Noah Waterman scores 15 as No. 17 BYU routs Bellarmine 101-59

Updated Dec. 23, 2023 12:23 a.m. ET

Associated Press

PROVO, Utah (AP) — Noah Waterman scored 15 points, Trevin Knell had 14 and No. 17 BYU routed Bellarmine 101-59 on Friday night.

BYU shot 58% from the field in its third straight victory. Six players scored in double figures for the Cougars (11-1), who had 30 assists on 40 baskets.

“There’s no hesitation to make plays for each other because they know it’s coming back to them,” BYU coach Mark Pope said.

Spencer Johnson had 14 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists. He also made three of the Cougars’ 16 3-pointers.

Garrett Tipton led Bellarmine (4-10) with 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Langdon Hatton added 11.

The Knights committed 13 turnovers, leading to 28 points for the Cougars. BYU outscored Bellarmine 26-3 in fast-break points by repeatedly capitalizing on turnovers.

“This team is special. This team is different. When it’s time to go, it’s time to go,” Knell said.

Bellarmine put together a solid start, but quickly faded from there. BYU used a 21-5 run to take a 29-15 lead.

Back-to-back baskets by Atiki Ally Atiki capped a 9-2 run that gave BYU a 42-28 halftime lead.

“They were programmed really well and coached really well to do what they do,” said Dawson Baker, who had 10 points for BYU. “We just had to be disciplined on our end to kind of match what they were doing.”

Jaxon Robinson, the Cougars’ leading scorer, was sidelined with an ankle sprain. BYU already has been without starting forward Fousseyni Traore for several games because of a hamstring injury.

“Our depth is important. We still haven’t had a game with a healthy roster,” Pope said. “I would like to have a healthy roster, but these guys have answered the bell in spite of that for a really impressive two-month run.”

BIG PICTURE

Bellarmine: Turnovers ended up being a huge problem for a second consecutive game. The Knights gave up 18.0 turnovers and 28.0 points off turnovers per contest during their two-game swing through the state of Utah.

BYU: Once shots started falling from the perimeter, the Cougars were able to run away from Bellarmine as the first half progressed. BYU shot 41% from beyond the arc for the game.

UP NEXT

Bellarmine is at High Point on Dec. 30.

BYU hosts Wyoming on Dec. 30.

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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball