Davies’ highs outweigh lows

Brigham Young forward Brandon Davies goes up for a dunk during the Cougars’ 61-58 victory over Utah on Dec. 8. The senior is on track to be the first player to finish among BYU’s top 10 in career points, rebounds, blocks and steals and in the top 25 in assists.

Brandon Davies’ basketball career at Brigham Young has been a roller-coaster ride, but as his career winds down, he will be remembered more for the ups than the downs.

The 6-foot-9-inch forward from Provo High School is on track to become the only player in school history to finish among the top 10 in career points, rebounds, blocks and steals and in the top 25 in assists.

Davies has done it while playing mostly a supporting role for teammates that include Jimmer Fredette, Jackson Emery, Noah Hartsock and, this season, Tyler Haws.

“He is a great guy and a great teammate on and off the floor,” said Haws, ninth in the nation in scoring with 20.9 points per game. “He makes all of his guys better.”

On Saturday, in an 86-72 victory over Portland at the Marriott Center, Davies scored 23 points to pass the late Kresimir Cosic on the school’s all-time scoring list. Davies, averaging 18.0 points this season, is 12th with 1,564 points.

“I think what makes him so special is he is versatile in the post,” senior guard Craig Cusick said. “He has a lot of different moves and is pretty quick on his feet.”

Davies has had his down moments, too — none more painful than in 2011 when he was suspended before the NCAA Tournament for violating the school’s honor code. Without him, BYU reached the Sweet 16 before losing to Florida.

“It was extremely hard,” Davies said. “I leaned on a lot of people to get through it.”

Davies was reinstated for the 2011-12 season and averaged 15.2 points and 7.7 rebounds as the Cougars went 26-9 and won one game in the NCAA Tournament. On Thursday, he started his 91st game for BYU, getting 25 points and nine rebounds in a 64-57 loss at Saint Mary’s.

“When he is good, he is really good,” Cougars coach Dave Rose said. “Consistency is the key for him. The coaches challenge him, and his teammates encourage him. It may not be fair in his situation, but we need him to be really good every night.”

■ EMOTIONAL WEEK — Cusick will remember this week for the rest of his life. Hours before hitting the winning shot on a tip-in Tuesday in a 70-68 home victory over Utah State, Cusick learned that his father, Randy, had been diagnosed with cancer of the small intestine.

“My dad coached me growing up. He’s been my hero,” Cusick said.

Randy Cusick watched the game from his hospital bed. “I came into his hospital room around midnight. He was crying. He was proud of me,” the guard said.

The family is awaiting further tests to determine a course of action. Craig Cusick played in Thursday’s game, finishing with three points.

■ ELITE COMPANY — Haws scored 12 points against Saint Mary’s to join Danny Ainge as the only Cougars to reach 1,000 career points as a sophomore. Haws has 1,003 points.

Ainge finished his sophomore season with 1,130 points. Fredette, BYU’s all-time scoring leader with 2,599 points, finished his sophomore season with 780.

■ COACHING HIRES — Football coach Bronco Mendenhall hired former BYU quarterback Jason Beck as quarterbacks coach and Guy Holliday as receivers coach.

Last year, Beck was the offensive coordinator at Simon Fraser in Burnaby, British Columbia. Holliday spent the past five seasons as receivers coach and recruiting coordinator at Texas-El Paso.

The hires complete Mendenhall’s overhaul of his offensive staff after BYU finished the 2012 season 8-5. Spring practice begins March 4.

Dave McCann is a news anchor for KSL television in Salt Lake City and the play-by-play voice for BYU sports on BYUtv. He also is the host of True Blue, which airs at 5:30 p.m. Mondays on BYUtv. He can be reached at dmccann@ksl.com or on Twitter @DaveMcCannKSL.