BYU women’s basketball has opened the season with a strong 7-0 record.
To begin the year, the Cougars knew they were young, with a roster made up primarily of underclassmen and a brand-new head coach. The team has even started two true freshman guards, Olivia Hamlin and Sydney Benally. With so much youth, no one quite knew what to expect.
“We are young. We are young with each other. We want to see improvement game to game, especially on things we have discussed, shown on film, or are trying to implement on the court in practice,” coach Lee Cummard said.
Despite their inexperience, the Cougars are averaging 17.7 assists per game compared to opponents’ 10.6. Much of that ball movement has been led by freshman Benally, who has 46 assists this season. She ranks No. 10 nationally in assists and No. 2 among freshmen.
Three players are averaging double figures in scoring, with two others just over nine points per game. One of those contributors is Hamlin.
Hamlin, who was recruited by Clemson, Harvard, Marquette, Minnesota, Nebraska, TCU, UNLV and Virginia Tech, committed to BYU following the hiring of Cummard.
“I am so excited to play for coach Cummard, and I am so excited to learn from him,” Hamlin said.
That coachability may be the secret to BYU’s strong start.
“And that’s the thing — the team’s very coachable. You don’t have to tell them twice,” Cummard said. “One of the things I really like about this group is that I can talk to a player and another player can learn from me talking to a different player. We don’t spend a lot of time recoaching things we already coached, which makes us more efficient and helps us get through practice cleaner.”
Though young, the Cougars have shown promise, scoring a collective 541 points in seven games — an average of 77.1 points per contest.
BYU faces a long season ahead with several weeks before conference play, but hopes are high after finishing last year with a 13-17 overall record and 4-14 in conference play.
The Cougars’ first true test will come against No. 17 Vanderbilt in the Island Division title game of the U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam.
The Commodores, also 7-0, are led by Mikayla Blakes, who is averaging 25.1 points per game.
This will be BYU’s first ranked matchup since knocking off No. 20 Oklahoma State 68-64 at the Marriott Center on Feb. 15, 2025.
It will also mark just the second meeting in series history between BYU and Vanderbilt. The last matchup came on a neutral floor on Dec. 20, 2004, ending in a Cougar loss.
The teams are set to tip off at 11 a.m. Saturday and can be streamed on ESPN+.