Last night's 82-64 BYU basketball loss to unranked New Mexico was horrendous to watch. And, predictably, everyone is blaming the loss on BYU's dismissal of starter Brandon Davies for an honor code violation (see, for example Slam Online's account of the game).
While I agree that Davies' departure probably caused the loss, it was not because Jimmer Fredette and company can't win without Davies -- it was because the team was shaken up emotionally after losing a friend and player. Fredette talked about the pain of losing a friend in the post-game interviews, and even during the game it was clear that he was not focusing mentally.
This Saturday (March 5), the Cougars play Wyoming, and I am guessing we will see a completely different team than we saw last night. Jimmer Fredette is tough (he learned to play basketball in prison, for crying out loud!). He will be back with a vengeance, and the team will have made adjustments to compensate for the loss of Davies. It's not over yet for Jimmer's NCAA championship dreams.
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