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BYU's Trey Stewart shoots a 3-pointer against Texas Tech in a Big 12 men's college basketball game at the Marriott Center on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025.

Courtesy BYU Photo

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Brigham Young guard Trevin Knell (21) shoots against Houston guard Mylik Wilson (8) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Houston, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025.

Ashley Landis, AP Photo

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BYU's Mawot Mag handles the ball against Colorado in a Big 12 men's college basketball game in Boulder on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. The game started after the print deadline for the Daily Herald. Got to heraldextra.com for results at the conclusion of the game.

Courtesy BYU Photo

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BYU's Fousseyni Traore moves to the basket against Cincinnati in a Big 12 men's basketball game at the Marriott Center on Saturday, Jan. 26, 2025.

Courtesy BYU Photo

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Looking for a moment that turned the BYU season around?

Here’s one that first-year Cougar coach Kevin Young brought up in his post-game interview on BYU Radio after Tuesday’s epic 88-85 double overtime victory at Iowa State.

“We had a little situation in Orlando at halftime in the locker room where enough was enough in terms of teams punking us, pushing us, not letting us hold space, taking the ball from us,” Young said. “I think since that moment, we’ve grown a ton in that area. I think we’re really imposing our will on teams now, whereas up until that point, I felt like that wasn’t the case.”

Young was referring to an 81-75 victory at UCF on Feb. 1, where Richie Saunders (22 points) and Mawot Mag (19) handled the scoring and the Cougars, who had 12 turnovers in the first half, committed only six in the second. BYU is 8-2 since that win.

During its current seven-game winning streak, BYU has consistently reached for the ability to handle whatever setbacks it faces.

“It just shows our toughness,” Mag said. “I feel like any adversity, anything that’s thrown in front of us, we’re going to prevail. We never give up and that just shows the will and determination we have to win. I feel it shows what type of team we are and what we’re made of.”

Senior Night

The Cougars will honor two seniors (Trey Stewart and Fousseyni Traore) along with graduate students Mag and Trevin Knell on Saturday, the final regular-season home game at the Marriott Center.

“Fous, Trev and Trey have been here their whole careers and have meant so much to this program and for me in terms of being able to rely on their experience, both at BYU and in the Big 12,” Young said on his weekly coach’s show. “Their leadership both on and off court is something we rely on.

“Trey is a guy who really exemplifies what we’ve been about this year. It hasn’t always gone his way but he’s stayed the course and he’s been able to work his way into a role. Fous has been extremely steady and Trev has been a rock for me personally in terms of trying to get a pulse on the team. I’ve talked to him a lot about that.”

Mag, who transferred to BYU after four years at Rutgers, has worked his way into the starting lineup and is a big part of the team’s late surge.

“Mawot is unique,” Young said. “The thing I love about him is you’re talking about a guy who played in a system for four years and did things a certain way and now he comes here. He’s been able to transform his offensive game, going from being pretty inefficient as a player to being extremely efficient. I know his defense gets talked about a lot, as it should, but that’s remarkable. His splits are off the charts compared to what they were before he got here. So that’s a credit to him. The intensity he plays the game with is super inspiring for our whole group.”

Saturday’s matchup with Utah might also be the final regular-season home game for freshman Egor Demin, who could be a lottery pick in this spring’s NBA Draft.

Scouting Report

Utah arrives at the Marriott Center for both team’s season finale in a state of transition. Craig Smith was fired on Feb. 24 after nearly four years at the helm and on Thursday former Ute Alex Jensen, an NBA assistant, was named the new head coach.

Utah stole a 73-72 overtime victory against BYU on Jan. 18 at the Huntsman Center. The Cougars couldn’t stay in front of 6-foot-8 junior Ezra Ausar (26 points) and former BYU player Hunter Erickson scored the final six points in the extra session for Utah.

The Utes are 5-8 since beating BYU, losing to West Virginia 71-69 on Tuesday.

“It’s gonna be a very emotional moment, the last game, especially for all the seniors,” Mag said. “But I feel like we’ve just got to win the game and cherish the moments with our teammates, and just finish the regular season strong. I feel like the way we’re training right now, we’re gonna be very hard to beat, and we’ve got to keep on working. Don’t be too high, don’t be too low.”

Men’s College Basketball

Utah (16-14, 8-11 Big 12) at No. 23 BYU (22-8, 13-6 Big 12)

Saturday, 8 p.m. MT

Marriott Center, Provo

TV/Streaming: ESPNU

Radio: KSL 102.7 FM/1160 AM, BYU Radio

Live stats: byucougars.com

The Word: This is the 266th meeting between BYU and Utah. … The Cougars lead the series 134-131 overall. … The two teams met in Salt Lake City on Jan. 18, with the Utes earning a 73-72 overtime victory at the Huntsman Center. … Saturday’s game in the Marriott Center is a sellout. … The Cougars are assured no worse than the No. 4 seed in next week’s Big 12 Tournament.

2025 BYU Senior Night

Trevin Knell 6-5 Gr. G North Salt Lake, Utah

Scored 25.4 points per game during his senior year at Woods Cross High School in 2016-17. … Served a church mission to Uruguay. … Married to Tatum in August of 2021. … Has appeared in 144 games with 75 starts, averaging 7.3 points per contest. … Has made 226 3-pointers in his career and shoots .399 from beyond the arc.

Trey Stewart 6-2 Sr. G American Fork, Utah

Helped lead American Fork High School to a state championship in 2019. … Served a church mission in Leeds, England and Kennewick, Wash. … His father, Ray, played college basketball at Utah Valley in the early 1990s. … Trey is the owner of Default Happiness clothing company. … Has appeared in 87 games, including four starts. … Has scored 131 points, grabbed 93 rebounds, dished out 69 assists and grabbed 44 steals in his career.

Fousseyni Traore 6-6 Sr. F Bamako, Mali

Played high school ball at Wasatch Academy. … Has appeared in 122 games with 63 starts during his career at BYU. … Career average is 10.5 points per game while shooting .610 from the field along with totaling 840 rebounds (6.9 per game). … Made the WCC All-Freshman team in 2022, was All-WCC second team in 2023 and All-Big 12 honorable mention in 2024. … Was academic All-Big 12 last season.

Mawot Mag 6-7 Gr. G Melbourne, Australia

Was born in the Sudan, then moved to Australia when he was two years old. … Appeared in 80 games, including 41 starts, during four years at Rutgers. … Transferred to BYU for the 2024-25 season. … Scored a season-high 19 points on Feb. 1 at UCF. … Has played in 28 games, starting 16, and averages 5.9 points while shooting .513 from the field, .390 from the 3-point line and .715 on free throws. …