KANSAS CITY, Mo. — BYU arrived in Kansas City this week carrying more than scouting reports and game plans.
The Cougars brought with them the weight of a season marked by high expectations and significant challenges, including the second season under former NBA coach Kevin Young and the arrival of top recruit AJ Dybantsa.
BYU’s year in the Big 12 has been uneven.
A strong start gave way to a difficult final stretch as injuries disrupted rotations and stalled momentum. The Cougars lost key contributors such as Dawson Baker early in the season and Richie Saunders in the closing weeks, along with several bench players.
“It was a dark moment for our season,” head coach Kevin Young said. “I just had to figure out — we have too much talent. Let’s figure this out even without Richie. We took it back to the basics and we just dumbed it down with our defense, got a lot less coachy and a lot more just do it harder, longer, stronger, faster and kept it real simple. And our guys have really taken to that.”
With the turbulence, BYU entered the Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament as a lower seed — a position few anticipated early in the year. The Cougars responded with two convincing wins to open their postseason run, defeating Kansas State 105–91 on Tuesday before beating West Virginia 68–48 to advance to the quarterfinals on Wednesday.
“You take the talent of this team and the talent of this league, everyone expected them to be where they are right now in the top eight,” former BYU coach Dave Rose said.
He added, “They have been through a lot. They have had to reinvent themselves probably three times this year because of injuries.”
That reinvention has shaped BYU’s identity. Lineups have shifted, roles have changed, and the offense has struggled at times. The defense has carried stretches when shots weren’t falling. Still, the Cougars found ways to remain competitive in a conference where brief lapses can be costly.
The late‑season struggles did not erase the progress. Instead, they highlighted BYU’s ability to adjust and rely on players stepping into expanded roles — experience that often becomes valuable in March.
Now, as the Big 12 Tournament continues, BYU enters with an opportunity to reset. For a newcomer to the league, the event serves as a chance to demonstrate belonging in one of the nation’s toughest conferences.
The Cougars may not arrive on a hot streak, but they arrive with something equally important: a season’s worth of resilience.