Tag: BYU Cougars

North Carolina weirdly pitched AJ Dybantsa on Duke’s success during failed recruitment

Why did North Carolina do this?!?

AJ Dybantsa decided to play college basketball at BYU, but before that, he considered various other schools including North Carolina.

Picture this scenario that Dybantsa experienced: You are the top basketball recruit in the nation and while meeting with the program, the university opts to weirdly invoke the success of their biggest rival as a reason to attend their school.

That is somehow exactly what happened for Dybantsa when he met with UNC, according to a recent profile by Matt Norlander. It makes no sense, but alas, here is what Dybantsa was reportedly told (via CBS Sports):

“North Carolina pitched him a vision of being the next all-time scoring superstar to wear Tar Heel Blue, following in the footsteps of Michael Jordan, Vince Carter and Jerry Stackhouse. They referenced how Zion Williamson’s net worth skyrocketed by choosing to play at Duke instead of Clemson, laying out what one season at a blue blood did for his career in advance of being drafted by the New Orleans Pelicans, including a shoe deal worth upward of $50 million before ever playing an NBA game.”

That was an absolutely absurd decision, and Duke seemed to troll UNC afterward by posting a GIF of Williamson:

After hearing this pitch, and the whopping NIL deal, it isn’t exactly as much a surprise that the projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft decided BYU as a better fit than UNC.

Whoever mentioned Williamson should probably reconsider that for future meetings with recruits.

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AJ Dybantsa will attend BYU in a massive decision for the No. 1 high school basketball player

AJ Dybantsa is the first five-star for BYU.

The college basketball landscape shifted on Tuesday morning when AJ Dybantsa committed to play college basketball at BYU.

Widely considered the top high school player in the country for the Class of 2025, he is currently the projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. He was the top recruit uncommitted after Cameron Boozer announced his intentions to play for Duke.

Dybantsa chose to play for Brigham Young over Kansas, North Carolina, and Alabama. He will suit up next season in Provo after transferring to Utah Prep from Prolific Prep in California for his final year of high school hoops.

The 17-year-old, 6-foot-9 forward has won gold medals for Team USA at the FIBA U17 World Cup and FIBA U16 Americas Championship.

He will play for Kevin Young, a former Phoenix Suns assistant, at BYU. He is the first five-star recruit in the modern recruiting era of program history. It is expected he will sign a massive NIL deal potentially worth around from $5 million to $7 million.

Dybantsa, who said he plays like Tracy McGrady and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and considers himself a point forward, intends to contend for a college championship in the NCAA.

He could potentially join Egor Demin as back-to-back lottery picks for BYU, which would likeely change the trajectory of the program forever.

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BYU’s Jewish QB Jake Retzlaff signs NIL deal with Manischewitz

The perfect NIL pairing has happened for BYU QB Jake Retzlaff

A toast to BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff for his NIL deal.

The Jewish QB at the Mormon college has a new NIL deal and it is a perfect fit.

Retzlaff and Manischewitz will be working together in a pairing with great synergy.

Per Retzlaff in a press release:

“Manischewitz has always been part of my life, I grew up with matzo with peanut butter as my favorite snack, and every Passover, my family and I made matzo pizza together. At Chanukah time our tradition was making potato latkes.

“Now, at BYU, I’m able to share these traditions with my teammates. This partnership is about more than football — it’s about creating connections and celebrating Jewish pride in ways I never expected.”

The business chimed in on working with its newest partner:

“We are so proud to welcome Jake officially into the Manischewitz family this holiday season,” Shani Seidman, the chief marketing officer of Kayco, Manischewitz’s parent company, said in the release. “He is such an inspiration, and we are honored to support his exciting football career and dream. This partnership represents everything the brand aspires to be — celebrating our heritage and bringing awareness to Jewish food and excellence.”

Three Iowa women’s basketball stars during Cancun Challenge

Three stars for Iowa women’s basketball during their two-game stay in the Cancun Challenge.

The No. 22-ranked Iowa women’s basketball team (8-0) wrapped up a perfect record in the two-game Cancun Challenge from the Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya with a close 69-62 win over Rhode Island on Thursday and a blowout 68-48 victory against BYU on Friday.

In the two games combined, the Hawkeyes‘ offense shot 49-for-99 (49.5%) from the field and 17-for-40 (42.5%) from 3-point territory. The team also finished with a combined 66 rebounds and 34 assists.

Defensively, Iowa held Rhode Island and BYU to a combined 40-for-109 (36.7%) from the field and 15-for-42 (35.7%) from deep. Iowa also collected 18 steals and eight blocks combined through the two games played in Cancun.

With the Hawkeyes returning to the cold midwest weather of Iowa City, here’s a look at Iowa’s three stars from the Cancun Classic.

Addison O’Grady

Senior center Addison O’Grady continued her dominating role at center by finishing with the two-game invitational with 30 points on 14-of-17 shooting (82.4%) from the field, including 2-for-2 (100%) from the charity stripe.

The senior also added nine assists, nine rebounds, six blocks, and one steal to her total in both games.

For O’Grady, this is another impressive set of performances that should bring deserved recognition later on in the season.

Hannah Stuelke

Zach Boyden-Holmes/The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Junior forward Hannah Stuelke had two solid performances for the Hawkeyes by scoring 29 points on 10-for-17 shooting (58.8%) from the field, 2-of-6 (33.3%) from deep, and 8-for-14 (57.1%) from the free throw line.

The junior forward also added a combined 12 rebounds, five assists, and two steals for the Hawkeyes while in Mexico.

While expected, Stuelke’s consistent scoring and rebounding presence is always well appreciated, especially as the season progresses.

Aaliyah Guyton

Julia Hansen/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Freshman guard Aaliyah Guyton made a major contribution off the bench throughout the Cancun Challenge as she contributed 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting (66.6%) from the field, 5-of-6 (83.3%) from deep, and 1-of-2 from the free throw line.

She also added four assists, four rebounds, one steal, and one rebound to her 39 minutes of game time throughout the invitational.

With Lucy Olsen recovering from an injury sustained during the trip, Guyton’s play was much appreciated, especially in a depth role.

Iowa returns to action on Dec. 7 as they head to Brooklyn, N.Y. where they will play in the Women’s Champions Classic vs. Tennessee. Game time for that matchup is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on Fox and on the Hawkeye Radio Network.

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes and opinions.

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Iowa women’s basketball date featured among ESPN’s ‘Feast Week’ must-see games

ESPN writes that one of Iowa women’s basketball’s upcoming dates is among its must-see “Feast Week” attractions.

For the first time this season, the Iowa Hawkeyes cracked the AP Top 25 Women’s College Basketball Poll.

Iowa checks in as the nation’s No. 22 team in the latest AP Top 25.

The Hawkeyes are 6-0 after dismantling Washington State, 72-43, on Sunday.

Senior guard Lucy Olsen finished with a game-high 17 points on 7-of-15 shooting in the win. Olsen added eight boards, five assists and one steal.

Senior center Addison O’Grady had another strong performance, chipping in with 14 points, seven rebounds and a pair of assists on 4-of-5 shooting.

But, it was what Iowa did defensively and on the glass that really turned heads. The Hawkeyes limited Washington State to 27.4% shooting from the field and 23.3% from 3-point range. Iowa forced 20 WSU turnovers and outrebounded the Cougars, 53-37.

As Iowa reenters the national conscience, the Hawkeyes’ rise is reflected by ESPN’s Feast Week guide. ESPN’s Charlie Creme tabbed Iowa’s Friday date against BYU among its must-see games during Feast Week.

Iowa has proved that life after Caitlin Clark and Lisa Bluder exists with an offense that is still among the best in the country through five games. BYU wasn’t supposed to contend in the Big 12 but is off to a solid start behind freshman Delaney Gibb. If the Cougars’ postseason aspirations are real, this is a perfect chance to prove it. – Creme, ESPN.

Iowa is once again starting to represent that type of resume-building opportunity for opponents. The Hawkeyes are slated to tip off against BYU (5-1) at 8 p.m. CT on Friday, but Iowa has another game in the Cancun Challenge before it.

Iowa will square off against Rhode Island (4-3) at 5:30 p.m. CT on Thanksgiving Day. Both games will stream on FloCollege.

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes and opinions.

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Arizona State fans storm field with one second left in win over BYU

Arizona State held off BYU in a game with an odd finish

Call it a premature evacuation.

Arizona State fans thought the Sun Devils had beaten BYU on Saturday.

ASU tried to kill off the final 58 seconds of the game by running backward and burning clock.

Quarterback Sam Leavitt finally heaved the ball up in the air figuring by the time it landed the clock would read 0:00.

The crowd stormed the field but the officials ruled BYU had a second left and a chance for a Hail Mary. That would have been problematic because the fans had already had their way with s set of goalposts.

Arizona State held on for the Big 12 win in over of the most odd finishes this year.

Arizona State fans rush the field too early in the most chaotic moment of the college football season

This was so close to an absolute disaster!

What is it with college football fans rushing the field too soon this season?

The latest trend in college football feels like the fan equivalent of dropping the ball before crossing the goal line. Saturday saw Arizona State become the third fanbase in the last month to commit the absurd sin — but it was easily the most chaotic.

As the No. 21 Sun Devils hosted No. 14 BYU in a game with Big 12 championship — and College Football Playoff — implications, Arizona State fans thought the game was after running out the clock on fourth down near midfield with a 28-23 lead. In fact, there was one second left on the clock, which meant BYU still had a chance at a Hail Mary to pull off the comeback.

But all of that had to be sorted out while fans were actively rushing the field, creating absolute madness as coaches, players and fans tried to spread the word that the game was not over.

Getting all the fans back to their seats wasn’t exactly realistic. Instead, the officials decided to clear the field as much as possible. Which meant packing fans along the sidelines in a truly bizarre scene.

 

About 20 minutes after fans first rushed the field, play was finally able to resume. BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff dropped back, bought himself some time and heaved a ball all the way down to the two-yard line. Game over. Arizona State wins. And the fans got to rush again — this time without any barriers.

Thankfully this worked out for Arizona State, but we’ve really got to chill on this trend. Just wait til the clock hits zero before you celebrate a win.

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The latest 2025 NBA mock draft from Bleacher Report has BYU star Egor Demin on the Jazz

This seems like a PERFECT fit for the Jazz if they don’t Cooper Flagg.

One of the most exciting names in college basketball is BYU freshman Egor Demin, who is off to an incredibly hot start this season.

After one of the strongest debuts of any first-year player, the 18-year-old freshman from Russia looks like one of the most promising prospects in all of college basketball. He is averaging 17.0 points and 7.5 assists per game at 6-foot-9, shooting 11-of-20 (.550) on 3-pointers as well.

Read more from Jonathan Wasserman on why this is such a good pick (via Bleacher Report):

“While the Cooper Flagg hype came built in after years of coverage and NBA accessibility, no player has generated more NBA buzz on his own so far than Egor Demin.

BYU coach Kevin Young has given the freshman an ideal role to showcase his on-ball upside, and the Russian has capitalized, looking like a legitimate 6’9″ initiator creating advantages and setting up teammates with his handle, size and passing IQ.

So far, he’s looked fluid and convincing enough for scouts to start feeling confident in his ability to continue playmaking at a high level in the NBA.

He also looks substantially further ahead as a shooter than previous jumbo playmakers like Josh Giddey, Anthony Black or even Scottie Barnes. Demin made 11 threes over his first four games. And even if the accuracy falls off, his early start and track record overseas point to clear shotmaking confidence and shooting becoming a regular part of his scoring attack.

Looking ahead, scouts will be eager to assess Demin against power-conference opponents, specifically his ability to create separation and finish inside the arc.”

Demin has not faced much competition so far this season. Among all teams ranked in the top 30, via KenPom, only five have had less difficult strength of schedule so far. But if he can keep this up, expect he will only continue this ascension on draft boards.

The Jazz could make a lot of sense for Demin to pair him with Keyonte George as their backcourt of the future. Jazz chairman Ryan Smith and CEO Danny Ainge both attended BYU and are reportedly very big donors to the university. They would likely find it thrilling to add the next great BYU star to their roster.

Another team with potential interest is the Spurs, who selected him in ESPN’s latest mock draft.

Here is our latest NBA mock draft at For The Win, where Demin goes to the lowly and injured New Orleans Pelicans.

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Kansas knocks BYU from undefeated ranks with bizarre carom on pooch punt

Kansas went into BYU and knocked the Cougars from the unbeaten ranks

Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels’ foot — not feet nor arm — wound up delivering the key play in the Jayhawks’ 17-13 win over previously undefeated BYU on Saturday.

Daniels was called on for a pooch punt in the fourth quarter. He placed it perfectly, not in the coffin corner, off the helmet of one of the Jayhawks.

Kansa

4th & 14 at BYU 36
(13:23 – 4th) Jalon Daniels punt for 26 yds , Evan Johnson returns for no gain to the BYU 3 Evan Johnson fumbled, recovered by KU Quentin Skinner

Kansas recovered the live football and on the next play, Devon Neal scored on a 3-yard run to give the Jayhawks the lead for good.

The Cougars came in 9-0 and seventh in the College Football Playoff Ranking. They never got untracked against the Jayhawks.

Their lead at 13-10 came after a 10:30 drive to start the final quarter. It was the last points they scored.

Quarterback Jake Retzlaff threw an interception late in the first half and his pass on fourth down on BYU’s final drive came up short of a first down inside the Kansas 10.

The latest 2025 NBA mock draft from ESPN has Spurs with Kon Knueppel and Egor Demin

San Antonio would end up with two of the best freshmen in the NCAA.

The San Antonio Spurs are one of the most interesting teams in the league due to Victor Wembanyama, and it will only get more fascinating.

San Antonio currently has two projected lottery picks in the 2025 NBA Draft, which could help them continue to retool around Wembanyama after picking Stephon Castle in the 2024 NBA Draft.

New predictions from ESPN have the Spurs with an absolute dream scenario, picking two of the freshmen who have had the best starts to the NCAA men’s college basketball season thus far: Duke’s Kon Knueppel and BYU’s Egor Demin.

Here is more from ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo on the selections, including thoughts on Knueppel:

“Knueppel’s ability to shoot off screens, pull up off the dribble and spot up from deep vantage points with picture-perfect footwork and mechanics should keep him prominent in draft conversations, especially with the way he has contributed in other areas as well with his physicality, feel for the game and better-than-expected shot creation and defense.”

They also added that Knueppel is “arguably the best shooter” in this draft class.

Read more from them on Demin:

“Few freshmen have been more impressive than Demin, who is utilizing a tremendous platform at BYU to showcase his outstanding size, spectacular court vision, shotmaking prowess and all-around talent against, thus far, lower-level competition.”

Demin has looked fantastic as a tall playmaker for BYU, and he could provide a spark as the point guard of the future for San Antonio.

Here is our latest NBA mock draft at For The Win, and you can expect another update very soon!

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