2025–26 BYU Cougars men's basketball team

2025–26 BYU Cougars men's basketball
ESPN Events Invitational Magic Bracket champions
ConferenceBig 12 Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 10
APNo. 10
Record11–1 (0–0 Big 12)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaMarriott Center
2025–26 Big 12 men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 4 Iowa State 0 0   11 0   1.000
No. 1 Arizona 0 0   10 0   1.000
No. 10 BYU 0 0   11 1   .917
Colorado 0 0   10 1   .909
No. 8 Houston 0 0   10 1   .909
Oklahoma State 0 0   10 1   .909
UCF 0 0   9 1   .900
Baylor 0 0   8 2   .800
Arizona State 0 0   9 3   .750
No. 17 Kansas 0 0   9 3   .750
No. 19 Texas Tech 0 0   8 3   .727
TCU 0 0   8 3   .727
West Virginia 0 0   8 4   .667
Cincinnati 0 0   7 4   .636
Kansas State 0 0   7 4   .636
Utah 0 0   7 4   .636
2026 Big 12 tournament winner
As of December 19, 2025
Rankings from AP poll

The 2025–26 BYU Cougars men's basketball team represents Brigham Young University during the 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Cougars are led by second-year head coach Kevin Young and play their home games at Marriott Center in Provo, Utah as third-year members of the Big 12 Conference.

Previous season

The Cougars finished the 2024–25 season 26–10, 14–6 in Big 12 play to finish in a tie for third place. As the No. 4 seed in the Big 12 tournament, they defeated Iowa State in the Quarterfinals before losing to Houston in the semifinals.[1][2] They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 6 seed in the East region. The Cougars defeated VCU in the first round, 80−71.[3] In the second round they defeated Wisconsin, 91−89.[4] BYU lost in the sweet sixteen to Alabama, 113−88.[5]

Offseason

Departures

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure
Kanon Catchings 6 SF 6'9" 200 Fr. Indianapolis, IN Transferred to Georgia
Elijah Crawford 2 G 6'2" 185 Fr. Augusta, GA Transferred to UIC
Egor Demin 3 PG 6'8" 200 Fr. Moscow, Russia Drafted by the Brooklyn Nets
Dallin Hall 30 G 6'4" 200 Jr. Plain City, UT Transferred to Virginia
Trevin Knell 21 G 6'5" 190 Gr. Woods Cross, UT Out of eligibility
Mawot Mag 0 F 6'7" 215 Gr. Melbourne, Australia Out of eligibility
Trey Stewart 1 G 6'2" 190 Sr. American Fork, UT Out of eligibility
Fousseyni Traore 45 F 6'6" 245 Sr. Bamako, Mali Out of eligibility
Max Triplett 20 F 6'9" 210 Jr. Huntsville, UT Transferred to Cal Poly
Townsend Tripple 20 F 6'8" 200 So. Meridian, ID Transferred

Incoming transfers

Name Pos. Number Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Kennard Davis Jr. SF 30 6'5" 185 Jr. Saint Louis, MO Southern Illinois
Dominique Diomande SF 24 6'7" 190 RS-Fr. Paris, France Washington
Tyler Mrus SF 2 6'7" 205 Jr. Bothell, WA Idaho
Nate Pickens G 12 6'3" 175 Jr. El Mirage, AZ UC Riverside
Robert Wright III PG 1 6'1" 180 Fr. Philadelphia, PA Baylor
KJ Perry G 6'3" 180 So. Southfield, MI Citrus College

Recruiting classes

2025 recruiting class

College recruiting information
Name Hometown School Height Weight Commit date
AJ Dybantsa
F
Brockton, MA Utah Prep 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Dec 10, 2024 
Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (98)
Xavion Staton
C
Las Vegas, NV Utah Prep 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Nov 5, 2024 
Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (85)
Aleksej Kostić
G
Pfaffstätten, Austria Arkadia Traiskirchen 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jul 23, 2025 
Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Abdullah Ahmed
C
Cairo, Egypt Westchester Knicks 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Nov 12, 2025 
Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Overall recruit ranking:   Scout: 18    Rivals: 18    ESPN: 13
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "ESPN". ESPN. Retrieved July 20, 2025.
  • "2025 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved July 20, 2025.

Roster

2025–26 BYU Cougars men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 1 Robert Wright III 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Baylor Wilmington, DE
F 2 Tyler Mrus 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jr Idaho Bothell, WA
F 3 AJ Dybantsa 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Utah Prep Brockton, MA
F 4 Brody Kozlowski  6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Corner Canyon Draper, UT
F 5 Mihailo Bošković 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Sr Igokea m:tel Užice, Serbia
G 6 Aleksej Kostić 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Fr Arkadia Traiskirchen Pfaffstätten, Austria
F 7 Khadim Mboup 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS Fr NBA Academy Africa Dakar, Senegal
G 12 Nate Pickens   6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Sr UC Riverside El Mirage, AZ
C 13 Keba Keita 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Sr Utah Bamako, Mali
G 15 Richie Saunders 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Sr Wasatch Academy Riverton, UT
F 24 Dominique Diomande 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS Fr Washington Paris, France
G 25 Dawson Baker  6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS Sr UC Irvine Coto de Caza, CA
G 30 Kennard Davis Jr. 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Southern Illinois Saint Louis, MO
C 33 Xavion Staton 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Utah Prep Las Vegas, NV
C 34 Abdullah Ahmed 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) So Westchester Knicks Cairo, Egypt
G 51 Jared McGregor (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Westlake Saratoga Springs, UT
G KJ Perry  6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Citrus College Southfield, MI
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
October 18, 2025*
11:00 a.m., B1G+
No. 8 at Nebraska L 89–90 
 30  Dybantsa   11  Mboup   5  Wright III  Pinnacle Bank Arena (14,992)
Lincoln, NE
October 24, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 8 vs. No. 25 North Carolina
The Bad Boy Mowers Series - Salt Lake City
W 78–76 
 18  Dybantsa   10  Keita   5  Wright III  Delta Center (9,030)
Salt Lake City, UT
Non-conference regular season
November 3, 2025*
7:30 p.m., TNT/TruTV
No. 8 vs. Villanova
Hall of Fame Series − Las Vegas
W 71–66  1–0
 21  Dybantsa   7  Tied   3  Tied  T-Mobile Arena (16,704)
Paradise, NV
November 8, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 8 Holy Cross W 98–53  2–0
 20  Saunders   8  Dybantsa   3  Tied  Marriott Center (17,918)
Provo, UT
November 11, 2025*
7:00 p.m., CBSSN
No. 7 Delaware W 85–68  3–0
 26  Saunders   10  Saunders   9  Wright  Marriott Center (18,299)
Provo, UT
November 15, 2025*
5:00 p.m., FOX
No. 7 vs. No. 3 UConn
Hall of Fame Series − Boston
L 84–86  3–1
 25  Dybansta   6  Dybansta   3  Wright  TD Garden (16,116)
Boston, MA
November 21, 2025*
2:00 p.m., Peacock/NBCSN
No. 9 vs. No. 23 Wisconsin
The Bad Boy Mowers Series - Salt Lake City
W 98–70  4–1
 26  Saunders   7  Wright   11  Wright  Delta Center (8,987)
Salt Lake City, UT
November 27, 2025*
3:00 p.m., ESPN
No. 9 vs. Miami
ESPN Events Invitational Magic Bracket Semifinal
W 72–62  5–1
 18  Davis Jr.   10  Keita   5  Saunders  State Farm Field House (4,267)
Kissimmee, FL
November 28, 2025*
7:30 p.m., ESPN
No. 9 vs. Dayton
ESPN Events Invitational Magic Bracket Final
W 83–79  6–1
 29  Saunders   8  Saunders   6  Wright  State Farm Field House (4,135)
Kissimmee, FL
December 3, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 9 vs. California Baptist
Delta Center Series
W 91–60  7–1
 22  Tied   14  Keita   11  Wright  Delta Center (9,189)
Salt Lake City, UT
December 9, 2025*
4:30 p.m., ESPN
No. 10 vs. Clemson
Jimmy V Classic
W 67–64  8–1
 28  Dybantsa   9  Dybantsa   6  Dybantsa  Madison Square Garden (19,694)
New York, NY
December 13, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 10 UC Riverside W 100–53  9–1
 26  Dybansta   11  Keita   7  Dybansta  Marriott Center (17,982)
Provo, UT
December 16, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 10 Pacific W 93–57  10–1
 24  Saunders   10  Dybantsa   4  Wright  Marriott Center (17,936)
Provo, UT
December 19, 2025*
7:30 p.m., TNT/TruTV
No. 10 Abilene Christian W 85–67  11–1
 35  Dybantsa   10  Mboup   4  Tied  Marriott Center (17,958)
Provo, UT
December 22, 2025*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+
Eastern Washington       Marriott Center 
Provo, UT
Big 12 regular season
January 3, 2026
11:30 a.m., CBS
at Kansas State       Bramlage Coliseum 
Manhattan, KS
January 7, 2026
7:30 p.m., Peacock
Arizona State       Marriott Center 
Provo, UT
January 10, 2026
8:30 p.m., ESPN
at Utah
Rivalry
      Jon M. Huntsman Center 
Salt Lake City, UT
January 14, 2026
9:00 p.m., ESPN2
TCU       Marriott Center 
Provo, UT
January 17, 2026
6:00 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2
at Texas Tech       United Supermarkets Arena 
Lubbock, TX
January 24, 2026
3:30 p.m., ESPN
Utah
Rivalry
      Marriott Center 
Provo, UT
January 26, 2026
7:00 p.m., ESPN
Arizona
Big Monday
      Marriott Center 
Provo, UT
January 31, 2026
2:00/2:30 p.m., ESPN
at Kansas       Allen Fieldhouse 
Lawrence, KS
February 4, 2026
7:00 p.m., FS1
at Oklahoma State       Gallagher-Iba Arena 
Stillwater, OK
February 7, 2026
8:30 p.m., ESPN
Houston       Marriott Center 
Provo, UT
February 10, 2026
5:00 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2
at Baylor       Foster Pavilion 
Waco, TX
February 14, 2026
2:00 p.m., FS1
Colorado       Marriott Center 
Provo, UT
February 18, 2026
7:00 p.m., ESPN
at Arizona       McKale Center 
Tucson, AZ
February 21, 2026
8:30 p.m., ESPN
Iowa State       Marriott Center 
Provo, UT
February 24, 2026
9:00 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2
UCF       Marriott Center 
Provo, UT
February 28, 2026
3:30 p.m., FOX
at West Virginia       WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, WV
March 3, 2026
5:00 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2
at Cincinnati       Fifth Third Arena 
Cincinnati, OH
March 7, 2026
8:300 p.m., ESPN
Texas Tech       Marriott Center 
Provo, UT
Big 12 tournament
March 10−14, 2026
TBD, TBD
vs. TBD       T-Mobile Center 
Kansas City, MO
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Mountain Time.

Source[6]

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516171819Final
AP879991010
Coaches871011101010

References