Las Vegas • The BYU Cougars made it difficult on themselves in the second half by blowing a 17-point lead, but made some clutch plays down the stretch and held off San Diego 85-79 in a West Coast Conference tournament quarterfinal game Saturday afternoon at Orleans Arena.
TJ Haws and Jahshire Hardnett made free throws after Elijah Bryant fouled out with a game-high 27 points, and the Cougars advanced to the WCC semifinals for the fifth straight year.
The Cougars led 60-43 after a Bryant 3-pointer with 12 minutes remaining, but the Toreros rallied behind Isaiah Pineiro (21 points) and Olin Carter III (20 points) and tied the score at 71 with three minutes remaining.