Utah State defeated Villanova in the opening round but fell to Arizona on Sunday (Photo by Utah State Athletics)
BYU, UVU, and Utah State all fall in March Madness tournaments.
BYU 23-12 (9-9 in the Big 12)
The Big 12 Tournament gave BYU fans hope that the Cougars could make a run in March Madness. But despite a giant game from college basketball’s best player, AJ Dybantsa, BYU fell in the opening round to Texas. Kevin Young’s squad floundered down the stretch and lost, 79-71, to the Longhorns. In a season that they started 16-1 and finished 7-11, it’s difficult to call their season an all-time great one. It certainly however was successful and not a failure, especially given the adversity they faced. Having a player like Dybantsa, even for one year, can be foundational for a young coach and his era that is only beginning.
Injuries are a part of sports, the worst part, but they happen, and teams play on. Most teams have difficulty replacing stars like Richie Saunders and multiple key contributors. There’s no shame in BYU struggling with such a setback. This is a young team, including their coach’s career (no pun intended). Kevin Young is only in his second season as a head coach at this level, and despite the not-desired outcome of this season, he is just getting started. Don’t expect BYU to slow down in 2026-2027. BYU fans will always be able to look back with joy at this season because #3 chose to wear royal blue in Provo.
Utah State 29-7 (15-5 in the Mountain West)
In only his second season, Utah State had the most postseason success of any team in the state under Jerrod Calhoun. They won the Mountain West regular season and tournament championships and made it to the Big Dance. Utah State even won their opening game of the tournament against Villanova, defeating the Big East’s Wildcats, 86-76. Stars Mason Falslev and MJ Collins Jr. had 22 and 20 points, respectively, in the victory in the first round. USU should have been seeded higher.
In the second round, Utah State battled national championship favorite Arizona. Jerrod Calhoun’s team battled Arizona hard, especially in the second half, but Arizona was just too strong. Stars Falslev and Collins were held to 8 and 12 points respectively, and Arizona won, 78-66. It was a heck of a run by Utah State and a great season to remember and treasure for Aggie basketball. Had USU been seeded more properly, perhaps at #6, they’d be a Sweet Sixteen team. Unfortunately, it looks very likely right now that the Cincinnati Bearcats of the Big 12 will make a push to hire Jerrod Calhoun away from Logan, Utah. The good news is, USU has a great foundation, and is in a good position to land on their feet, and hit the ground running going into the Pac-12 this fall.
Utah Valley 25-9 (14-4 in the WAC)
UVU’s season came to a heartbreaking conclusion on Wednesday night. The Wolverines came into what would be the final two games of their season with very high hopes, only to see them shattered. In the WAC Championship against Cal Baptist, with a trip to the NCAA Tournament on the line, they missed a game-tying dunk and fell 63-61. In the opening round of the NIT, at home, and with a chance to finish their season by winning a tournament, UVU fell by one point for only the second time at home this season. Utah Valley lost to George Washington, 79-78.
Utah Valley University has been a mid-major program on the cusp for the better part of a decade now. They compete in their conference year in and year out, they make runs in their conference tournaments, and when they make a postseason tournament, they battle hard. While it’s been frustrating that they haven’t quite gotten there yet, it still does seem to be only a matter of when and not if. The next challenge for UVU is how much of the team that went 25-9 this year can they return for 2026-2027.
Jimmer Fredette-Keith Van Horn Player of the Week
AJ Dybantsa was on another level all year and was on that same level in BYU’s first-round loss to Texas in this year’s March Madness. Dybantsa had 35 points and 10 rebounds in the 79-71 loss to the Longhorns. If that was his last game in royal blue, Dybantsa went out on his shield, and against a good Texas team that has three tournament wins and is in the 2026 Sweet Sixteen. He’s a player and a young man that BYU will always cherish.
Utah, Weber State, Utah Tech, and Southern Utah’s seasons had concluded last week.
Utah 10-22 (2-16 in the Big 12)
Weber State 16-16 (10-8 in the Big Sky)
Utah Tech 19-15 (11-7 in the Western Athletic Conference)
Southern Utah 10-22 (6-12 in the Western Athletic Conference)
