CMU Men Face Rugged Road Test at BYU
12/17/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Game Notes: Central Michigan | BYU
Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - Call it Grand Canyon on steroids.
And that, in the long run, is a good thing for the Central Michigan men's basketball team.
The Chippewas (5-4) will play Brigham Young (6-3) Friday (9 p.m.) at the Cougars' Marriott Center, in which BYU draws an average of 14,777 per game.
For CMU, the atmosphere will be akin to Grand Canyon's arena, where the Chippewas suffered a 75-72 setback to the Dan Majerle-coached Antelopes two weeks ago before a raucous crowd of 5,642.
"In developing the schedule, we knew the games against Grand Canyon and against BYU were about as tough of environments to go into as possible," CMU coach Keno Davis said. "We really felt like that that would prepare us for any road game that we would see in our conference.
"I know our guys are looking forward to playing in a great environment against some very top-level competition."
There are a few key differences in Friday's game and the one at Grand Canyon. First and foremost, CMU's top player, Chris Fowler, will be in the lineup against the Cougars. And, the Chippewas are well rested, having not played since Saturday when held off a stubborn Texas Southern squad, 79-71, at McGuirk Arena.
When they went to Grand Canyon, they had played just three days prior and it was during the season-opening seven-game stretch during which Fowler was injured.
And, BYU is a different animal than was Grand Canyon. BYU is one of the most consistent program's in the country, and is riding a streak of 10 consecutive seasons in which it has won at least 20 games. The Cougars have played in a post-season tournament in each of those 10 seasons.
Dave Rose, who is in his 11th year as the head coach at BYU, has a sparkling .743 winning percentage (263-91), which ranks 10th among active NCAA Division I coaches.
The Cougars, who were picked to finish second in the West Coast Conference behind Gonzaga, are 5-0 at home this season and have won 11 straight at the Marriott Center dating to last season. They are ranked 10th in the Collegeinsider.com Mid-Major Top 25.
"In order to beat BYU, on the road, you've got to be healthy, you've got to play well - and you might need some luck," Davis said. "Not many people are going to go into that environment and be able to come away with a win."
Still, it's a huge boost for CMU to have Fowler back on the floor. The senior guard, the team's leading scorer in each of the past two seasons, returned to the lineup two games ago and is averaging a team-best 17 points along with five assists.
Getting Fowler sharp and making the team again a cohesive unit are the overriding goals, Davis said. The Chippewas have four non-conference games before facing Eastern Michigan in their Mid-American Conference opener on Jan. 6.
"More than anything," Davis said with regard to Fowler's return, "January and February was our focus and anything that he came back to help us with in the non-conference was a bonus."
Fowler's return unquestionably has been just that. Fellow guard Braylon Rayson made 15 of his 25 field goal attempts (60 percent) including 11-of-17 (65 percent) from 3-point range over the past two games. Rayson and teammate Josh Kozinski are tied for second in the MAC with 23 triples on the season.
In the past two games, CMU is shooting 53.9 percent from the floor including 49.1 percent from 3-point range.
BYU is coming off a 92-83 road loss to Colorado. Before that, the Cougars defeated Weber State, 73-68, and Utah State, 80-68. Weber State is the lone common opponent. The Chippewas fell to the Wildcats, 63-60, at the Gulf Coast Showcase on Nov. 23.
Like CMU, the Cougars start three guards. They are 6-foot-6 Kyle Collinsworth, 6-3 Chase Fletcher and 6-2 Nick Emery. Emery leads BYU in scoring at 16.0 points per game, with Collinsworth (14.8) and Fischer (14.7) right behind.
Collinsworth, the son of NFL commentator Cris Collinsworth, recorded his NCAA Division I-record seventh career triple-double earlier this season in a 95-81 win over Belmont.
Kyle Davis, a 6-8 forward, averages 12.4 points and is BYU's leading rebounder at 11.2 per game.
