By Ryan Comer

Brigham Young University has a rich tradition of having a successful football program. It's in large part because of that tradition that LaVell Edwards Stadium was filled to capacity three months ago on a chilly, blustery and snowy Saturday afternoon when the Cougars decimated an easily overmatched Eastern Washington team by 35 points.

Tradition doesn't come easily. It has to be earned. And only after numerous wins and numerous conference championships can any team say it has it.

Contrary to what some may think, the Cougars' football program isn't the only successful one at BYU. The men's basketball team has been winning for quite a while, as well and adding to its own tradition-filled history.

"BYU has a great basketball tradition," said Brett Pyne, associate director of athletic communications at BYU since the 1998-99 season. "We're well-known for football these days, and rightly so. But we do have one of the best basketball traditions in the country as well."

With their 78-61 victory over Wyoming on March 5, the Cougars (25-6; 14-2) sealed their second consecutive regular-season conference championship. Heading into their matchup against UNLV in the final game of the Mountain West Conference Tournament, the Cougars had won six in a row and 15 of their last 16.

This year marks the seventh time in the last nine years the Cougars have won 20 games in a season. It also was the sixth time in the last eight years the Cougars won at least 10 conference games in a season.

The Cougars have been invited to the NIT or NCAA tournament in seven of the past eight years and have also won 47 consecutive games at the Marriott Center.

Indeed, BYU's recent history has been one of success. Historically speaking, it's been just as successful.

In the 24 seasons from 1949 through 1972 the Cougars had 18 winning seasons compared to just four losing seasons. They made seven NCAA tournament appearances and three NIT appearances, appearing twice in the Elite 8 and the Sweet 16 five times.

The Cougars hit a lull in the five seasons from 1973 through 1977, failing to record a winning season each year.

In 1978, however, the Cougars turned it around again. Over the course of the next 18 seasons the Cougars tallied 17 winning seasons, not losing more than 15 games each year. During that 18-year span, the Cougars made 11 NCAA tournament appearances and three NIT appearances.

The Cougars then recorded three consecutive losing seasons before going 22-11 during the 1999-2000 season. The Cougars have had just one losing season since.

According to Pyne, much of the Cougars' recent success can be attributed to Dave Rose, now in his third season as head coach. Since Rose took over, the Cougars are 64-23.

"Coach Rose has brought us to the point where we're a team that has potential to make some noise and have people thinking about basketball as much as football," Pyne said.

Freshman Chris Collinsworth, who started several games for the Cougars this year after winning a Utah 4A state championship with Provo High School last season, spoke of Rose's influence on him coming to BYU.

"Coach Rose and the coaching staff have a really good program going and they've been really successful," he said. "It's something I'm glad to be part of and so I'm glad to be here."

Rose attributes the Cougars' success more to the dedication and hard work of his players.

"It's a direct result of hard work by the players," he said. "The players have committed themselves to being successful. There's a lot of excitement when we play and a lot of energy."

One of those players is junior forward/center Trent Plaisted. Plaisted redshirted his freshman season and has been a dominating force in the post whenever he's on the floor.

Plaisted garnered national attention earlier in the season for his 24 points and 17 rebounds against North Carolina, a game the Cougars lost 73-63.

Plaisted grew up in California and Texas and admitted he thought the BYU men's basketball team didn't get the coverage the football team did. In fact, Plaisted can't remember getting an opportunity to watch too many, if any, BYU men's basketball games. But for anyone who questions the school's tradition, Plaisted has some advice.

"Just look at the rafters," he said. "This is a great football school and we're very fortunate to have a great football team and the tradition there. But with that being said, I think this basketball team has a pretty rich tradition in and of itself."