BYU basketball pulls past Oklahoma State to snap 3-game losing skid

PROVO — As if someone yelled "daybreak" midway through the second half Tuesday night, BYU men's basketball went from a team full of Bucky Barnes to a group of Winter Soldiers.

Trevin Knell poured in 18 points with five rebounds, and Dallin Hall added a season-high 14 points on a perfect 4-for-4 shooting with three assists as BYU snapped a three-game losing skid with a 85-69 win over Oklahoma State in front of 16,457 fans at the Marriott Center.

Egor Demin supplied 10 points, eight assists, five rebounds, two steals and two blocked shots for the Cougars, who assisted on 18-of-27 made field goals. Keba Keita had 10 points and eight rebounds, and Richie Saunders scored 12 for the Cougars (11-5, 2-3 Big 12).

"That's definitely a team win," said Demin, who emerged from a scoring slumber to finish in double figures for only the second time in seven games. "This is what we were trying to come to, just to be able to have each others' back all the time. Defense and offense, playing as a team as a whole; it's not that complicated, but at the same time pretty hard."

Jamyron Keller and Bryce Thompson each scored 15 points to lead Oklahoma State, and Abou Ousmane added 13 points and seven rebounds for the Cowboys (9-7, 1-4 Big 12).

Mawot Mag earned his first start for the Cougars, scoring the game's first bucket and helping BYU to a 17-6 advantage early with a 13-3 run that included a pair of 3-pointers by Knell and Saunders in the game's opening seven minutes.

The Cougars held Oklahoma State to 25.8% shooting before the break, including 4-of-11 from deep. BYU added five 3-pointers, including Demin finding Hall in the corner to lift BYU to a 29-15 advantage with 7:30 left in the half as the Cougars shot 60% from the field to take a 46-26 halftime lead.

Knell had 13 points including three 3-pointers to lead BYU before the break, and Demin added a game-high five assists with four rebounds.

But it started on the defensive end with a BYU team that led by as much as 27 after an 18-1 run and outrebounded the Cowboys 23-13, poured in 20 points in the paint to just 8 for Oklahoma State, and scored 11 points off eight turnovers.

"I think his intensity is really infectious for our group," BYU coach Kevin Young said of Mag, who finished with 6 points, two rebounds and two steals on 2-of-5 shooting. "And, offensively, he knows who he is; he's a guy who doesn't try to play outside of his strengths.

"I think he's been really good for us of late," he added.

Keller cracked the code to start the second half, connecting on three straight 3-pointers to pull the Cowboys within 51-41 in less than five minutes.

The sophomore from St. Matthews, South Carolina, converted one of the Cougars' five turnovers into a transition bucket moments later, and Bryce Thompson capped a 22-2 run from the free-throw line as Oklahoma State rallied all the way back within 51-48.

Hall broke the drought with a 3 moments later, then pushed the Cougars' lead back to 59-50 with his third triple. That was part of a 16-4 run to stretch the lead back to double figures on Dawson Baker's 3-pointer with 10 minutes left as BYU began to pull away for good.

"I think it really showed who Dallin is: one of the hardest workers, biggest competitors on our team," Knell said of his teammate from Plain City. "He deserves those shots that go in.

"Dallin's a very calming force, just like Fouss and Egor when he has the ball in his hands."

Oklahoma State returns home after a two-game road trip that included Saturday's 83-62 loss at Utah to host Colorado this weekend.

BYU is back on the road Saturday to play their in-state rival Utes in the first in-conference rivalry game since 2011. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. MST on ESPN+.

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