The BYU men's basketball team was able to fight off a pesky Utah State offense and boisterous Aggie crowd on its way to a close 68-63 victory in Salt Lake City Saturday evening.

Team captain Jonathan Tavernari led all BYU scorers with 24 points on 7-of-17 shooting and 7-of-8 free throws, while sophomore point guard Jimmer Fredette had 16 points, going 6-of-13 from the field and 3-of-6 from 3-point range.

BYU head coach Dave Rose was happy with the game's outcome as he improved to 2-1 all-time versus the Aggies.

"The game was exactly as we thought it would be - a very hard-fought game," he said. "I am proud of our players for the way we executed down the stretch. It was a good win."

BYU Senior leader Lee Cummard was surprisingly off-touch, scoring a mere six points on 2-of-9 shooting, but he did have a team-high six assists. Jackson Emery had nine points while Chris Miles put in six for the Cougars. Backup Gavin MacGregor scored a career-high seven points off the bench.

The Cougars are off to an 8-0 start, the best since the 1987-88 season. Although the offense was consistent throughout the game, it was the defense that made the difference.

BYU forced 17 Aggie turnovers, 12 of those coming off steals that led to Cougar points in transition. Rose praised his team's effort.

"I thought Lamont Morgan played a great game for us with the pressure he put on their guards, and those steals by Emery and Tavernari were critical," he said.

The Cougars held Utah State's Gary Wilkinson to seven points in the second half after allowing 15 in the opening half. The Aggies converted 40 percent of their shots after averaging 56 percent in their first five games.

In a game that featured seven lead-changes, the Cougars held a slim 38-35 edge at halftime and 50-45 advantage with 10 minutes left in the game. BYU managed to counter every Aggie comeback effort with big shots and converted enough free throws in the final minutes to win the game.

The Cougars did not score a bucket in the final 2:50, but Emery put in 4-of-8 free throws and Tavernari made his final two to seal the victory.

In the first neutral meeting between the schools in 225 games, BYU can claim EnergySolutions Arena as Cougar territory.

"We had players besides Cummard make some big plays in the game," Rose said. "That is critical for chemistry and for how we'll play as a team down the road."

The Cougars host Boise State on Wednesday night at the Marriott Center.

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Copyright Brigham Young University 8 Dec 2008