The Holy War rivalry between BYU and Utah added another thrilling chapter Saturday night inside the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City. In the end, the Runnin’ Utes came from behind for a thrilling 73-72 victory over the Cougars in front of more than 15,000 fans.
For Utah, the win marked their third consecutive victory and gave the team a lot of momentum in what is considered the toughest conference in all of college basketball. The win also cut BYU’s lead in the overall series to 134-131.
For BYU, it was another gut-wrenching loss in what has been a frustrating season. Despite entering the year with high hopes and a roster loaded with top recruits, the Cougars went from being Big 12 contenders to a program that may not even make the NIT tournament this year.
Utah forward Ezra Ausar led Utah with a career-high 26 points, shooting 11-of-15 from the field. Hunter Erickson played a pivotal role down the stretch, scoring the Utes’ final six points. Erickson finished with nine points, while Lawson Lovering added 13 for Utah (11-6, 3-3 Big 12).
With Utah trailing late in the game, Erickson, a 92% free-throw shooter, drained a 3-pointer and then, after a layup by BYU’s Richie Saunders, made one of two free throws to pull Utah within a point with 47 seconds remaining. Ausar then stole the ball from Saunders, setting up Erickson to drive the lane, draw a foul, and hit two free throws with 13.2 seconds left to give the Utes the lead for good.
BYU (11-6, 2-4) had two chances to win, however, Dawson Baker missed a jumper in the lane with 6.2 seconds left in the game. Luckily the for the Cougars the ball went out of bounds off a Utah player which gave BYU another chance.
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Trevin Knell was fouled on the next play, however the super senior missed the first of a 1-and-1 free-throw attempt. Utah forward Keanu Dawes then stepped up and missed two free throws on the other end to give BYU a chancew to win the game. Freshman sensation Egor Demin grabbed the rebound and went coast to coast, however, his jumped at the buzzer missed, giving the Utes the victory.
BYU, which had defeated Oklahoma State 85-69 earlier in the week, has now dropped four of its last five games. Fousseyni Traore and Richie Saunders each scored 16 points for the Cougars, with Traore’s offensive rebound and putback with 8.9 seconds left in regulation forcing overtime.
The Cougars remain winless on the road this season, and their struggles away from Provo extend back to February 2024, when they last won a road game, defeating No. 7 Kansas 76-68.
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