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Aside from about 40 seconds in the first half, BYU basketball trailed at Loyola Marymount nearly from start to finish.
Then things got icy for the home team.
BYU held LMU without a field goal for the final nine minutes of the contest and used a 14-0 run to tally its second comeback road win of the week, defeating the Lions 70-62 on Saturday afternoon.
Gavin Baxter figured heavily into the comeback. He grabbed an offensive rebound and put it in to pull BYU within two with 5:55 left.
LMU held the ball for the next minute, grabbing three offensive rebounds on a possession that finally ended with Baxter securing a rebound.
On the other end, Baxter took the ball in the high post just inside the free-throw line, spun past his defender and threw down a two-handed dunk to tie the game 58-58 with 4:35 left.
Out of the final media timeout, Eli Scott missed a pair of free throws for LMU. Nick Emery then gave the Cougars just their second lead of the contest by burying a corner 3, his only points of the contest.
Emery would miss a 3 the next time down but Baxter grabbed another offensive rebound and the ball found its way to Zac Seljaas at the top of the key. He hoisted just his fourth field goal attempt of the game — all of them 3-pointers, all of them good — and BYU led 64-58.
The 14-0 run concluded when BYU ran the clock down, TJ Haws missed a 3 and Seljaas grabbed the rebound. LMU was forced to start fouling. Haws hit a pair of freebies and the Cougars led 66-58 with one minute left.
Baxter and Haws each scored 13 points, though in very different ways. Baxter was 6 of 6 from the field, Haws was 2 of 11 but shot 9 of 9 at the line.
Yoeli Childs led BYU with 18 points and five assists. Baxter had a game-high seven rebounds and Haws dished out eight assists. BYU assisted 17 of its 22 made baskets.
The win keeps BYU (18-10, 10-3 WCC) in the coveted second spot in the standings which, like the good ol’ days of WCC basketball, once again delivers byes into the tournament semifinals.