This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Boulder, Colo. • There weren't a lot of bright spots for the BYU Cougars in their 92-83 loss at Colorado on Saturday night, but Zac Seljaas did his part to keep the visitors from getting blown off the court at Coors Event Center.
The freshman from Bountiful High scored a career-high 18 points on 7 for 11 shooting, including 4 for 6 from 3-point range. Fellow freshman Nick Emery added 24 points.
"There were some real positive things," said BYU coach Dave Rose. "You take two freshmen, Zac and Nick, these were their best road games by far — 42 points between the two of them. That is something that we really need, especially on the road."
Rose turned to Seljaas because senior Chase Fischer went 0 for 4 from 3-point range in the first half, and 0 for 5 in the second half. Seljaas hit a 3-pointer with 47 seconds left before halftime, then scored 14 in the second half.
"We needed energy going into the second half, and I just [took] it upon myself that I needed to bring energy," Seljaas said. "We needed a boost coming out. So I thought, I might as well put that on my shoulders, and I just did what I could do to help. Then my shots starting falling and I just did what I could, going along."
Seljaas, who stands 6-foot-7, was averaging 2.9 points and 0.9 rebounds per game, but clearly earned himself playing time moving forward.
"For me personally, I like playing on the road," he said. "It has always been something that I have loved. Going against an opposing crowd, it is nice to show them what you have, instead of going against a school that already knows what you can do, and you just go out not expecting it. You just play your game, and see what happens."
Kyle Collinsworth also struggled offensively, going 6-for-18 in 35 minutes. George King, Colorado's 6-6 sophomore guard, hounded Collinsworth the majority of the night.
"That was my whole main focus because he is a great player," said King, who managed to score 23 points. "The teams he has played before, and the guys that were guarding him, didn't really do a great job of making him work."
Collinsworth made his 103rd career start, tied for 13th most in BYU history, with Marty Haws. He said the Cougars are gradually improving and will win these types of games later in the season.
"We are a young team, and there were some positives from tonight's game that we are going to build on and keep getting better at. We will keep working," he said.
The Cougars return to the Marriott Center on Friday to host Central Michigan.
Twitter: @drewjay