Reader comments
BYU basketball: Cougars start slow, finish strong

29 comments   |   Read story

Indiana Cougar | 5:33 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
It doesn't look like the team practiced free throws during the off season. Dreadful.
LDW | 7:31 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
I am sorry, but I was not impressed with the play of the Cougars last night. Miles missed two easy layups in the first five minutes of play and didn't play vey well for a big man. Davis looked very good and was active all night. The score shouldn't even have been close with most of the starters getting alot of minutes. I hope they improve over the next few weeks, or it will be along season.
Better | 8:17 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
I'm sure it will get better as the team plays more, and the gitters leave. There were also quite a few great shots that just didn't go in, and I'm sure that will improve as well. Thanks for that being your only comment though :(
Comments continue below
Elephant in the room | 8:26 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
Cummar was THE GLUE.

Goofy as he was, he was the glue last year.

BYU will struggle against good teams until they get another glue player.

How many players on this year teams will be playing pro ball after graduation like Cummard? NONE!!!
Anonymous | 8:28 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
Give em a break. I'm chalking that one up to first game jitters and a fired up Trinity Western. Trinity was pretty physical too. Not too mention Rose played everyone on the bench, so you didn't have players really getting into a rhythm. That will all change once the regular season starts.
Re: LDW | 8:41 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
Don't push the panic button because of a slow start and off shooting. It was the first game!
Really? | 8:54 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
This was the first game of the Pre-season. Trinity West is not a bad team. The Cougs did start slow, but they played with more quickness and energy than I have seen. They are bigger this year. I have no worries. They are going to be a great team and fun to watch.
re: Elephant | 9:05 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
You really don't follow BYU basketball, do you? Who is "Cummar"? We did have a guy named Cummard and he was good but I wouldn't say he was "The Glue" since he had a bad habit of disappearing at times. Jimmer Fredette however was key for us as he was the only guy on our team who could take guys off the dribble, penetrate, and create his own shots as well as being a very good three point shooter. The team will be fine this year.
Elephant...? Glue...? | 9:19 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
That was a very poor use of "Elephant in the room" your way off. Jimmer is that player, and he also has a better chance of playing in the NBA than Lee "Cummar" as you put it. Fredette and Tavernari will carry the team on their balanced backs just fine this year. Also, in exhibition games rotations are not set and coaching is quite different than when the games count, the coach is just trying to see what he has with the new players in game situations. I believe they will be a better team this year and more balanced.
Cummard? | 9:24 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
Two years ago, Cummard was the glue. Last year, however, he was just a great player but his actual impact was actually smaller than it was in years past. Jimmer was the glue last year and will be the glue again this year. There is definitely work to be done, but hey, it could have gone worse: ask Syracuse. Or Utah last season...
Coach quotes | 9:25 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
I sure am glad Dave Rose doesn't say stuff like quest for perfection and we spend fewer hours doing our jobs because we're more efficient than other coaching staffs and basketball is only 5th in importance and our players need to execute at a higher level to achieve position mastery and we made 27 easily correctable assignment errors against Trinity Western College of Watch Repair etc. etc. blah blah blah blah blah. Bronco please watch and learn from Dave Rose's example.
jeff | 9:30 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
Same challenge as last year, BYU's big men are below par in comparison to the better teams competing in the NCAA, and take away Emery, Morgan and Lloyd, team quickness is nowhere to be found which kills them against teams with speed.
slama jama | 10:04 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
Davies down the middle slama jama brought everyone out of a comma! Haws did a reverse backward layup that got a foul too! Wow! Highlight material!!! This team would be fab if we had a 7 footer or a center that could hold their own. I hope that Rose uses Davies as the center and Haws as the shooting guard. What happened to JT and Abuo? I guess foreign lands don't help at all!!! Good luck this year! Where is Collinworth?
Ernest T. Bass | 10:46 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
All I can say is wow!! BYU is going to be so awesome this year in basketball! Year after year after year, BYU always proves why it belongs in the NCAA Tournament!! I for one can't wait for this years Tournament. It will be AWESOME!!
Cougarf@n | 11:01 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
Isn't this an exhibition game? I mean, the first half wasn't pretty by any means, but I really don't care how good or bad BYU looks at this point in the season, I just want Rose to be able to put together a winning rotation and give some of the bench guys some much needed experience before the games actually count. If the game ended close or BYU had lost it I might be a little worried, but it's not like this game counts for anything so let's keep a little perspective here.
MWC Basketball | 11:43 a.m. Nov. 6, 2009
Is really bad...
I mean when was the last time someone ever did anything special in the tournament?

Who plays in the NBA who played in the MWC (recently). (I'm talking about regular season games and more than warming the bench).

Occasionally Utah is ok, but most years everyone is trash. Winning the MWC in basketball doesn't really mean anything.

Boring players who are not any good.

Wow, Neville and Cummard made the NBDL, when that is the best thing that happens in years it is sad.

I'm surprised that anyone follows this low level of basketball.
Aaron W. | 12:18 p.m. Nov. 6, 2009
Byu looked sloppy at times, but played some decent defense. JT was chucking balls like usual. Davies and Hawes are going to be super stars. Collinsworth is still on his mission. I was a little disappointed in Abouo, I thought he'd play better. The future looks bright, Hartsock is another player that could really develope into a great player.
Bad | 3:14 p.m. Nov. 6, 2009
"MWC basketball is really bad..."

The only thing really bad is you pretending that you know anything about college basketball.
To MWC @11:43 | 3:26 p.m. Nov. 6, 2009
Weird you seem to be following it...
to earnest bass | 4:40 p.m. Nov. 6, 2009
BYU will beat your uteies like a drum both games this year. The Cougs will go to the NCAAs and may or may not win but we have a whole season to eval before we find out. The utes will be nowhere in sight come post season.
RE: Elephant in the room  | 7:18 p.m. Nov. 6, 2009
if Cummard was the glue from last year's team and that it's missing from this year's team then that bodes well for the Cougars.

The problem with the glue was it always seemed to be missing by the time the 4th quarter rolled around in big games. It also seemed to not be there in big games like MWC tourney Championship games or NCAA 1st round tournament games.

Since we don't have that "glue" anymore we won't be relying on it all year long and then suffer the affects when it disappears at key moments. Sounds like this should be a very good year.
6-19 | 10:11 p.m. Nov. 6, 2009
from the new guys is the proof you Cougies are using to proclaim them the saviors of your program.

Unless the game of basketball has changed from the days when I wore the snuggie shorts ridin' the pine on varsity, a basket is worth 2 points whether by lay-up, 15 foot jumper, or slam dunk. My coach used to prohibit dunks because they were still worth only 2 points.

Doesn't matter how much style and flair Mr Haws and Mr Davies use, if they can only hit 6-19 from the floor, the remainder of the MWC opponents will gladly let you work hard for your 2 point glory shots and continue to beat you every time you hit less than 1/3 of your shots from the floor.

Additionally, TWU is not stocked with your average MWC talent. If BYU struggled like they did against marginal talent and spent the game trying to WOW! the crowd with fancy dunks and layups trying to imitate the Harlem Globetrotters, then the rest of the MWC can breathe a sigh of relief about the lack of quality basketball being played in Provo.
That's What She Said | 10:22 p.m. Nov. 6, 2009
"Cougars start slow, finish strong"
What | 12:11 a.m. Nov. 7, 2009
They are freshman playing in their first college game and you are slamming them for not making more shots? Give them a break. Who cares if your coach wouldn't let you dunk!
Re: 6-19 | 7:28 a.m. Nov. 7, 2009
Just curious if Southwest Baptist was stocked with your average MWC talent? Its an exhibition game, everyone gets minutes to be evaluated, it just so happens that the Cougies got a win to go along with it.

I feel bad that you never got to dunk, obviously that brought back some harbored emotions, try not to let them get the best of you!
not impressed | 9:31 a.m. Nov. 7, 2009
I was really hoping for more out of Tyler Haws it seems like he has a lot of hype surrounding him but I didn't see it on Thursday. I think we all just get too excited about our local kids instead of looking at them for how they perform.
re: MWC Basketball | 10:02 a.m. Nov. 7, 2009
You asked who from the MWC is playing in the NBA? How about Shawn Marion from UNLV and Danny Granger from New Mexico, both have been All Stars. Andrew Bogut leads the Bucks. UNLV also has two centers both playing lots of minutes, Joel Anthony and Lou Amundson, as well as Marcus Banks. New Mexico also put J.R. Giddens in the league.

Just because BYU has not put a legitimate player in the league since Danny Ainge well over twenty years ago doesn't mean that other teams in the league have not had some great professionals.
BYU | 2:08 a.m. Nov. 8, 2009
struggled against Trinity Western? Are you kidding me? I thought they were supposed to be good this year. They didn't even beat TWU by 20? Good grief, the Aggies are gonna have a heyday with BYU in the Spectrum! They limited TWU to 15 points in the first half, played their freshmen the entire second half (and had them in the rotation the first half as well) and STILL won by 25 points. Jared Quayle could have beat them by himself, and was for most of the first half. See you all on December 2nd!
Go Aggies! | 11:50 p.m. Nov. 10, 2009
I completely concur, this exhibition game was supposed to be easy and a blow out. They had to fight their way to the finish. The Aggies scored 15 points before TWU put any points on the board. 44-15 halftime score.. sounds more like a blowout football game. December 2nd is going to be a fun day for the cougars in the Spectrum when they come home empty-handed.

Add your comment

Comments are monitored. Any comments found to be abusive, offensive, off-topic, misrepresentative, more than 200 words or containing URLs will not be posted.

Words Remaining

E-mail address: For internal use only. We may want to contact you to publish your comment (not your e-mail address) in the newspaper or for a separate story idea.

Related content
previousnext

Latest comments

Ask just women of childbearing age do they want to decide their reproductive...

Letters: Say heck, not gosh

On behalf of the millions of people worldwide who worship the devine and...

That happened approximately 9 years ago.

Can BYU throw vs. Air Force?

For being a terrible program, Bronco still has one more win than Kyle...go...

3A: Juan Diego wins title

wow, that was a game. #56 for Hurricane seemed to be in on almost every...

That was the most amazing drive and play I have ever seen in high school...

Huntsman blasts media over trip

for stepping up and doing the right thing in challenging portions of the...

A majority of us are apposed to abortion, but we are in even greater...

"Speed kills. Speed beats size everytime. " haha, everytime eh? If that...

Can BYU throw vs. Air Force?

Air Force 35 BYU 21

Advertisements