The Brigham Young Cougars made their 6th straight NCAA tournament, by winning their first four game over Iona they made their 6th straight field of 64. That's how the positive thinkers will view their postseason. They'll overlook the 20 point loss to 3 seed Marquette today in Louisville, Kentucky. In a personal note this will be the only time I mention that this game was played at the disgustingly named "KFC Yum! Center", naming rights have gone insane.
Marquette lead this one from the get go thanks to a great game from Big East player of the year Jae Crowder. He led the game in points with 25, rebounds with 16, and steals with 5. Brandon Davies had another strong game for the Cougars with a team high 19 points, 11 rebounds, and 2 blocks. His performances in these past two games have increased exponentially my respect for Brigham Young University's decision to suspend him for last year's big dance. Despite this being a losing effort, Davies has done his best to make up for his missed time. He's going to be a force in the WCC next year, especially with Robert Sacre and Rob Jones having graduated.
For a few minutes early in the second half, down by 13, the Cougars looked capable of making another amazing comeback. The Golden Eagles scored only 1 point over the first 4:15. Brigham Young didn't make the effort that they needed to though, scoring only 5 points within that span to cut the lead to 7 at 43-50. This was a game of droughts for the Cougars. Down by only 11 with 3:13 left to play they would score only one more point, and then were held scoreless for the last 2:51. During those closing minutes Marquette did not let up. The Golden Eagles must have watched the not only the Cougars second half comeback, but also the Western Kentucky closing minutes comeback, in Dayton. Marquette blew the lead up to 20 by the time the final buzzer sounded.
This is the end of the 2011-2012 road for Brigham Young. Noah Hartsock and Charles Abouo played their last game for the Cougars. While it was a loss, a fate all but 4 teams will suffer (NCAA, NIT, CBI and CIT winners avoid that fate) they leave a legacy of winning. Abouo passed Jimmer Fredette for 1st place on the career wins list with 113 (nobody outside of Provo would think that's possible) on Tuesday and Hartsock moved into 3rd with 108. Abouo played in every single game of his career. Best of luck in life, guys.
I'll be doing a recap of the Cougars' season in a bit. It might take until the madness calms down a bit, but stay tuned.
2011-2012 Brigham Young Cougars: 26-9 (13-5 WCC, 3rd place) 1-1 in NCAA tournament, 2nd round.
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