Following a second-half scuffle in which Cummard and Tavernari tangled briefly with ISU's Donnie Carson, the Bengal crowd loudly booed Cummard every time he touched the ball — which just added motivation, the BYU captain said.

"When your back's against the wall and everyone's against you, it's a good feeling ... especially when you walk away with a victory," Cummard said.

Coming out loaded with energy the Bengals took a 12-6 behind two treys from local product Matt Stucki. But the Cougars quickly quieted the home fans and tamed the Bengals with an 11-0 run. A running bank shot by Cummard tied the game 12-12, after which a 3-pointer up top by Tavernari and a follow-up break-away dunk by the junior from Brazil gave BYU the lead for good.

After an Emery steal and layup put the Cougars ahead by eight, the Bengals cut the margin to 26-22 at the six-minute mark on a driving basket by Morgan. The next three minutes, however, belonged to BYU as the Cougars ran off 14 straight to stretch the lead to 18 at 40-22. The run featured 3-pointers by Cummard and Fredette, two reverse layups by Tavernari and a hammer dunk down the lane by Chris Miles.

Despite BYU's big lead, Idaho State was able to take the half-time momentum by scoring the final six points of the opening half. But the Bengals got no closer than 11 in the second half. Even after the scuffle at the 15-minute mark, the Cougars retained their composure and slowly pulled away. In fact, Rose liked how his young team responded to the adversity.

"It reminded us of a tough league game in the middle of November and (winning a game like that) is a good sign," Rose said.