With 2:30 left, No. 13 BYU trailed No. 1 Arizona by 13 in what looked like a lost cause — until an inbound under the Cougars' own basket with 11 seconds remaining suddenly gave BYU a chance to win.
Offensive rebounds off free throw misses, a flagrant foul, Arizona missing at the line, an offensive foul on an inbound and a held ball that gave BYU multiple possessions all contributed to a chaotic final stretch in a game that the Wildcats ultimately won 86-83 Monday night at the Marriott Center.
What had once been a double-digit deficit turned into a one-point game, and the Cougars found themselves with the ball on their own baseline with a chance to steal the victory.
The ball went to Wright in the backcourt, who drove straight down the middle of the paint and rose for a short jumper. Arizona’s Brayden Burries blocked the shot to break the hearts of BYU fans and seal the Wildcats’ victory.
What felt like a destined BYU victory in the final seconds vanished in an instant.
Even if BYU had pulled it off, it would’ve felt wrong. Arizona controlled the game and had things its own way most of the night. The Wildcats forced BYU into taking a heavy dose of threes while not being pushed into the same shots.
“We only forced them to shoot 12 3s,” coach Kevin Young said. “Just too many mistakes.”
BYU finished 12-for-32 from 3 before the desperation of the final minutes. The Cougars have struggled to see the outside shot fall consistently this year, with shooters like Tyler Mrus and Kennard Davis struggling. Davis, however, worked himself out of a slump after starting 0-for-3, drilling five straight threes. If Davis can consistently shoot the three at a high clip, BYU will be much more difficult to guard.
Aleksej Kostic made the most of his limited minutes, knocking down both of his shot attempts — both from deep.
“The game’s about making shots, bottom line. (Kostic) can shoot; that’s why he’s on the floor,” Young said. “He probably earned himself a bigger opportunity. Around AJ and Rob, we need guys that can knock shots down.”
Perhaps Kostic earned himself some playing time in the future.
Until BYU starts making shots more consistently, it will be all the more difficult for the big three to manufacture efficient offense —although Richie Saunders finished 7 of 11 from the field.
BYU also struggled to get to the line outside of Dybantsa. The first free throw shot by any other Cougar didn’t come until just over four minutes to go in the game when Saunders went to the line. Saunders later fouled out as BYU played the foul game down the stretch.
With a prolific player such as Dybantsa, the ball is going to be in his hands, but if BYU is going to succeed down the road, come March, it will need other players to step up and attack the basket. Three combined free throw attempts from the rest of the roster simply isn’t enough.
BYU was outscored from the stripe by 14 as BYU shot 63% and the Wildcats shot 81%.
Through the struggles, Dybantsa and Wright shot a combined 9 of 40 from the field and only lost by three to the No. 1 team in the country. An average night from either player likely produces a different outcome.
College basketball is all about getting hot at the right time, and the Cougars are already in a better spot than they were last year at this point. A season ago, BYU sat at 2-4 in conference play before finishing out the regular season 13-3. BYU is currently 5-2 in conference play.
“It’s all about improvement,” Young said. “That’s the bottom line. You've got to learn from your mistakes.”
To BYU’s credit, there was no quit in the team. Even as some fans left early to beat the traffic, the Cougars mounted an improbable comeback to give themselves a chance to win at the end.
“We found our identity — we’re going to fight to the end,” Dybantsa said.
Coming back against the No. 1 team and losing by three shows what this squad is capable of.
The Cougars have now come back and nearly won games against both the current No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country.
BYU will look to get back on track Saturday at No. 14 Kansas.