Teams may fear playing Y. in Provo

PROVO — When No. 9 Michigan State visits EnergySolutions Arena Saturday to play No. 20 BYU, it's part of a new strategy in college basketball to attract name schools into battling one another on neutral courts.

A year ago, the Cougars played Michigan State on a neutral court at the Palace of Auburn Hills. It was part of a two-game series between the Cougars and Spartans and only came about because Michigan State liked the idea of playing in NBA arenas for both games.

Does that mean Big Ten, Big 12, ACC, Big 12 and other so-called BCS conferences are weary of home-and-home arrangements to places like Provo's Marriott Center? Absolutely.

Scheduling home-and-homes with so-called big-name schools is one tough sell. The Cougars have won 35 straight at home, the nation's second-longest current home win streak. When BYU calls such teams and talks home-and-home, they politely decline.

"When you schedule some of these schools, it's far easier to get them to play you in this kind of situation than on a home court," said BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe. "This is a very good deal for both programs and an arrangement they liked."

The Spartans come to Salt Lake City with a 7-1 mark, the only loss coming to No. 1 UCLA. Conversely, the Cougars have lost to North Carolina, ranked No. 1 at the time.

BYU had similar arrangements playing Oklahoma State in the Delta Center in 2004 and Stanford in Las Vegas — plus other tournaments such as the one the Cougars split with North Carolina and Louisville in Las Vegas.

Holmoe and head coach Dave Rose called it a "competitive strategy" in scheduling major college basketball these days. Holmoe has even discussed with Utah athletic director Chris Hill the possibility of having a MWC vs. WAC or MWC vs. Big 10 or ACC challenge in EnergySolutions Arena someday where Utah and BYU would not play one another but would stage a doubleheader against the other leagues.

So far there are no solid plans to pull it off.

Next year BYU will play Utah State in ESA.

"I think it makes sense," said Holmoe of neutral court games. "It's fun, the players like to play on an NBA floor and the location gives fans who are not in Provo a chance to see us play closer to where they live. The afternoon time is also a positive. We like it," said Holmoe.

The Cougars expect a big showing from fans in Salt Lake City, plus Bountiful, Layton, Ogden and other areas of the state. Student ticket sales were made available on Wednesday.

When the Cougars defeated Oklahoma State in the Delta Center back in 2004, the game drew a crowd of more than 16,000. Earlier this week, the Michigan State-BYU game had ticket sales of more than 14,000 by midweek.

The lower bowl is sold out and now tickets are available for the other levels of the arena.

Holmoe said he's found the a game between two ranked opponents not only attracts BYU fans but also those who are fans simply of college basketball.

"They may not come down to Provo to see BYU play, but they will show up and see a game like this."

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BYU vs. Michigan St.

2 p.m.

Saturday at EnergySolutions Arena

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E-mail: dharmon@desnews.com