Tyler Haws joins father in Brigham Young’s 40-point club
Brigham Young sophomore Tyler Haws convinced anyone who needed convincing that he was back to form following his two-year Mormon mission with the way he played in his first six games this season.
Haws scored at least 20 points in each contest and had his best game against Cal State Northridge on Nov. 24 when he scored 32 and grabbed 12 rebounds.
But Haws raised his game another level Saturday in a decisive win in Salt Lake City over Virginia Tech with a Jimmer Fredette-like performance. Haws scored 42 points – a single-game high for any player in Division I this season – one-upping his father Marty Haws, who scored 40 points in a 1989 game when he played guard for the Cougars. Marty Haws played at BYU from 1986 to 1990.
Tyler Haws put in a lot of extra work in the weight room during the spring and summer trying to regain weight and strength lost during his two years in the Philippines when he played basketball seldomly, and rarely at a competitive level. That work seems to be paying dividends now. Haws outshined Virginia Tech guard Erick Green, one of the nation's top two scorers entering the game Saturday. Green finished with 12 points.
Only four players have scored 40 points or more in a Division I game so far this season.Andre Hollins from Minnesota had 41 against Memphis on Nov. 23, Matt Hunter from Central Connecticut State had 40 against Indiana Dec. 8 and Lamont Jones from Iona scored 40 on Quinnipiac on Nov. 16. Now Haws holds the mark to beat with 42.
Haws was well short of the BYU school record for points in a game. Fredette scored 52 against New Mexico in a postseason game two years ago.
Haws has scored in double figures in all but one game this season, helping to lead the Cougars to a 10-4 start with West Coast Conference played starting next week. He started hot against the Hokies scoring 29 first-half points – Virginia Tech scored 31 as a team. Haws made a career best six 3-pointers. He had never made more than four in a game previously.
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