Brigham Young Cougars vs Missouri St. Bears Match Player Stats On Dec 04, 2021

Alex Barcello scored 15 of his 21 points in the second half and Te'jon Lucas added 17 points as No. 12 BYU (7-1) rebounded from its first loss to earn a hard-fought 74-68 win over Missouri State (4-4) in Springfield, Mo.

Spencer Johnson contributed 14 points and Caleb Lohner chipped in with 10 points and six rebounds for the Cougars, who wrapped up a three-game road trip. BYU's six-game undefeated streak ended Wednesday night in overtime at Utah Valley.

Jaylen Minnett (19 points), Gaige Prim (17 points) and Lu'cye Patterson (16 points on 8-10 shooting) had strong showings for the Bears, who made a game out of it after falling behind by 14 points in the second half.

After MSU went 9- 1/2 minutes without a made basket in a stretch that spanned both halves, Minnett finally ended the drought with a jumper at the 16:34 mark of the second half. That ended BYU's 6-0 run and opened things up for the Bears, who roared back from a 14-point deficit with a 9-2 run that ended with a Minnett 3.

Missouri State continued to chip away at the lead, pulling within one on multiple occasions, including at 63-62 after a Gaige Prim inside shot with 1:38 remaining.

As was the case all game, though, BYU had an answer to MSU's challenge. Barcello scored on the next possession and then Lohner followed with a bucket to give the visitors a 67-62 lead with under a minute left. Seneca Knight had some key defensive plays to lift the Cougars.

BYU hit 7 of 10 free throws in the final 38 seconds to wrap it up.

Both teams had early 5-0 runs and then went back and forth for much of the first half.

MSU's Keaton Hervey made a layup with 6:10 remaining in the half to cut BYU's lead to one at 24-23. However, the Bears didn't hit a basket the rest of the half, and the Cougars took a 35-27 lead into the break after closing out on an 11-4 surge.

Johnson led BYU in that first half with 12 points, including three 3s.

BYU opened the second half with six straight points to go up by 14, 41-27, before Missouri State finally started hitting shots again.

Isiaih Mosley, the Bears' leading scorer, went scoreless in just seven minutes.

--Field Level Media