×
×
homepage logo
SUBSCRIBE

Freshman guard Dallin Hall earning place in BYU rotation

By Darnell Dickson - | Nov 12, 2022

Nate Edwards/BYU Photo

BYU freshman guard Dallin Hall defends Idaho State's Maleek Arington during a men's college basketball game at the Marriott Center on Monday, November 7, 2022.

BYU freshman guard Dallin Hall has an uncanny impression of Korg from the movie “Thor: Ragnorok,” cracking up the media on Wednesday with a few lines of the character’s lilting New Zealand accent.

Oh, another thing: The Cougars would not have won Monday’s 60-56 nail biter against Idaho State without him.

Hall, not Korg.

Hall’s first game in a BYU uniform produced modest stats with four points and four assists in 18 minutes. But those numbers don’t begin to approach how important Hall was in BYU’s victory.

“I thought he did a terrific job,” Cougar coach Mark Pope said. “I was very pleased with him defensively. He also helped us make a little sense out of the nonsense of our offense. He’s a competitor with a big heart. That’s what we recruited him. He’s going to be a really good player.”

Hall had a stellar career at Fremont High School, leading the Silverwolves to a state championship his senior season in 2020, when he was named Utah’s Mr. Basketball after averaging 22.6 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game. Hall served a church mission to Fresno, Calif., and returned this spring.

He was expected to play backup minutes at point guard to grad transfer Rudi Williams. But Williams struggled in his BYU debut (2 of 9 shooting, four turnovers) and Hall got the call. He steadied the Cougar offense down the stretch and made two huge defensive plays. His double team out of the press caused a turnover, which led to a 3-pointer by Gideon George to cut the Idaho State lead to 53-51 with 2:39 to play.

With 45 seconds to play, the Cougars had the ball down 55-53. ISU’s Maleek Arington stole a bad pass and streaked down the floor in transition. Hall hustled after Arington and forced him to miss a layup, which was rebounded by Spencer Johnson. BYU went on to tie the game on a pair of Fousseyni Traore free throws with 26 seconds remaining and won it on Johnson’s clutch 3-pointer with 10 seconds left.

“I feel extremely grateful to Coach Pope for trusting me in that situation,” Hall said. “Ultimately my confidence is kept at the same level not matter what happens on the floor. It’s really fun for me to learn from Rudi. He has that experience as a grad senior. He doesn’t hold anything back, he just shares it with me, whether it’s stuff I need to work on or stuff I’m doing good. I’m constantly trying to pick his brain to get better. That was a huge thing for me getting back from my mission.”

SCOUTING REPORT: The Cougars were in for a big test late Friday night with a trip to Viejas Arena against No. 19 San Diego State. Since the game didn’t start until 8:30 p.m. MT, it was just underway at press deadline.

BYU has actually won its past two meetings with the Aztecs: 66-60 in the Marriott Center last year and 72-62 in San Diego in 2020, albeit in an empty Viejas Arena due to COVID-19.

“They have some transfers and they are a veteran team,” Pope said. “They are big and physical. I would prefer if it was Game 10, especially with this new young group, but we know this season is about us getting better and growing. This group doesn’t know what the highest level of basketball is about. We’re going to find out in Game 2.

“I like that we get to use this game as a measuring stick. We have every expectation of going down there and coming out of this with, ‘Yep, this is what it looks like, this is what it feels like’ and that’s where we’ve got to go.”

San Diego State returns leading scorer Matt Bradley (16.9 points per game last season) and shot-blocker Nathan Mensah. Coach Brian Dutcher has brought in some quality transfers in 5-10 guard Darrion Trammell (Seattle U) and 6-9 Jaedon LeDee. The Aztecs opened the season by bashing Cal State Fullerton 80-57, with Trammell scoring 18 points.

“It’ll be a dog fight for sure,” Hall said. “They are definitely going to try and punch us in the face early so we’re going to have to bring it and make sure they don’t out-tough us. It’s a good learning opportunity to see where we’re at. It gives us an opportunity to prove ourselves early. For me, I always wanted to play against the best.”

Notes: BYU leads the overall series 50-26. … The Cougars have won the past two meetings. … BYU is 19-18 against the Aztecs in San Diego. … Brian Dutcher is 120-40 (75%) in five seasons. … Four Aztecs scored in double figures in Monday’s 80-57 victory against Cal State Fullerton.

Newsletter

Join thousands already receiving our daily newsletter.

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)