Provo • With Wednesday's big win against UNLV fresh in their minds and a game at rival Utah looming on Tuesday, the No. 15 BYU Cougars were set up perfectly for a letdown on Saturday against Air Force, a team they crushed by 18 and 43 points last year.

It almost happened.

The Cougars shot just 42 percent from the field and committed 13 turnovers, but they had enough to hold off the Falcons, 76-66, in front of 22,700 at the Marriott Center.

"Air Force was really physical, a really physical team, and maybe they kind of sped us up a little bit, and we didn't shoot the ball as well as maybe we are capable of," said BYU coach Dave Rose. "It was a good week for us. We will move on and look forward to the game on Tuesday."

Air Force never got closer than eight points in the second half after trailing 37-30 at halftime, but there were some uneasy moments for BYU (16-1) down the stretch, when the Falcons made some big shots.

But a big 3-pointer by Noah Hartsock with 1:42 remaining gave the Cougars a 72-61 lead, and Kyle Collinsworth's tip-in a few moments later was the final blow the gritty Falcons couldn't overcome. Hartsock made both 3-point tries he attempted and is now 11 for 16 from 3-point range this season.

The Cougars also avoided the upset by going 19 for 22 from the free-throw line in a game that featured 41 fouls.

"I think our guys are pretty experienced with [not having letdowns after big wins]," Rose said. "The most important thing for us is to get into the game and look like we look and play like we play — through the post."

Rose said the Cougars have had to face three different kinds of defenses in their past three games but have managed to win them all.

"I was really impressed with Air Force and their physical toughness and their ability to spread us out and make shots," he said.

drew@sltrib.comTwitter: @drewjay