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BYU men's basketball coach Kevin Young talks to an official during a men's college basketball game against Wisconsin at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025.

Harold Mitchell, Special to the Herald

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BYU's Richie Saunders (left) defends against Wisconsin in a men's college basketball game at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025.

Harold Mitchell, Special to the Herald

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BYU men’s basketball head coach Kevin Young likes to say that each game has a life of its own.

So do Young’s substitution patterns in non-conference play.

Young’s rotations are always based on whose available due to injuries. Foul trouble often plays a part as do matchups. The Cougars set up one of the most unique non-conference schedules in school history this season to achieve a high NET ranking but also to allow Young to see what kind of roster he’s built.

Young relishes the opportunity to become something akin to a mad scientist as he experiments with different lineups and rotations.

“It’s everything, man,” Young said. “It’s huge. Have we have not played Carolina? Have we have not played UConn and Villanova? So it’s the only way to learn about your group. I’m not going to act like I’m a savvy vet in the college game. I mean, you’ve got one team last year. You figure that team out. Now you’ve got a new team. We’ve got to figure those guys out and that can be challenging.”

When Kennard Davis Jr. became unavailable due to a DUI charge, Young had to change the starting lineup. When Keba Keita went down with a concussion in the first half of the UConn game, Young had to figure out a new front court rotation. When freshman AJ Dybantsa picked up his third and fourth fouls in succession just two minutes into the second half against Wisconsin, Young had to rely on young players off the bench to step up.

More changes might be in store for the Cougars during Thanksgiving week at the Terry’s Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational in Florida, where BYU opens with Miami on Thursday afternoon.

Dominique Diamonde, Tyler Mrus and Khadim Mboup all played well in extended minutes off the bench against Wisconsin and may have earned more time on the court.

“This is gonna take a little bit of time,” Young said. “We’ve got to work through all of this. We’re not just going to snap our fingers and be the team we want to be now, tonight.”

SCOUTING REPORT

The Miami Hurricanes put together back-to-back special seasons recently, making the Elite Eight in 2022 and the Final Four in 2023. Things went south last December when long-time head coach Jim Larranaga stepped down after a 4-8 start. Bill Courtney took over as the interim head coach and Miami posted a 7-24 record, 3-17 (18th) in the ACC.

The school hired 36-year-old Duke assistant Jai Lucas — son of former NBA star and coach John Lucas — in March. The Hurricanes were picked to finish eighth in the ACC preseason poll.

The first roster for the younger Lucas features six transfers and seven freshmen. Miami has started 5-1 with victories against Jacksonville (86-69), Bethune-Cookman (101-61), Stetson (102-61), Elon (99-72) and Delaware State (97-41). The Hurricanes loss came at the hands of No. 10 Florida (82-68).

Forward Malik Reneau, an honorable mention All-Big Ten selection at Indiana last season, leads Miami with 21 points per game. On Sunday against Delaware State, the 6-foot-9 Reneau tallied 24 points and ten rebounds on a nearly perfect shooting night: 10 of 10 from the field, 1 of 1 from the 3-point line and 3 of 4 from the foul line.

Michigan transfer Tre Donaldson (6-3 Sr.) and Shelton Henderson (6-4 Fr.) average 16 and 12 points per game, respectively, for a team shooting 51% from the field in its first six games.

Men’s College Basketball

Terry’s Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational

No. 9 BYU (4-1) vs. Miami (5-1)

Thursday, 3 p.m. MT

State Farm Fieldhouse in Kissimmee, Fla.

TV/Streaming: ESPN

Radio: KSL 102.7/1160 AM, BYU Radio-Sirus XM 143,

Live stats: byucougars.com

The Word: The overall series between BYU and Miami is tied at 2-2, with the Hurricane winning the last meeting 107-86 at home in 1989. … BYU is 14-2 in games where Richie Saunders scores 20 points or more. He scored 26 in last Friday’s 98-70 victory against No. 23 Wisconsin at the Delta Center. … The other game in the tournament is between Dayton and Georgetown. … BYU’s Thanksgiving break tournament last season was the Rady Children’s Invitational in San Diego, where the Cougars went 1-1 with an 96-85 loss to Ole Miss and a 72-61 victory against North Carolina State.