Final Four future? BYU poised for bigger things after March Madness exit against Alabama

USA Today

28-03-2025

Final Four future? BYU poised for bigger things after March Madness exit against Alabama
NEWARK, N.J. — The East Region track meet between No. 2 Alabama and No. 6 Brigham Young was shaping up to be the game these run-and-gun offensive heavyweights wanted to play: crisp, highly efficient, supremely productive on the offensive end and largely devoid of something called defense, which supposedly wins championships but is clearly unnecessary to reach the NCAA men's tournament Elite Eight.
Then the Crimson Tide started to heat up from deep. Then they turned sweltering, sizzling, blistering, downright volcanic, center-of-the-sun hot.
In the end, Alabama's 113-88 win was propelled by a 25 makes from 3-point range to the Cougars' six, giving the Tide a gargantuan edge BYU was unable to overcome despite attacking Alabama's porous interior defense with 50 points in the paint.
Those 25 connections from long range set a new NCAA men's tournament record, surpassing the 21 makes by Loyola-Marymount in a 149-115 win against Michigan in 1990 that still stands as the highest-scoring game in tournament history.
'We work on that every day. That's like the main thing we do,' said Alabama forward Mouhamed Dioubate. 'It's just been coming together. We feed off each other's energy. We're competitive as well.'
This was the Tide at their best, in a showcase of a potent style of play that explains why this program is back in the Elite Eight for the second year in a row. Alabama will meet the winner of No. 1 Duke against No. 4 Arizona on Sunday in the regional final.
The same can't be said of BYU, which was eventually stymied by not only those failures from long range but an inability to get the one or two consecutive stops that could've slowed down the Tide's offensive assault and turned momentum back in the Cougars' favor. Every spurt to cut Alabama's lead to single digits was met with a commensurate response, dealing a frustrating final act to cap an altogether successful year under first-year coach Kevin Young.
'That was hard to overcome for us,' Young said. 'We felt like we made a little dent and started going the other way and they just kept it going. I'm not the type of person that just says 'oh, they shot it unbelievable, nothing we could do.' Disappointed in myself and our staff that we couldn't put our players in a better position to find answers, but they made the plays and we didn't.'
But this team 'will be remembered for a long time,' said junior guard Dawson Baker.
For a program playing in the Sweet 16 for only the second time since the tournament expanded in 1985, this loss is a barometer, a measuring stick and an indicator of what it takes to advance deep into the NCAA men's tournament.
'It's something that we learn a lot from,' freshman guard Egor Denim said.
And given what BYU is set to return and set to add to the roster this summer, Thursday night should be an invaluable experience for a program in position to take the next step.
'There's a lot of roller coasters in a season,' said senior guard Trevin Knell, 'but I feel like we're kind of a catalyst to where BYU is going, and I'm excited to see the trajectory of where this program is going.'
The Cougars will lose four players to graduation in guards Knell and Trey Stewart, forward Mawot Mag and center Fousseyni Traore, who combined for 25.3 points, 10.1 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game as seniors. While a hefty NIL package could influence his decision, Demin is expected to declare for the NBA draft. He's a projected lottery pick in the most-recent USA TODAY Sports mock draft.
'I'm trying to not think about it so much,' Demin said. 'I was really trying to get rid of those thoughts during the season. Right now, I'm just really enjoying some time with my teammates and we'll see what's going to happen.'
BYU could return one promising young contributor in forward Kanon Catchings, who joined Demin in averaging double-figure minutes as freshman and has the length and promise to sneak into the back end of the draft's opening round. Catchings injured his knee during a win against West Virginia in early March and played just four minutes in the tournament's opening weekend before logging five uneventful minutes on Thursday night.
But leading scorer Richie Saunders has one more year of eligibility after earning first-team all-conference honors in his first year in the starting lineup. Likewise with key role players such as center Keba Keita, forward Mihailo Boskovic and guards Baker and Dallin Hall, giving the Cougars a senior-driven rotation and potentially one of the most experienced rosters among power conferences. The Cougars should also add at least two veteran players through the transfer portal, likely focusing on shooters capable of spacing the floor.
Even without this strong core group returning, BYU would be one of next season's must-see teams for the arrival of incoming freshman AJ Dybantsa, the nation's top-ranked recruit after reclassifying into the 2025 class. The 18-year-old was in attendance on Thursday night, wearing a BYU windbreaker, and spent time talking with athletics director Tom Holmoe.
Raised in Broxton, Massachusetts, he'll spend his senior of high school in Hurricane, Utah, in the southwest corner of the state, about 250 miles from the main BYU campus in Provo. The 6-foot-9, 200-pound forward is a 'generational talent,' Young said when Dybantsa officially signed with the program in December.
'He's a great young man who has a strong appetite to be the best player he can be,' said Young. 'His versatile skill set and playmaking will seamlessly fit into our style of play. This is a great day for BYU basketball.'
The veterans atop the Cougars' projected roster will help Dybantsa acclimate to the college game, though there will be no escaping the spotlight that comes with being the nation's top recruit and the projected top pick in next year's draft. He's joined in the Cougars' recruiting class by four-star forwards Xavion Staton and Chamberlain Burgess, with Staton expected to log significant minutes in a reserve role as a freshman while Burgess departs for a two-year mission.
Adding more outside shooting into the mix should give BYU the program's highest preseason ranking since being No. 12 in the Associated Press poll heading into the 1972-73 season. A lofty ranking heading into next year will underscore some massive expectations: With Young's system taking hold around an impressive blend of veteran experience and youthful athleticism, the Cougars will look to advance to the Elite Eight and beyond.
'Yeah, first of all, the future at BYU is incredibly bright. I think anyone that pays attention to the sport would agree with that,' Young said. 'Now we've got to hopefully do a good job to continue to recruit to that identity and continue to try to bring in high-end talent so we can play with the teams who historically have played deep into this tournament. That's our goal.'