BYU bludgeons Air Force

PROVO, Utah — Jonathan Tavernari’s parents traveled from Brazil this week to see their son play for No. 17 BYU. Air Force helped make sure the senior forward didn’t disappoint.

BYU’s all-time leading 3-point shooter came in off the bench and provided instant offense with a season-high 19 points, and Jackson Emery added 18 to lead the Cougars to a 91-48 victory over Air Force on Saturday night.

BYU's total was the most points given up by Air Force since 2000, when Falcons gave up 98 to UNLV.

“We did not defend very well,” Falcons coach Jeff Reynolds said. “They moved the ball really well and they played the best offense they could have played.”

Tavernari said his hot shooting had nothing to do with having his wife Kiri in the stands with his parents, Roberto and Thelma Tavernari.

“I made five 3-pointers because we played as a team,” he said. “We assisted on 20 baskets out of the 30 field goals we made.”

Tavernari scored 12 points in just over 2 minutes during the Cougars’ big first-half run, hitting four straight 3s. After teammate Noah Hartsock made a layup, Tavernari added the fifth 3-pointer. The run turned a 7-6 Air Force lead into a 32-12 BYU (23-3, 8-2 Mountain West) advantage.

“He’s been terrific the last month, especially in practices where he’s shot with a lot of confidence,” said BYU coach Dave Rose, who benched Tavernari after a six-game shooting slump to start the season. “We get him playing with that look in his eye when he releases the ball where he knows it’s going in, and that’s big for our team.”

It was the Falcons' worst loss in conference play, including their time in the WAC, and the third worst loss in team’s history.

Reserve Mike Fitzgerald scored 13 points to lead Air Force (9-15, 1-10). The loss was the Falcons’ 10th in a row against BYU and their 15th straight defeat on the road in conference play.

BYU shot 56 percent and made 12-of-20 3-point attempts in the team’s first game since No. 23 UNLV outgunned the Cougars a week ago.

“It was hard last week, not that we lost but how we lost,” said Emery, who tied a BYU record with his 66th steal of the season. “It’s hard to sit on a loss like that for a week. But it was good to work hard and reevaluate what we want to accomplish.”

BYU’s steals record was set by Marty Haws in 1990. Haws’ son Tyler, a freshman guard for the Cougars, scored 16 points and added a career-high four steals of his own against the Falcons.

The win was the 20th straight at home for BYU.