BYU vs. Marquette: Report Card

Recap: Marquette knocks BYU out of the tournament, 88-68

LOUISVILLE, KY — BYU was unable to overcome a big deficit this time around, losing to Marquette 88-68 to end its season. Grades are in for every position group and for the team as a whole regarding today's performance.

Frontcourt

Brandon Davies played as expected, finishing with another double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds. He was quiet for stretches during the first half but stayed aggressive, leading BYU in making runs at the lead throughout the second half.

Davies again struggled from the stripe, however, hitting on just five of his 11 attempts.

Noah Hartsock had a rough start, hitting on just one of his five field goal attempts before having his first half cut short at the 9:24 mark after picking up his third foul. As expected, he played big in the second half – finishing with 15 points in what proved to be his final game as a Cougar.

The most startling stat for Hartsock was his rebounding. He didn't collect a single rebound throughout the game while letting Jae Crowder get to the glass too often.

Nate Austin was able to provide a big lift off the bench in the first half but went silent after his first couple of minutes. He finished with just two points but collected five rebounds in his five minutes of play. Grade: B

Wings

Charles Abouo took just one shot on the afternoon, which he made to finish with three points. More would be expected from one of two seniors in the tournament but Abouo went quiet.

He proved effective on the defensive end, finishing with two steals, but even his go-to stat (rebounding) was a paltry "3."

Brock Zylstra had a nice game, providing some surprising offense for the Cougars during their main run in the second half. He finished with eight points and six rebounds, giving the Cougars some much-needed energy.

DaMarcus Harrison hit on only one of his five attempts while Anson Winder went scoreless in his ten10 minutes of play. Grade: C+

Point

Matt Carlino played better and more controlled than he did against Iona, but that isn't saying much. He again struggled with his shot – hitting on just two of his 10 attempts for seven points. He also handed the ball more to Marquette than to his own team for made baskets, finishing with five turnovers to just four assists.

Carlino is a great talent and is sure to improve drastically his overall performance into next season.

Craig Cusick had a nice game – finishing with 12 points with 3-5 shooting from 3-point range. While his talent and upside are behind Carlino's, he proved to be the best BYU had to offer at the point position down the stretch of the season. Grade: B-

Overall

The Cougars came out cold and a bit confused with Marquette's physical game, building a big deficit early that they were unable to come back from. They didn't quit, however, and deserve credit for making some big runs during the second half against what was clearly a more talented opponent. Grade: B-

Email: bgurney@desnews.com

Twitter: @BrandonCGurney