BYU basketball pulls off a double-overtime victory against 10th-ranked Iowa State: final score, stats, game recap
The Cougars leave Ames with a hard-earned win, though it wasn’t easy.
BYU didn’t score until the 13:35 mark of the first half in Ames. The Cougars committed 29 turnovers against a tough Iowa State defense. They fought through two overtimes and endured one of the most hostile environments in basketball.
By all accounts, BYU shouldn’t have won Tuesday night in Iowa—but that’s why you play the game.
The Cougars escaped Iowa State with a 88-85 win in the second-to-last regular season game for Kevin Young and the BYU squad. With only a home game against rival Utah remaining, they now move ahead of the Cyclones for fourth place in the Big 12 standings.
A defining win for the season and the seventh consecutive victory for what might be the hottest team in the country, the Cougars have displayed grit, resilience, and the ability to persevere through difficult situations in the second half of the season.
In all fairness, BYU should have won by a larger margin. The Cougars held a 21-point lead in the second half with all the momentum. Three-pointers were falling, the defense had Iowa State locked down, and even Dallin Hall was throwing down alley-oop dunks on the fast break.
Nobody, and I mean nobody, expected that. A career-defining moment for Dallin Hall that I’ll be watching five years from now, much to the confusion of my wife.
It was pure hysteria for Cougar fans, and the gym filled with the home team’s audible groans after every missed Cyclone shot and every basket for BYU.
But when the Cougars led by 21, the Cyclones surged back with three-pointers, a renewed defensive intensity, and multiple trips to the free-throw line. Hilton Coliseum was rocking, and BYU reverted to the shaky play they showed in the game’s opening minutes. The offense stagnated and struggled to break down Iowa State’s defense.
Most possessions played out like this: shuffles through paper Ahem. BYU runs a few lackluster screen-and-rolls, with the shot clock winding down. A contested or forced shot rims out, and the Cougars grab the offensive rebound. Cyclone defenders relentlessly swipe at the ball until they eventually steal it. Iowa State pushes up the floor and gets a questionable foul call at the other end.
A frustrating series of events in Ames where this seemed to happen regularly—it felt as though the Cougars couldn’t stop the Cyclones from getting to the free-throw line, despite aggressive defense on the other end. Iowa State got a generous foul call on a hopeless shot attempt, despite minimal contact.
BYU managed to pull off the win, but it was even more impressive given the obstacles they faced.
Free-throw shooting proved crucial for BYU. Normally, this might have been a major burden for the Cougars, especially since Iowa State hit 87% of their free throws. But BYU was efficient, hitting 80% of their attempts, with Egor Demin and Richie Saunders going a perfect 17-17. In a double-overtime game, every point matters, and these players delivered on the freebies.
A chaotic win that will be remembered as a triumph for the Cougars. Now they must focus on Utah on Saturday before preparing for tournament play.