 hold on for their fifth consecutive win over the Cougars (17-5, 6-3). Naar, who came into the game second in the country for assists, needs 33 more to break the school's career record. Landale was dominant all game. He helped the Gaels get out to an early lead in a back-and-forth first half then scored 18 in the second half, including 11 straight during one stretch. Landale also made a nifty assist when he passed to Naar cutting down the lane for an easy bucket. Naar returned the favor with an alley-oop pass to the Saint Mary's big man for a dunk that put the Gaels up 61-53. After McKay Cannon's 3-pointer made it 61-56, Landale made two free throws, Fitzner hit a 3-poiinter and Landale added a three-point play. It's the sixth time this season that Landale has scored 30 or more. He also has double-doubles in 12 of the last 14 games. TJ Haws scored 15 points, Yoeli Childs added 14 and Elijah Bryant had 13 points and nine assist for BYU. The Gaels won in their first game since returning to the Top 25 after a two-month absence. BYU stayed close early despite a strong effort from Landale in the first half. The reigning conference player of the week, Landale was dominant down low. He scored on a pair of up-and-under moves, made a dunk off an assist from Naar and added two short layups despite BYU's collapsing defense in the paint. His lone misses came on a rushed 3-pointer with the shot clock running down and a shot under the basket that hit the rim going up. BIG PICTUREBYU: The Cougars kept it close in the first half but had no answer for Landale. Childs had trouble defending him and Luke Worthington missed most of the second half in foul trouble. BYU was a respectable 7 of 17 on 3-pointers and forced turnovers on Saint Mary's final five possessions of the first half. Saint Mary's: It clearly wasn't the cleanest of wins for coach Randy Bennett's teams, which is why Landale was so pivotal. Naar also came up big but no other Gaels player reached double figures and Saint Mary's had problems taking care of the ball - both points of emphasis by Bennett. UP NEXTBYU: The Cougars host Pacific on Saturday. Saint Mary's: The Gaels host Portland on Saturday night.)
Time: 11:00 PM EST Timing is everything. Brigham Young University was on a nine-game winning streak when the Cougars hosted Saint Mary's and lost to the Gaels in overtime on Dec 30. Sophomore guard TJ Haws scored only seven points in the first of a three-game stretch, which included an upset loss to Pacific, when he struggled. But since then, Haws has excelled and the Cougars (17-4, 6-2) have won four straight heading into Thursday's rematch at McKeon Pavilion in Moraga, Calif., with the Gaels, who are 19-2 overall and a perfect 8-0 in West Coast Conference play. Timing -- if Haws hadn't struggled in that first game, perhaps the team's records would be reversed." Teej always spends time at it, but the last couple of weeks he has made a real conscious effort to come in a little bit earlier and stay a little bit longer," Cougars head coach Dave Rose told the Salt Lake Tribune. In his last three games, Haws is shooting 59 percent (19 of 32) from the field and has made 10 of 18 from beyond the arc. During that stretch he's averaging 16.3 points and 4.3 assists per game as the Cougars are playing some of their basketball in years. Haws has taken some of the pressure off leading scorers Elijah Bryant (18.0 points) and Yoeli Childs (17.6 points)." We're a lot better team than the last time we played them," Childs told KSL.com. "We're a lot better executing on offense and defense, and I definitely think the game experience helps out a ton." Based on what the Gaels have accomplished in the past week, BYU will have little margin for error against the 16th-ranked team. Saint Mary's will be gunning for its school-record-tying 15th straight win after traveling to Spokane, Wash., and defeating Gonzaga 74-71 on Jan. 18 and beating Pacific on the road 72-69 on Saturday. The win left Gaels' coach Randy Bennett drained." I'm exhausted," he told the San Francisco Chronicle, "but I'm just pumped we were able to find a way to get that done." The Gaels impressed poll voters so much they jumped from being unranked to No. 16 in this week's AP Top 25. All-America candidate Jock Landale scored 58 points and grabbed 19 rebounds in the two games." Take nothing away; Jock is a really good player," Rose said. "He's got unbelievable skill, and he's worked hard ... but the guys playing around Jock are really, really emphatic in getting the ball to Jock." That supporting cast includes fellow Australians point guard Emmett Naar (10.9 points and 9.1 assists per game) and Calvin Hermanson (12.3 points), who can stretch the defense thanks to shooting 45 percent from 3-point range. There's no doubt, Landale is the man when it's crunch time." He's such a big presence, such a great player and such a great teammate," Gaels' forward Tanner Krebs told the San Francisco Chronicle after the Gonzaga win. "He's our leader and the head of the snake for our program." It's pretty handy to have a guy like that who is able to score pretty much every time. You can just rely on him so much." While the offense operates at peak efficiency, the defense gets better and better, and since back-to-back losses in November, the Gaels have not given up more than 73 points in a game.
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