BYU Basketball Questions Answered In Win Against Idaho State

PROVO, Utah – The BYU Basketball team got quite the scare from Idaho State, but the Cougars held on to win 60-56.

Let’s answer some questions from the Cougar’s season-opening victory.

Who was the MVP of BYU basketball?

Fousseyni Traore led the team in scoring, but I thought the most valuable player of the night was true freshman Dallin Hall.

Hall was the only guard who didn’t turn the ball over.

Everyone else had 23 turnovers.

Dallin Hall is a difference maker.

Beautiful pick-and-roll with Fouss.

He’s been the best point guard tonight in terms of running the offense and helping others get good shots. #BYU #BYUHoops

— Matthew Baiamonte (@baiamontematt) November 8, 2022

Coach Pope turned to Dallin Hall with five minutes remaining in the game, which I thought was noteworthy.

Hall played 12 minutes in the second half.

The Cougars trailed by two when he entered at the 4:52 mark and he helped the offense score 13 points to close it out.

He also led the team in assists with four.

What is something that caught your attention?

There’s a lot of turnover on this team. Only five players on the roster last season played minutes against the Bengals.

Coach Pope is balancing a roster of transfers, with incoming freshmen, as he builds his program eyeing life in the Big 12 conference.

One of those freshmen, Richie Saunders really popped defensively in the first half.

Richie Saunders has been a pest defensively.

He’s making things difficult on the Bengal guards.

Really good start for one of the talented freshman. #BYU #BYUHoops

— Matthew Baiamonte (@baiamontematt) November 8, 2022

He plays a lot like Spencer Johnson on the defensive end, which is a big compliment.

Saunders showed a real knack for jumping passing lanes and creating pressure on the ball without fouling.

What was the most interesting stat from the game?

BYU basketball shot 19 percent from the three-point line. Not good.

It’s going to be difficult to beat good teams shooting that poorly from deep.

I don’t believe they will shoot this poorly going forward, but it wasn’t a good start from the three-point line.

This #BYU team is going to be a feeling out process. Some nights will be a thing of beauty, other nights, well, it's what we're seeing in this first half against Idaho State.

— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) November 8, 2022

Here’s the good news. BYU made their final two three-point shots, none more important than the game-winning shot by Spencer Johnson.

When was the game won by BYU basketball?

It wasn’t won until BYU forced a stop on the final Bengal possession of the game.

Spencer Johnson saved the day with his three-point shot with 11 seconds to go, however, there was still time left for Idaho State to walk out victorious.

First regular season start for Spencer Johnson in his #BYU career and he comes up with a clutch three.#BYUHoops pic.twitter.com/ifEk9MsfOw

— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) November 8, 2022

Gideon George, who struggled for most of the night, made two massive plays at the end of the game.

He makes a three-point shot to keep BYU close, then he made a great play at the rim to force a miss on a drive by Miguel Tomley.

Johnson made a pair of free throws on the other end, and the Cougars moved to 1-0.

You can hear Matt Baiamonte every Saturday on KSL Newsradio for Cougar Sports Saturday from 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. or you can find him on Twitter.