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Cougars' key stretch begins at San Diego State |
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JaredLloyd | Saturday, February 24, 2007, 10:49 am
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Jason Franchuk
DAILY HERALD
SAN DIEGO, Calif. — As the wins pile up, and time left in the season winds down, it deserves mention that exactly three weeks from today BYU’s men’s basketball team would love to be playing in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
That would mean, of course, that BYU won a first-round game 19 days from now, on a Thursday.
Whether that happens, today’s game at San Diego State may be the starting point of such a journey. The next three games could make a major impact on the Cougars’ future beyond the regular season.
Not that head coach Dave Rose is looking so far ahead as his team enters with a 21-6 record, 11-2 in Mountain West games.
“Really, it feels like there’s just one game left,” he said. “That’s kind of the approach we’ve taken all season.”
But this being a media outlet, where 50 cents can buy a small dose of speculation — perhaps a few grains of salt should also be purchased — it’s high time to explain what the next couple of weeks could mean.
A win by the Cougars at SDSU (19-8, 8-5), which has won six of the last seven and is 12-2 at Cox Arena, would virtually lock up a Mountain West Conference championship. They need to win 2-of-3 games to assure an outright title. Odds are pretty good they’ll beat Utah, at home, in the season finale. Remember, this is a team with a 30-game winning streak at the Marriott Center.
A loss, however, opens up a few cans of worms that could toy with BYU’s goals.
Assuming BYU would also lose at Air Force next Tuesday — the Falcons are also 30 for their last 30 at home — there’s a chance for a three-way tie in the league.
That could affect conference tournament seeding, then NCAA tournament seeding. That may mean the difference between winning a game in the “Big Dance” for the first time in nearly 14 years, and again coming home with another lost opportunity.
No pressure, right?
Players appear to genuinely appreciate the opportunity.
“It’s funny how expecations go,” sophomore center Trent Plaisted said before BYU won its eighth consecutive game Wednesday against Colorado State. “You win a few in a row, then you have to win the next one. Then the game after that is the biggest one and so on.”
Rose has done his part to deflect some of the heat, if the Cougars indeed feel any. Normally, the team meets with media outlets two days prior to a road game. On Thursday, Rose informed reporters that his players wouldn’t be available.
“After a week off (prior to Wednesday’s CSU game), it seemed like the guys had been talking about the games more than they were playing them,” Rose said.
No doubt the entire team has talked about this upcoming slate of games well before it arrived. Utah’s a rival and games rarely come easy. Air Force is senior laden and has met expectations. SDSU was picked to be the league champion in the preseason, based on some athletic returning starters, including the league’s all-time leading scorer Brandon Heath.
BYU won the first meeting, Jan. 6, by 22 points (80-58). So much has changed in seven weeks. The Cougars, then trying to prove themselves in the league opener, are now the favorite. While they no longer have Rashaun Broadus, who played his best game of the year that day, there’s still a 1 1/2-game lead over Air Force.
SDSU was a pitiful team then, looking lost and dysfunctional in Provo after losing a few days prior at home to Wyoming.
“They beat us bloody in every facet,” SDSU coach Steve Fisher said.
The 0-2 MWC start had folks wondering if the Aztecs would ever show their potential.
They’ve won six of the last seven, the lone defeat coming again to the Pokes. So, yes, they’re back.
Rose credits a team that is playing more fluidly on offense, which has often occurred because the team is so much more focused when the opponent has the ball.
“They’re getting rewarded on offense because of their defense,” Rose said.
SDSU coach Steve Fisher knows other MWC teams are cheering for his.
“I think we are at the stage now where, as much as you tell teams and players not to look at other games and root for other people, we’re going to have Air Force and UNLV rooting for us,” he said. “We’re playing a team that’s played the best all season with two losses (in conference) in a big game at home. I know that our players will be ready, excited and I’m very confident that we’re going to play well. Whether that will be good enough, we’ll find out.” |
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