It sure seems like Trent Plaisted is never going to get healthy. He's battled a cold and now a wicked case of flu-like symptoms that nearly knocked him out of Wednesday's game at Air Force.

"I don't know what's wrong with me but, hey, if we keep winning, I'll be the sacrificial lamb and keep getting sick," Plaisted said after the 69-53 win.

Plaisted was aided inside by Chris Miles and Chris Collinsworth, but he still started -- and even scored BYU's first basket. He got a quick notion that maybe he'd become Michael Jordan, who overcame flu-like symptoms to conquer the Utah Jazz in the NBA Finals a decade ago. But after that basket, Plaisted felt pretty darn human -- and puny.

"There's 38 more minutes, I don't know how I'm going to make it through," Plaisted joked of his thoughts.

He finished with nine points and as many rebounds in 19 minutes. Not bad for a guy who "swore I was on my deathbed" two days prior.

"(Plaisted) has a lot of fight and heart, and he played well," teammate Lee Cummard said.

BYU head coach Dave Rose said Plaisted did OK in the team's earlier walk-through, until the Cougars started going full-court.

They gave him a few more hours, in the comfort and solitude of his own hotel room. He ate a little bit of bland pasta (no sauce, just a little salt) and some sports drink and fruit. He felt a little better during the game.

"But one time I took an elbow in the stomach, and I thought I was going to throw up," Plaisted said.

• Oh, to be young: Rose couldn't have been more pleased with his young players, who showed some poise in an environment that isn't typically gracious to outside inexperience.

Jimmer Fredette had 10 points in 24 minutes, on 4-of-10 shooting (2-for-6 from 3-point range) and along with Mike Loyd Jr. played sturdy defense at the guard position. The one play to find fault with Fredette was a foul on a 3-point attempt from Tim Anderson as the shot clock wound in BYU's favor.

Anderson made all three free throws to cut BYU's lead to 20-16. Otherwise, Fredette often came in handy as Sam Burgess fought foul trouble all night.

Loyd played six minutes and recorded an assist and turnover, while sophomore center Miles -- who spent the last two seasons on an LDS mission and hadn't been with the team since the infamous Clune Arena drubbing of 2005 -- played eight minutes and had no turnovers (he had four at home against New Mexico) and three rebounds.

At one time, about midway through the second half, the Cougars employed freshman forward Collinsworth (two points and three rebounds in 17 minutes), along with Loyd and Fredette to accompany Jonathan Tavernari and Cummard.

"And it was a pretty critical part of the game," Rose said.

• Gotta make the short ones: Air Force coach Jeff Reynolds lamented several missed "bunnies" -- close-range shots, particularly in the first half, which could've changed the game and its course of momentum. BYU led 29-24 at halftime and is 15-2 when going to intermission with the lead.

"We have to execute and score the ball better," the first-year coach Reynolds said. "We missed seven layups and two dunks. We didn't do a good job of finishing. We need to show some toughness in these next two games (at TCU, at San Diego State) and continue to play with the same effort."

• Tip-ins: Air Force lost back-to-back games to the same team for the first time since 2002-03 (Wyoming). ... The 16-point loss is AFA's largest at home since a 20-point loss to Tenn. Tech (64-44) on Dec. 29, 2001. ... BYU (5-1) is off to its best start in league since 2002-03. ... Plaisted (1,143 career points) is 26th all-time at BYU. He is one of 11 Cougars to have 1,000 points and 600 rebounds.