Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- BYU basketball struggles with road games, free throws, and close finishes.
- Coach Young remains optimistic, emphasizing the team's competitive nature despite recent losses.
- BYU aims to improve standings with upcoming games, needing confidence and strategic adjustments.
PROVO — Winless in true road games more than halfway through the season does not bode well for the BYU men's basketball team.
But the problems don't stop away from the Marriott Center. The Cougars also don't make free throws consistently and aren't good at finishing close games.
Add up all the negative verbs in the three prior sentences and there's only one conclusion: The season, to date, has been disappointing. With 14 games remaining in the Big 12 slate, BYU still can reverse course, but time is slipping away.
Scheduling mostly inferior competition in Kevin Young's rookie season as a college head coach, BYU rolled through the first 11 games without much a test. The only blemishes were in an overtime loss to nationally-ranked Mississippi and an embarrassing performance at Providence.
Reality hit hard shortly after conference play began. Following a blowout win against an Arizona State team that is sinking at 1-5 in the Big 12, the Cougars have lost four of their last five games and could soon see the season slip away.
At the same time, the Cougars can also point to the fact that three of the losses have come by a combined 10 points. But the recurring issues can't be rationalized by incorrectly thinking they are one play or two away from a much different record.
Right on cue, after BYU lost to Utah by 1 point in overtime last week, Young found the positive spin.
"We feel like we are right there," he said during Monday's media availability. "We have come up short too much. I think the fact that we are in all these games — we have given ourselves a chance to win all these games — should give our guys confidence."
But until the players get it done, the good vibes might have to be more of the "fake it till you make it" kind of confidence. On the flip side, it's easy to argue doubt can rival the belief.
Starting with the most recent loss, BYU continues to its abysmal free-throw shooting by making 4-of-10 attempts. Far from the only culprit, sixth-year senior Trevin Knell missed the front end of a one-and-one at the line that could have tied or given BYU the lead late in the five-minute extra period.
In the 5-point loss to Texas Tech at home, the Cougars missed nine free throws. Careful not to blame any loss on the officiating, Young could cite the ridiculous imbalance that had Utah take 22 more free throws.
They've also struggled in late-game situations on offense, often looking unsure and taking ill-advised shots. The game plan often involves 3-point shots or watching undersized Fousseyni Traore, who is shooting 61.8%, try to score in the post.
Confidence often is a fickle, if not necessary, ingredient to success. Kanon Catchings and Dallin Hall, who are each shooting 39% from the field, need to start making more shots to boost their respective confidence.
"When losses stack up things naturally get a little bit tighter," Young said. "I want our guys to know how confident we are in them."
Saddled in a three-way tie for 11th place in the 16-team conference, the Cougars can begin to climb up the standings by beating bottom-dweller Colorado in Boulder before playing three of the next four games at home. It is still early enough that only two games separate BYU from fourth place.
"There is a lot of parity in what is going on, and we are in the thick of it. We've got just find a way to string some (wins) together and put ourselves in position (to contend)," said Young, who continues to fiddle with playing rotations. "Because of all the things I just said, I think our guys should have confidence in that, and I think that allows them to play not uptight."
