Ken Pomeroy Predicts BYU Basketball vs No. 19 San Diego State

The BYU men's basketball team tipped off its season on Monday with a narrow 60-56 victory over Idaho State. On Friday, the Cougars will play their second game of the week on the road at San Diego State. The Aztecs, who are coming off a dominant win in their season opener against Cal State Fullerton, are ranked no. 19 in the AP poll.

Ken Pomeroy, the industry leader in college basketball predictive analytics, predicted BYU at no. 19 San Diego State. KenPom gives BYU a 23% chance to beat the Aztecs with a projected final score of 73-64.

In his latest rankings, KenPom ranks San Diego State at no. 17 in the country while BYU is ranked a tier below at no. 55. The Cougars dropped in KenPom's rankings after escaping the jaws of defeat against Idaho State.

ESPN BPI is slightly less optimistic about BYU's chances. BPI gives the Cougars a 19% chance to pull off the upset.

Keys to the Game

1. Fewer turnovers

BYU was plagued by turnovers against Idaho State. In fact, the Cougars turned it over 30% of the time and had more turnovers than field goals. Needless to say, that needs to improve if BYU is going to have a chance to upset the Aztecs.

2. Manufacture open looks

BYU's ball movement was a little stagnant at times against Idaho State. As a result, BYU didn't get a lot of great looks from the three-point line. Moving the ball and getting open looks will be critical for the Cougars. Against Idaho State, true freshman Dallin Hall was the lone guard that was able to consistently create open looks for himself or for his teammates.

3. Production from the veterans

BYU needs veterans like Rudi Williams, Gideon George, and Fousseyni Traore to step up in a big way on the road at San Diego State.

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