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BYU's Robert Wright III dribbles against Nebraska in a men's college basketball exhibition game at the Marriott Center on Friday, October 16, 2026.

Courtesy BYU Photo

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BYU's Delaney Gibb drives through the lane to score two of her eight points during a 77-65 win over Utah at the Marriott Center on Saturday. January 31, 2026

Harold Mitchell, Special to the Daily Herald

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League media days are not for breaking news or in-depth breakdowns of strategy.

Instead, every team in undefeated, every program dominated offseason training and league officials herald the start of what they believe be the best season ever.

If all of that is true, then the Monster Energy Big 12 Basketball Media Days in Kansas City were a rousing success.

All 32 Big 12 programs (16 men, 16 women) had their coaches and players in attendance on Tuesday and Wednesday at the T-Mobile Center to schmooze with the league’s television partners (ESPN, FOX, CBS, TNT and NBC) and fill the air with positivity in interview sessions.

The BYU men’s basketball team did have to call an audible: Head coach Kevin Young was feeling ill and did not attend, instead sending associate head coach Tim Fanning in his place. Fanning said he found out Monday after practice he was heading to Kansas City to sub for Young.

“We’re excited to see the group take the court,” Fanning told BYUtv. “Obviously, being here makes it more real in terms of the first games just being around the corner. We think we’ve got a really good balance of veteran players and young new faces, and really the season can’t get here soon enough.”

Despite a fair amount of roster turnover (10 new players), the Cougars did retain the services of junior point guard Robert Wright III.

“Rob was one of the best point guards in the country last year, and he’s improved a lot,” Fanning said. “His body has improved a lot and his shooting has improved a lot. He’s a guy that’s clearly on an upward trend just as an individual in his development, and so having a guy like that back is is massive for the team. We I think we did a really good job of surrounding him with shooting. So I think the we’re gonna be a really tough team to to stop.”

While last year’s team was focused on getting AJ Dybantsa in isolation, Fanning said the approach for 2026-27 will be different.

“I think it’ll be more ball movement this year,” he said. “Offensively it will look a little bit more like how it looked our first year in terms of just with the number of shooters that we have. I think the ball is going to be moving more, and then I think something that we’ve been trying to work on a lot is our defense of having more of a defensive identity. I don’t think we’ve felt like the first couple years we’ve really found that yet, and so I think that’s something that we spent a lot of time in the off season working on.”

Wright said he and his teammates — selected sixth in the league’s preseason poll — have been preparing for the rigors of Big 12 play.

“The Big 12 is a battle, so each and every game, we just come in knowing that it’s going to be a tough teams on the road and at home,” he said. “We just want to make sure that we win in those games and just want to be one of the best teams in the conference. I just kind of do what my team need for me to for us to win. There are moments where I have to step up sometimes and just make those plays.”

BYU women’s basketball coach Lee Cummard, now in his second year, leads a group picked to finish seventh in the Big 12.

“We’ve got a good chunk of our group back,” Cummard said. “We feel good about that. I’ll put my locker room against anybody in the country as far as the people that they are and how they compete every day.”

Cummard and his staff have extended their reach around the world to bring players to Provo,

“Half of our team (six of 12 on the roster) is from overseas,” he said. “We feel like they fit us perfectly and their life experience strengthens our group.”

Returning junior guard Delaney Gibb was a first-team All-Big 12 selection last season.

“I gained some experience playing games with Canada basketball (this summer), which was exciting,” Gibb said. “Honestly, I’m just trying to take on more of a leadership role. I’m now an upperclassman, which is crazy to think about. I just want to impact the game in so many more ways than I than I have been. I have been a key scorer for our team, but I want to be a great playmaker, and so I focused a lot on that. I’, just trying to find ways to help my team be successful.”

Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark said he likes the progress the league is making in basketball.

“Starting with the men, and I’ve said this before and I said it again yesterday: We’re the second best league outside the NBA, and I firmly believe that,” Yormark said. “When you think about the talent, the depth, Hall of Fame coaches. I mean, it’s incredible. And the same thing goes for the women. The AP poll came out yesterday for the women and we have three in the top 24. We’ll get more in there. I think some of our schools are being overlooked right now, but that’s okay.

“On the men’s side we we had six in the top 25, so a lot of star power. A lot of great freshmen are calling the Big 12 home, 11 in the top 40 on the men’s side and the women were very successful in the portal in rebuilding their roster. So I’m really excited about where this conference is going on both sides. And listen, we want to win national championships. That’s what we’re investing in. That’s what we’re striving for. And hopefully, that’ll come to fruition this year.”

Saturday’s football win against Notre Dame has given the league a renewed amount of momentum in all sports.

“I’ve been around BYU for over 20 years, and I’ve never seen it like it is right now,” Cummard said. “Everything’s magnified. Saturday night in Lavell Edwards (Stadium), it was as good as it gets. I was at the game. I stormed the field. There’s alignment from the top down, from the church to the president, down to the administration and (athletic director) Brian Santiago, what they put together. And honestly, they expect it, right? That’s what the expectation is at BYU, and we’re all trying to do what we can in our own way.”

The BYU men’s team has an exhibition game on Saturday at UNLV and opens the non-conference slate on Nov. 2 against Ohio State at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City.

The women’s team plays their only exhibition game on Oct. 27 against Western Colorado, then begins non-conference play Nov. 3 against Idaho State at the Marriott Center.