setback.

Meanwhile, the Utes were also in action three nights ago and they too were defeated by a Mountain West foe as they suffered a 75-69 setback versus Wyoming in Laramie. The defeat was the second in the last three games for a Utah squad that has been alternating wins and losses for the last six outings overall and is now an even 3-3 in conference as a result.

BYU, which has won 17 consecutive games at the Marriott Center over the last two seasons, won the most recent meeting by a score of 63-50 last year in Provo, but still the Utes cling to a 125-123 advantage in the all-time series.

Turnovers proved to be the difference in the meeting with Wyoming earlier this week, as Utah suffered 19 miscues en route to the six-point loss at Arena Auditorium. Carlon Brown had a huge game off the bench as he tallied a game- high 31 points, shooting 9-of-15 from the field and 10-of-14 at the free-throw line, followed by Marshall Henderson and Jay Watkins with 13 and 12 points, respectively. Aside from Henderson, the other four starters for the Utes combined to post a meager seven points. Brown is now averaging a team-best 13.9 ppg overall this season, his average against conference foes coming in slightly higher at 14.8 ppg. Henderson now accounts for 11.3 ppg over the course of 20 games, even though he has made a mere 37.1 percent of his field goal attempts. Add Luka Drca (10.6 ppg) to the list of double-digit scorers, and the threesome combine for 38 of the team's 44 made three-point baskets in conference play thus far.

The Cougars came up a bit cold in the first half of their meeting with New Mexico, shooting just 31.3 percent from the floor and 3-of-10 behind the three-point line. In the second half, BYU improved on both of those numbers, but still had trouble holding off a spirited UNM squad in enemy territory. Jimmer Fredette tallied a team-best 27 points on 4-of-6 shooting behind the three-point line, while Jonathan Tavernari made good on 3-of-5 tries from beyond the arc as he arrived at 17 points off the bench. Noah Hartsock chipped in 10 points and seven boards as well. Fredette, who earlier in the season had a 49-point game, is now scoring 20.5 ppg while handing out a team-best 102 assists and pulling down almost three rebounds per game. Jackson Emery (12.2 ppg) and Tyler Haws (12.1 ppg) have also been key factors in the team's success this season. As a unit, the Cougars have connected on an astounding 50 percent of their field goal attempts and 41.6 percent beyond the arc, not to mention 77.7 percent at the free-throw line.