BYU moves to 3-0. The Cougars scored another early 98-82 victory against Queens on Tuesday night at the Marriott Center, topping 90 points for the third straight game. 3 takeaways BYU let it fly from deep. The Cougars made 17 three-pointers overall on 37 attempts against Queens, good for an overall percentage of 46%. Interestingly, BYU has now made 46% of its three-pointers in each of its three games this season. Imagine. Eight different players made shots from behind the arc for the Cougars, with Nate Pickens and Jaxon Kohler each making three 3-pointers. Nate Pickens had his best game as a Cougar. After missing all of last season due to injury, BYU fans haven’t had many opportunities to see Pickens in action. On Tuesday, he finally had a big performance for the Cougars. Pickens posted a game-high plus/minus of +23 off the bench, scoring 15 points on 4-of-6 shooting with two rebounds, one assist and two steals. BYU needs to defend the perimeter better. The Cougars may have hit a ton of 3-pointers on Tuesday, but so did Queens. The Royals made 14 of 34 3-pointers (41%), including 50% shooting from deep in the second half. 1.1 points per possession, still scoring 82 points due to his extreme pace aided by 76 total possessions. BYU forced 13 turnovers while crushing eight blocks and stealing nine steals, but the 3-point defense needs to improve. Of course, Queens is a reigning NCAA Tournament team that has most of its offensive core back and has proven to be prolific in scoring, while the Cougars are still figuring out their defensive identity with so many new pieces. The Royals were always going to have an advantage in that regard. Perhaps Tuesday’s outing will help BYU better handle fast-paced offenses in the future.
