BYU vs Oklahoma State recap: Cougars snap the losing streak and send the Cowboys home

Just when the Cougars seemed dead in the water, they took down a bottom-feeding Big 12 team at home. That's right--they totally redeemed themselves! BYU basketball handled business in the Mariott Center on Tuesday night when the Oklahoma State Cowboys moseyed into Provo on a 9-6 record.

The Marriott Center has always been a brutal environment, and they helped lift the Cougars to their second double-digit victory in Big 12 play.

Improving to 11-5, BYU stands before a steep cliff face, with the giants of the Big 12 country dominate the lands. Roaming and pressing their massive footprint into the ever-fertile soil, Kevin Young may have trouble when planting his crops for the March harvest.

That is, unless the positive trends we witnessed in this battle continue to incline.

Questionable officiating (for both teams) aside, this was a game that went BYU's way for the entire first half, stretching into the first 7 minutes of the second. A sudden Oklahoma State run saw the Cowboys cut the 20-point halftime deficit to a meager 3. Moans of "here we go again" filled the atmosphere as Kevin Young's once-mighty lead was whittled to a splinter.

Until Egor Demin lit the spark that his teammates stoked into a wildfire. A fastbreak steal and score followed by a rhythm three-ball set Provo ablaze.

The shots were *finally* falling for these Cougars, as they finished the game hitting 42.9% of their long-range attempts, and over 50% from the field. Knell was fired out of a cannon in this one, knocking down 4 for 9 from deep and leading all scorers with 18 points--surprisingly getting it done from all over the court.

Kanon Catchings was taken out of this game early with a poor flagrant foul and three personals limiting his floor time to single digits once again. He still needs to find a better headspace to get back into Kevin Young's rotation, and I believe he's just about there.

The Cougars keep the battle in the Beehive State this weekend, but this time in Salt Lake City as they take on the Utes for the first time as conference foes in over a decade. A must-win for BYU for countless reasons.

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