BYU Personnel

*#20 Spencer Johnson 6’5″ Sr .- 11ppg, 6rpg

• Solid three-level scorer;
• Good three-point shooter;
• Good at attacking the rim;
• Will post up if he feels like he has a mismatch;
• Flops every time someone screens him, and if someone is near him on his shot, MUST be smart around him…refs fall for that nonsense too often.

 
*#2 Jaxson Robinson 6’7″ Sr. – 14ppg, 2rpg(Arkansas)

• Outstanding shooter; Can make it from DEEP;
• Can shoot off the bounce.

 
*#30 Dallin Hall 6’4″ So. – 9ppg, 3rpg, 5apg

• Point Guard;
• Does a good job distributing the ball;
• Outstanding three-point shooter; Can make from DEEP;
• Not a superior free-throw shooter.

 
*#50 Aly Khalifa 6’11” Jr. – 6ppg, 4rpg, 3apg (Charlotte)

• Talented/very big post player;
• Great passer;
• Solid three-point shooter;
• Nice touch in the paint;
• Sneaky athletic;
• Doesn’t leave the paint on defense if his man can’t score from outside;

 
*#15 Richie Saunders 6’5″ So. – 10ppg, 4rpg

• Solid off the bounce;
• Really good at cutting to the basket;
• Great finisher at the rim;
• Capable three-point shooter;

 
#0 Noah Waterman 6’11” Sr. – 11ppg, 7rpg (Detroit Mercy)

• Missed last game vs. Texas Tech with a concussion; Unclear if he will play against UH. It is a big loss if he cannot play;
• Will likely start over Saunders if he clears concussion protocol;
• Capable three-point shooter;
• Good defender and rebounder.

 
#21 Trevin Knell 6’5″ RS Jr. – 13ppg, 4rpg

• Phenomenal three-point shooter; Ranked #4 in the nation in 3pt%, shooting 47.12% (49/104) from 3;

 
#45 Fousseyni Traore – 6’6″ Jr. 8ppg, 5rpg.

• Big body/post player;
• Really good around the basket;
• Great passer on cuts;
• Solid offensive-rebounder.

 
#4 Atiki Ally Atika 6’10” Jr. – 5ppg, 4rpg.

• Long/athletic forward;
• Solid offensive rebounder;
• Outstanding shot blocker.

 
#12- Townsend Tripple 6’8″ Fr. – 2ppg, 1rpg

• Doesn’t play a ton;
• Capable three-point shooter.

Keys to Victory

1. Find their shooters in transition! BYU loves to shoot the three in transition. It is imperative to get back quickly on defense and locate their shooters.
2. Can’t let them cut back door! When Khalifa catches at the top of the key, they want to cut to the basket. UH must always see and play between their man and the ball, not allowing BYU to get back-door basket cuts.
3. Keep the boards clean. BYU does a great job of rebounding on both ends. UH does as well. It will be critical to keep the boards clean and not give them extra opportunities on offense.
4. Pressure Khalifa. He makes them go on offense with his passing ability. The UH bigs need to make it difficult for him to see open-cutters. He likes to push off when he’s pressured, so maybe the Coogs can pick up a couple of cheap offensive fouls on him.
5. Offense vs Defense. Something will have to give. BYU is one of the best-scoring teams in the country, averaging 85.3 points per game. Houston is THE best scoring defense in the country, only allowing 51 points per game. They say “defense travels,” and Coogs need the effort from the UCF game to win this one on the road! Give me UH in a very close win!