BYU head men’s basketball head coach Kevin Young has announced the addition of Kennard Davis Jr.

“We’d like to welcome Kennard and his family to BYU,” Young said. “He brings a very diverse skill set to our team, and combined with his size, he gives us a lot of optionality on both ends of the floor. Kennard is a very good defender who can guard multiple positions, and he will be one of the best defenders in the Big 12. Offensively, we love his shooting and ability to get to the rim and free throw line. Maybe the most impressive thing about Kennard is how much he’s improved. He will fit right into our player development program. We look forward to helping him take his game to another level.”

The 6-foot-6 guard joins the Cougars after spending the past two years at Southern Illinois, where he appeared in 64 games, including 41 starts. During his time as a Saluki, Davis averaged 10.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game while shooting 44.6 percent from the field, 35.4 percent from three and 73.8 percent from the free throw line.

As a sophomore in 2024, he earned Second Team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors after averaging a career-best 16.3 points per game, shooting 45.5 percent from the field, 37.6 percent from three and 76.3 percent from the charity stripe.

Davis scored in double figures 28 times, including 10 games with 20 or more. He scored a career-high 26 points against Murray State on Feb. 19, going 11-of-19 from the field and 3-of-4 from the free throw line. He also had 10 rebounds against the Racers for one of his four double-doubles on the season.

The St. Louis, Mo. native saw action in 32 games as a true freshman in 2023-24, averaging 21.3 minutes and scored 4.2 points per game. He ranked third on the team in steals with 22 to go along with 96 rebounds, 28 assists and three blocks.

Davis was a four-year letterwinner at Vashon High School in St. Louis, Mo. where he led the Wolverines to four straight state championships. The Missouri Basketball Coaches Association Class 4 Player of the Year was a three-star recruit according to 247Sports. He was rated as the 11th best player in The Show-Me State and 60th best small forward in the country.