A work in progress: BYU shows necessary strides despite taking a tough 75-68 loss to Arizona
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- BYU freshman AJ Dybantsa boxes out to grab one of his seven rebounds during Wednesday’s 75-68 loss to Arizona. February 18, 2026
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- BYU forward Khadim Mboup throws home a dunk during his team’s 75-68 loss to Arizona on Wednesday. February 18, 2026
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- BYU’s Rob Wright scored 13 points during his team’s 75-68 loss to Arizona on Wednesday. February 18, 2026
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- BYU’s AJ Dybantsa drives toward the hoop to score two of his game-high 35 points during the Cougar’s 75-68 loss to Arizona. February 18, 2026
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- BYU forward Kennard Davis Jr. drives strong toward the hoop and had 10 points during the Cougar’s 75-68 loss to Arizona. February 18, 2026
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- BYU’s AJ Dybantsa scored in a variety of ways during his team’s 75-68 loss to Arizona on Wednesday. February 18, 2026
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- BYU’s loss to Arizona featured a lot of physical with Robert Wright taking a bump through the lane here during the Cougar’s 75-68 loss. February 18, 2026
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- BYU’s AJ Dybantsa rises up to attempt a 3-pointer during the first half of his team’s 75-68 loss to Arizona. February 18, 2026
BYU’s 75-68 loss to Arizona on Wednesday wasn’t the result Cougar coach Kevin Young desired, although he came away optimistic that better results could be in store for his injury-riddled team.
The message conveyed by Young on the postgame podium was one of encouragement following his team’s first complete game played without the services of Richie Saunders. It wasn’t perfect by any means, and there was certainly enough surfacing during the game’s 40 minutes that the Cougar coaching staff will need to rectify, but overall the overall play presented a framework Young feels he can build off of.
“Just our response, our competitiveness (and) our want to, I thought, was very high,” Young said regarding the things which encouraged him specifically. “In a matter of two and a half days, we kind of upheaved our offense, where we haven’t done all year, and I thought some things that we did tonight were executed extremely well, just given the situation we’re in. So those are things that we’ll look to build on.”
Despite the upheaval, several things were left familiar. And that’s a good thing.
For starters, freshman phenom AJ Dybantsa again dominated the play on the offensive end, scoring a game-high 35 points while grabbing seven rebounds. The midrange game was working early and often with the Wildcats unable to bottle up the nation’s leading scorer throughout.
“I just tried to be aggressive early,” Dybantsa said. “Obviously, Richie (provides) a lot of aggressiveness. So I just tried to mimic what he gave us and try to (give) some.”
Rob Wright didn’t provide quite the level of scoring output he has recently although he again proved effective dissecting the Wildcat defense at key moments and finished with 13 points.
But as for the question of who would fill the enormous void left by Saunders, that remains to be answered.
Sure, Kennard Davis Jr. showed flashes and did provide 10 points over his 25 minutes of play. The problem, however, was that the production, at least with regards to scoring, dropped off dramatically from there with no Cougar player not named Dybantsa, Wright or Davis eclipsing even four points scored.
“AJ and Rob have been our catalysts all year, and continue to be,” Young said. “And we’ll try to continue to examine where we can get help from other guys…(and) put them in position where they can be effective. But it’s just a (tough) hand we’re dealt right now.”
One area where others could contribute is behind the arc, where BYU shot an abysmal 5-19 compared with Arizona’s 9-21 effort. It wasn’t until midway through the second half of play when any Cougar player not named Wright hit a 3-point attempt, which isn’t exactly a recipe for success.
Arizona on the other handled seemed to step up big from distance every time the Cougars appeared poise to retake the lead, with Anthony Dell’Orso leading the way with his 4-8 effort and team-high 22 points. While all four of his 3-pointers made played a factor, the one made right before the first half perhaps proved most pivotal.
With 0.8 seconds remaining until the break, and Arizona clinging to a 39-35 lead, Dell’Orso broke free and nailed a 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded to extend the lead to seven.
“We said that they were going to have to make threes to beat us, and they did,” Young said. ” So you have to give (Dell’Orso) credit, you know. He hasn’t had a great year, statistically, but he shot the heck out of the ball tonight, so you have to give him credit. And was I surprised by it? Yes, I was.”
Dell’Orso’s contribution came off of the Arizona bench and was necessary in light of the team playing without leading scorer Koa Peat, and it proved a significant difference. For BYU, the bench contribution was again scant with no one in particular effectively filling the tremendous void left by Saunders, at least not directly.
Dell’Orso’s play was also central in Arizona taking control throughout the second half, where the home team enjoyed a double-digit advantage before the Cougars worked to make things somewhat interesting down the stretch. A key to BYU’s push toward the end was center Keba Keita, who took the form of his old self in providing an impactful presence in the post, recording four big blocked shots and nine rebounds.
“He’s going through a lot. He’s had some injuries and he’s had some stuff going on,” Young said. “…He lost himself in the game tonight, which was good. (He) made some huge plays that were very ‘Kebaesque’ that we’re used to, you know, and we’re going to, we need every bit of that. He’s a, he’s a big time competitor (and a) beautiful young man. I was happy that he was able to have some success tonight, and I really hope to your question that it is a springboard for him for the rest of the season.”
Overall, Keita made the type of difference sorely needed in the post with the hope of others stepping up in like form to aide in the heavy burden currently carried by Dybantsa and Wright.
“So we’re going through it, and that’s part of going through the sports…that’s life,” Young concluded. “I’m proud of our guys for their effort tonight and their effort and practice the last couple days. We’re trying to reinvent ourselves, kind of on the fly, and I think there’s a lot of good things that happened tonight…I can tell you that right now, and that’s going to be a dog fight every time you play BYU. We’ll keep pounding that rock man until it breaks, and it will break for us eventually.”
With the loss BYU falls to 19-7 overall and 7-6 in Big 12 Conference play, and will certainly need a few more things to break its way when taking on No. 6 Iowa State at home this coming Saturday in order to come out on top. But based on the overall resolve shown on Wednesday, those strides could be well in store.
