Gaels Face BYU to Start Road Trip: Game Preview
By Mike Rose
The Gaels face BYU tonight in the first game of a two game road trip. Coming off a 15th straight win against USF in a 78-72 victory, the Gaels are looking for a big road win.
SMC
The Gaels are now 2-1 in the WCC (4th place) and 13-4 overall.
Tonight’s match-up will put the Gaels offense to the test. Matthew Dellavedova who is averaging 17.3 points per game for SMC will be going head to head with BYU’s Tyler Haws at 21.3 points per game. Both Steven Holt and Beau Levesque will need strong offensive performances tonight.
The Gaels offense has been averaging 79.3 points per game. When asked about the game, Levesque, said a key to the Gaels winning will be for them to stay, “disciplined”. He added that, “We were fortunate to come in and get a big win last year but we know that we have to concentrate on executing our jobs for 40 minutes to get another win in Provo”.
BYU’s defense has held its opponents to an average of 67.1 points for the season. The Gaels are slightly better with holding their opponents to 66.5 points average per game. All but one of BYU’s wins this season come with them scoring 70 points plus. If the Gaels defense can hold BYU to around 66 points, they have a great shot at a big road game victory. Limiting Haws will be a key factor as the Gaels defense takes on a central role in this game. Watch for freshman walk-on guard Jordan Giusti who has been seeing about 10 minutes per game for strong defense.
Last season, the Gaels won both matchups against BYU. They beat the Cougars 98-82 at home and then scored an 80-66 win on the road. In SMC’s final game of the season, forward Brad Waldow led the way with 19 points and eight rebounds.
BYU
BYU is currently 14-4 overall and is at 4-0 1st place in the WCC. BYU holds a one game advantage over #8 ranked Gonzaga who is currently 3-0 in the WCC. BYU returns home tonight after an 82-64 road win at Santa Clara.
Leading BYU is Tyler Haws who is averaging 21.3 points per game. Brandon Davies is number two for the Cougars averaging 18.4 points per game. Haws, the sophomore guard for BYU is averaging 42.2% behind the three point line. Slowing him down will be a key factor for the Gaels defense.
In the last three years the Cougars are 35-4 at home. They are 1-1 at home against SMC. The last at home win against the Gaels was 11/27/2010 with BYU etching out SMC 74-73. Tip off time tonight is 8 pm.