1 / 2

BYU guard Dallin Hall, left, and Houston guard Mylik Wilson dive for a loose ball during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in Houston, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025.

Ashley Landis, AP Photo

2 / 2

Brigham Young guard Trevin Knell (21) shoots against Houston guard Mylik Wilson (8) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Houston, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025.

Ashley Landis, AP Photo

❮ ❯

BYU men’s basketball coach Kevin Young said he doesn’t like to make a big deal about whether his team is playing at home or on the road.

Maybe he should.

The blue Cougars got trounced on the road for the second time this season, No. 14 Houston bludgeoning them 86-55 at the Fertitta Center on Saturday.

The last time BYU played a true road game, it got routed by Providence 83-64 on Dec. 3. But in that one, the blue Cougars looked competitive for at least part of the game. By contrast, Houston never trailed and led by as many as 34 points in a laugher of a second half.

“There’s no way to sugar-coat it, they kicked out butts pretty much in every way,” BYU coach Kevin Young said during his post-game interview on BYU Radio.

Leading 39-22 at half, Houston made six of its first seven 3-pointers and ran away with the lead, pushing out to its largest advantage, 34 points (78-44) with 5:14 to play. The red Cougars made 11 of 18 (61%) from beyond the arc in the second half and finished 16 of 34 (47%).

Houston came into the game as the top team in college basketball in scoring defense (54.6) and opponent’s field goal percentage (33%) and flexed its defensive muscles all game long. BYU turned the ball over six times in the first eight minutes and 15 times in the game, looking tentative and never finding any offensive rhythm. The red Cougars outscored the blue Cougars 24-5 on points off turnovers and outrebounded the Big 12’s top rebounding team 37-24 with 15 offensive boards.

Houston has now won 30 straight games inside the Fertitta Center for the nation’s longest active winning streak.

It was BYU’s worst Big 12 loss since joining the league for 2023-24 and biggest margin of defeat since a 33-point loss to No. 2 Gonzaga (90-57) in 2022.

Emanuel Sharp paced Houston (10-3 overall, 2-0 Big 12) with 18 points, including 4 of 8 from the 3-point line. Terrance Arceneaux came off the bench to add 15 points, making 4 of 5 from distance. Seven different red Cougars made at least one 3-pointer.

Trevin Knell was 4 of 6 from the 3-point line and was the only double-digit scorer for BYU with 12 points. Richie Saunders, who scored a career-high 30 points in Tuesday’s win against Arizona State, had nine points on 3 of 8 from the field but just 1 of 5 from beyond the arc.

The first half was a disaster for the blue Cougars, who finished with more turnovers (10) than field goals (eight). The level of athleticism and physicality by Houston’s defense overwhelming BYU and the home team dominated in every category. The most frightening numbers? A 20-12 advantage in rebounding (with ten offensive boards) and a 17-3 lead in points off turnovers.

Understandably, BYU trailed by 17 at halftime.

“It was just from right out of the gate,” Young said. “That’s the thing for me that was frustrating. A lot of the stuff that we tried to spend the majority of our prep time on, I didn’t think there was very much carry over to start the game. SO we fell into their traps, both literally and figuratively, in terms of what their MO is. That was the most disappointing part, because I thought we were going to be a bit more decisive offensively. We were on our heels quite a bit.”

The blue Cougars opened the second half with a 3-pointer from Dallin Hall to trim the deficit to 14 points, but that would be as close as they could get. The red Cougars rained in 3-pointers against an undisciplined defense and when Sharp beat the shot clock with a 28-foot, fade-away triple, the home team claimed a 66-36 lead with 10:14 to play.

“Defensively, it was exactly what we thought it would be,” Young sad. “I thought our ball movement was poor. We got two on the ball and then we held it. When you do that against a long, athletic team that played with multiple effort, it can be tough to score.”

BYU (10-3, 1-1) gets a chance to respond with a home game against Texas Tech at the Marriott Center on Tuesday. The Red Raiders routed Utah 93-65 in Salt Lake City on Saturday.