BYU basketball: Cougars outlast Idaho State in potential trap game

BYU basketball is now 10-2 on the season after defeating Idaho State on Thursday night in the Marriott Center.

The Cougars’ lead was never really in question, but the Bengals wouldn’t go away either.

An Elijah Bryant 3-pointer with 15 minutes remaining in the second half stretched the BYU lead to 20, and the Cougars wouldn’t let Idaho State to get within 13 for the remainder of the night.

Yoeli Childs led the way for BYU basketball, scoring 20 points and grabbing eight rebounds. TJ Haws, Payton Dastrup and Bryant each added 14 points of their own, and BYU won 85-71.

The Cougars shot 58 percent from the field, 50 percent from 3-point range and 76 percent from the free-throw line. Next up is another home contest, where the Cougars will host winless Texas Southern. After that game, BYU will begin West Coast Conference play with a two-game road swing.

But really, all eyes are on the December 30 matchup with the St. Mary’s Gaels.

Three Things We Learned

1. No trap games here. There was talk of this matchup being a trap game for BYU basketball. Sandwiched between the Holy War game and a post-finals game against Texas Southern, this Idaho State team had a chance to sneak out of the Marriott Center with a victory. But the Cougars weren’t having it.

2. Yoeli Childs is fine. After missing a lot of crunch time against the Utes, there were concerns about Childs’ legs. Everyone can rest easy now. The big man was just dealing with cramps, and it looked like he’d never skipped a beat on Thursday night.

3. We’re going streaking. BYU basketball is currently riding a seven-game winning streak. And assuming the Cougars aren’t upset, that win streak will be at a full 10 games by the time BYU squares off with St. Mary’s.