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PROVO — The BYU men's basketball team was rejuvenated on Saturday, when a career-high 28 points from Skyler Halford led the Cougars to a win over travel partner San Diego to snap a four-game losing streak.
Looking to capitalize on the new momentum, BYU returns home to try to start a new winning streak -- against the very teams that extended its Dave Rose-era record for futility, Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount.
It's not ideal, but it's the product of an unbalanced West Coast Conference schedule hastily rearranged after 10th-member Pacific rejoined the league over the summer.
"The schedule is pretty unbalanced as far as when you play each team," Rose told Greg Wrubell on his weekly radio show Tuesday at Malawi's Pizza. "One thing about Pepperdine is that I hope we are a lot more prepared for them; we should have more practice time."
The Cougars last met the Waves on Dec. 30, the Monday following its conference opener at LMU. Because of BYU's no-Sunday play/practice policy, Rose's squad only had a brief walkthrough and shoot-around on Monday afternoon to prepare for the Waves, who handily defeated the Cougars 80-74.
Even with more preparation time, Rose knows Pepperdine will be a handful. Sophomore forward Stacy Davis ranks ninth in the league in scoring with 14.6 points per game, and the reigning WCC newcomer of the year is also seventh with 8.0 rebounds per game.
But when the Cougars tried to contain him in the first matchup, Rose admits his team's perimeter defense went limp and the Waves blitzed them with a barrage of 3-pointers. Pepperdine hit a season-high 13 threes in the contest, led by Malcolm Brooks' 24 points.
"This is a really improved team," Rose said of Pepperdine. "They have two guys off the bench who can shoot it really well, and a lot of guys who are multi-position defenders. The guard line is terrific; the point guard is shooting over 65 percent from three. It's a challenge."
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Skyler Halford made his career debut as a player guest on the broadcast, and the former Timpanogos High School product brought quite the posse as his entire family made the short drive from Orem to the Shops at Riverwoods.
The support was reminiscent of Halford's family bonds growing up on and off the court, especially from his father, Rod Halford.
"He's been my coach all the way up to high school," Skyler Halford said. "Dad has been the guy who taught me everything I knew growing up; he's definitely been a big part of it."
Family played a role in Halford's decision to sign with BYU this past summer. The junior walked on to Utah State before serving an LDS church mission to Brazil, then led Salt Lake Community College to a 22-9 record while earning JUCO all-America honors as a sophomore.
The brother-like vibe in the Cougar locker room made Halford's decision easy once Rose came calling with a scholarship.
"The team welcomed me in, and I think that's just the way BYU is," Halford said. "The coaching staff has made it known that we're a family. I knew a lot of the players growing up, so that helped. It's been really enjoyable."
Halford is averaging 8.3 points per game, but saw his biggest load against San Diego, when he collected 28 points in a career-high 26 minutes.
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Rose opened up on recent UNLV transfer Jamal Aytes during the question-and-answer segment of the broadcast. Aytes officially began classes at BYU on Monday, after a heated recruiting battle that saw him pick the Runnin' Rebels over the Cougars.
The freshman from San Diego, Calif., averaged 2.3 points in 9.8 minutes under former BYU associate head coach Dave Rice, but requested a transfer after finding the fit wasn't right in Las Vegas.
"Jamal's ready to practice; he's in really good shape," Rose said. "He'll jump right into practice."
The freshman post player scored a career-high 10 points in 19 minutes against UC Santa Barbara, showing off an inside presence the Cougars will desperately need next season.
Aytes must sit out the next two semesters, per NCAA regulations, but will help run the scout team alongside Wake Forest transfer Chase Fischer and recently returned missionary Isaac Neilson, among others.
