STOCKTON, Calif. – BYU guards Chase Fischer and Kyle Collinsworth each scored more than 20 points to lead the Cougars to an 81-67 win over Pacific on the road Saturday at the Alex G. Spanos Center.
BYU (10-5, 1-1) earned its first conference win and its first road win of the season after beating Pacific (3-10, 2-2) on its home court. The Cougars shot 48 percent (11 of 23) from beyond the arc.
Fischer scored 23 points, going 6 of 11 from 3-point range, along with four rebounds. Collinsworth had 22 points, five rebounds and eight assists. Freshman Zac Seljaas also scored in double figures, going for 14 points on four treys and two free throws. He also had five rebounds. Nate Austin led all players in rebounds with 10 to go along with his four points.
“We played really well and it was exactly what we needed to get a big win,” BYU head coach Dave Rose said. “Our execution late in the game was tremendous and we got a real balanced feel.”
The Cougars jumped out to an early 5-0 lead in the game after a bucket from Davis and a 3-pointer from Nick Emery. Pacific held BYU scoreless for five minutes, allowing the Tigers to take a 9-8 lead on a 3.
Fischer drilled a 3-pointer at the 11:13 mark to end the drought and put the Cougars back on top, 11-9. The Tigers got within two points before Jamal Aytes hit back-to-back jump shots to put his team back up 21-15 with five minutes left in the half.
Pacific clawed back into it, taking a 24-23 lead on another trey with 3:28 before the break. After making one free throw, Collinsworth missed the second and grabbed the rebound. He found Fischer beyond the arc and the senior shooting guard hit a 3-pointer to take the lead back at 29-28 with just 0:49 left before halftime.
BYU ended the half on a 9-0 run spanning 56 seconds. Fischer nailed another 3 at the buzzer to give his team the 34-28 lead going into the locker room. The Cougars forced 11 turnovers in the first half, earning 18 points off of those miscues.
Collinsworth scored the first basket of the second half for BYU on a drive to the basket, but Pacific kept within striking distance. The Tigers tied the game up 41-41 with 14:07 left to play.
Another 3-pointer from Fischer sparked the Cougars to score 12 unanswered points. A Collinsworth assist to Corbin Kaufusi for an easy dunk put BYU up 55-43 with 9:56 on the clock, capping off the run.
The Cougars went on a quick 8-0 run over one minute, highlighted by a breakaway dunk by Collinsworth off a steal at the 6:12 mark. He was fouled on the dunk and made the free throw to complete the three-point play, extending the lead to 66-50.
Seljass and Fischer both made 3-pointers down the stretch to keep Pacific at bay. Fischer, Seljass and Jordan Chatman made free throws in the final two minutes to seal the 81-67 win.
The Cougars return home next week to play Santa Clara on Thursday at 9 p.m. MST. The game will be televised on ESPNU. It will also be broadcast on the Cougar IMG Sports Network.
Stats: byupac1216
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @oldschoolag
Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2016, all rights reserved.