BYU basketball head coach Dave Rose lost his first home opener when he started coaching at BYU in 2005 but has since won the last six home openers. Last year’s season opener, BYU defeated Tennessee State 81–66.
Rose has also led the Cougars to eight straight 20-win seasons and eight straight postseason appearances, eight straight seasons with 10-plus conference victories and four straight seasons with a postseason victory.
So far, the Cougars have had victories over Colorado College (94–59) and Alaska Anchorage (99–68) in exhibition play.
Last December the Cougars defeated the Wildcats 78–68 in the Marriott Center. BYU enters the series leading the Wildcats 28–10.
Projected starters for the Cougars include guards Matt Carlino, Kyle Collinsworth and Tyler Haws with Nate Austin and true freshman Eric Mika in the frontcourt.
The Wildcats have seven returning players from last year’s roster and are led by Davion Berry, who averages 15.2 points per game. He will be joined by teammates Kyle Tresnak, Jordan Richardson, Joel Bolomby and Jeremy Senglin.
Other in-state opponents include Utah State and Utah. The Cougars play Utah State at the EnergySolutions Arena on Nov. 30 and will visit Utah on Dec. 14.
The tipoff for the opener is at 7 p.m. and will be televised live on BYUtv and broadcast live on the Cougar IMG Sports Network on KSL Newsradio 102.7 FM and 1160 AM.
