University of Portland release
PROVO, Utah — Portland led most of the night, but a BYU surge late gave the Cougars a 73-62 victory Saturday night in West Coast Conference basketball action at the Marriott Center. BYU closed the game with an 18-1 run in the final five minutes and improves to 9-0 all-time at home against the Pilots.
Junior forward Gabe Taylor led the Pilots (9-15, 2-10 WCC) with 20 points, while D’Marques Tyson added 13. Sophomore Jazz Johnson finished with 10 points to maintain double figures scoring in every game this season.
Portland led by six at 61-55 with 4:37 remaining after a pair of Joseph Smoyer free throws. Pilot centers Ray Barreno and Philipp Hartwich had already fouled out and the Cougars (17-8, 8-4) went to the WCC’s leading scorer, sophomore center Eric Mika.
Mika kicked out to Davin Guinn for a three-pointer and then made three free throws to tie the game.
The Pilots committed five turnovers in the final three minutes led to free throws and transition layups as the Cougars capitalized with a 13-0 run that pushed the margin to seven. BYU made free throws late to extend the margin.
Mika finished with 23 points and 12 rebounds, while freshman Yoeli Childs added 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Cougars.
Portland had a strong first half and took a 28-18 lead on a Tyson three-pointer. The Cougars closed the half with a layup from Childs to beat the buzzer as the Pilots carried a 34-28 lead into the half. BYU opened the second half with a 10-0 run to regain the lead, but the Pilots answered with a 14-3 run that included consecutive Tyson three-pointers and a pair of Johnson runners.
The Pilot bigs battled Mika all night and Barreno finished with 10 rebounds, while Hartwich grabbed nine. The teams were even with 39 rebounds apiece, but the Cougars gained a 34-18 edge in points in the paint.
BYU shot 39 percent overall and made 3-of-16 three-pointers. The Pilots finished at 33 percent overall and were 5-of-18 from long range. BYU went to the free throw line 39 times, converting 28 of those attempts. Portland was 19-of-23 at the charity stripe.
Portland will have a pair of WCC road games next week. The Pilots visit No. 18 Saint Mary’s on Thursday at 7 p.m. and then travel to LMU on Saturday for a 1 p.m. tip-off.
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