23. BYU (20-7)
It’s been insult and injury for BYU here in recent weeks. The Cougars dropped four straight games earlier this month and lost star Richie Saunders to injury for the rest of the season. This team is going to be leaning a lot more on AJ Dybantsa and Robert Wright III, but it’s got to be more than just those two. If these Cougars can remain a contender without Saunders then someone else needs to come up big in Provo.
Wednesday’s result wasn’t a huge shocker, with BYU falling 75-68 in another tough game at Arizona. You couldn’t blame that defeat on Dybantsa, who shined with 35 points and 7 rebounds in another emphatic performance for the future NBA stud. Fortunately, BYU remains in these national rankings because of Saturday’s work, securing a 79-69 home win over Iowa State. They downed a Top 10 team thanks to a 29-point, 10-rebound, 9-assist effort from Dybantsa, while Kennard Davis Jr. added 17 points.
BYU was 16-1 before a really tough stretch and a bunch of losses, but this team is still staying afloat. It might be Dybantsa carrying much of that load in the future for the Cougars. Regardless, this team has shown it can still win big games like against those Cyclones but they need to keep proving it. Ahead comes a home game with UCF and a trip to West Virginia.