As the BYU Cougars await their fate this Selection Sunday, 14 years ago on this day, they found themselves facing off against the Iona Gaels in Dayton, Ohio.
It wasn’t necessarily BYU’s best start to a game. In fact, it was so bad that it would require a historic performance for BYU to advance.
One year removed from their Sweet Sixteen run with Jimmer Fredette and company, the Cougars’ first year in the West Coast Conference resulted in a First Four berth.
Both teams came out looking to push the pace, but after a couple of runs put together by the Gaels, BYU found themselves down 49-24 in the first half.
Facing a deficit that no team had overcome in the tournament before, the Cougars could’ve decided to pack it in and call it a season, but they kept fighting. By halftime, the lead was cut to a manageable 15 points.
In the second half, BYU utilized a 17-0 run to cut the lead to one at 62-61 with under nine minutes to play. Later, Noah Hartsock would go on a 7-0 run to give BYU its first lead of the game at 71-70 at the 2:26 mark.
BYU pulled away to win 78-72, becoming the only team to win a March Madness game after falling behind 25 points – breaking Duke’s record of 22 against Maryland in the 2001 Final Four.
“The heart of our guys got this one done,” coach Dave Rose told CBS' Clark Kellogg after the game. “Our guys just keep fighting. It’s kind of the trademark of our program, and to put a stamp on it here in the tournament is exciting for us.”
Fourteen years later, the AJ Dybantsa-led Cougars have struggled with their own difficult season. A season full of ups and downs, BYU has had to dig deep following brutal blows and tough stretches in the season.
Following one of the many disappointing yet encouraging comebacks against the likes of Arizona, Dybantsa said the team found its identity —similar to the one Rose claimed as the trademark of the program.
“We found our identity, we’re going to fight to the end. We’re not going to just fold when we’re down,” Dybantsa said.
BYU has been no stranger to adversity in a year where it was viewed by many as a Final Four contender. Due to injury and poor chemistry, most people say it would be impressive just to see BYU make the second weekend.
However, maybe Dybantsa was onto something when he said the team found its identity. Yes, they’ve suffered some brutal losses, like the three-game losing skid to UCF, West Virginia and Cincinnati.
However, it would’ve been easy to call it quits, put in a half-hearted effort at the Big 12 Tournament and wait for whatever seeding awaited BYU during the Selection Show. But they didn’t.
BYU finished the season strong with a resilient win against Texas Tech, two wins in the Big 12 Tournament and played an admirable game against a scrappy Kelvin Sampson-coached Houston team.
Suddenly, it feels as though this BYU team has life after all.
In a flashy prelude to a season filled with immense hype, this BYU team has put its heads down and come back to the “trademark of the program” —grit, determination and toughness.
From the looks of the last four games, BYU will be a very tough out in the NCAA Tournament.
And if the Cougars have proven anything over the years, it’s that no deficit — in a game or a season — is ever too big to fight back from.