BYU responds to Delaware's hot start by unleashing the dragon, catching fire

BYU basketball, fresh off two wins and a dominant romp through an overmatched Holy Cross team, lured a second victim into their Marriott Center web: the Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens. Delaware had just lost to Division II Wilmington and approached the Cougars' trap down three of their original starters thanks to injury.

This game had 'blowout' written all over it leading up to its onset. And then the ball was tipped, and Delaware punched the 7th-ranked shark in the nose.

Opening with a 13-2 run and red-hot shooting, Delaware played fast, aggressive, and pesky in every moment of play. On offense, the Hens overcame BYU's trapping, swarming defense by making the extra pass and knocking through an absurd 46.2% of their threes in the opening 20. The Blue Hens were red hot, even banking in off-balance step-through three pointers as the shot clock expired. Rob Wright III hit BYU's first three-pointer of the night on the team's 12th attempt. BYU had scored just once from long range as halftime commenced.

At the 13:14 mark in the first half, the visitors led 17-4. Delaware held to their lead through the halftime break, clinging to a 37-34 advantage as BYU's offense began to make up the difference and span the gap. Realization had already set in, however, that the Cougars had been caught looking ahead to their next matchup with 3rd-ranked UConn this weekend.

In the second half, however, BYU unleashed Richie Saunders, a basketball dragon, and it was flame on. The ball caught the net 11 times in the second half, with Saunders' team-leading six triples -- all arriving in the second half. Saunders lives, ladies and gentlemen. May his ascent to the All-Big 12 first team be glorious and unimpeded.

It's time to talk about Robert Wright III. His control of the basketball is unmatched -- truly breathtaking. Every dribble was a yo-yo's sling, and no matter how violent the crossover, nor how dizzying the spin move, Wright was in his bag as he carried the scoring load for the Cougars as the offense sputtered. His engine does not stall, nor does it relent no matter how steep the climb. This is exactly the type of point guard a championship basketball team requires, and BYU's got a gem in Wright.

Together, Saunders and Wright led the team with 26 points each -- a career high for Wright.

The peak of this contest, of course, came courtesy of AJ Dybantsa, who tallied 18 points of his own highlighted by what I will affectionately dub the 'back-to-back rack attack' (patent pending). Finding an open lane to the rim and flushing the rock through got the crowd on its feet. Following up on the very next play with a put-back slam.

He is an unfamiliar beast. An animal all his own. BYU basketball lost its identity in the first half of this one, but the 85-68 final score is far more indicative of the pure dominance Kevin Young's team is capable of producing.

Up next, a weekend clash with the UConn Huskies.