When No. 8 BYU and Villanova square off in Las Vegas on Monday, their season-opening clash will offer a barometer measuring where the two programs might be headed this season.
Fresh off its Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2011, the Cougars are positioned to contend for a Big 12 championship. BYU brought in AJ Dybantsa, a freshman forward widely projected as a potential No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. The Cougars also added several talented transfers, headlined by guards Robert Wright III (Baylor) and Kennard Davis, Jr. (Southern Illinois).
They join returning stars Richie Saunders, Keba Keita, and Dawson Baker, giving the Cougars a team that will be defined by a dynamic, potent offense again. It’s one big reason why BYU was picked to finish second in the Big 12 behind defending league champion Houston.
It has also put a target on the Cougars, who finished 26-10 overall and 14-6 in the Big 12 last season.
“Everyone knows we are a preseason Top 10 team, so we are just trying to be locked in and know we have to get better if we want to be the team that’s winning at the end of the season,” Wright said at Big 12 Media Day.
Saunders was BYU’s top scorer a year ago, averaging 16.5 points per game while shooting 43.2% from 3-point range. Wright fills a hole at point guard left by Egor Demin. Keita had the second-most offensive rebounds in a season (100) at BYU and the highest single-season field-goal percentage (.673) in program history.
In his lone season at Baylor, Wright III set the program’s single-season freshman assists record with 148. Dybantsa comes to Provo as a 2025 McDonald’s All-American and three-time FIBA goal medalist.
Stacking the cupboard was crucial for the Cougars to build on Kevin Young’s successful debut season at the helm in one of the nation’s toughest basketball conferences.
“For me, almost every Big 12 game feels like a tournament game,” Young said at Big 12 Media Day. “So you gotta bring it every night.”
Villanova, which went 21-15 overall and 11-9 in the Big East last season, is trying to recapture its former glory under first-year coach Kevin Willard. The Wildcats did not reach the NCAA Tournament during Kyle Neptune’s three seasons at the helm after winning a pair of national titles under Neptune’s predecessor, Jay Wright.
Willard came to Villanova from Maryland, where he led the Terrapins to the NCAA Tournament twice in three seasons. He previously coached in the Big East, spending 12 seasons at Seton Hall from 2010 to 2022.
The Wildcats’ rebuilt roster features eight transfers. Three newcomers — Tafara Gapare, Malachi Palmer and Braden Pierce — followed Willard from Maryland.
Both teams split their preseason exhibitions. BYU beat North Carolina and lost to Nebraska, while Villanova notched a win over VCU and a loss to Virginia.
“I thought we got everything out of it we could have wanted,” Willard said following the loss to Virginia. “It’s why I think these exhibitions are more valuable than closed scrimmages. You get to learn a lot about your team.”
–Field Level Media
