IRVING, Texas — BYU’s AJ Dybantsa was named the Big 12 Player and Newcomer of the Week on Monday morning after leading the Cougars to their first Top 10 win at the Marriott Center since 2020.
The 6-foot-9 forward was also named to the Big 12 Starting Five for a 10th time this season after averaging 32.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game against a pair of Top 10 opponents. He also shot 51.1 percent from the field, 40.0 percent from three and 82.4 percent from the free throw line.
In a 75-68 setback to No. 4 Arizona, Dybantsa scored 35 points to break the freshman single season scoring record that had stood since 1978. He went 13-of-28 from the field, 2-of-6 from three and 7-of-8 from the free throw line for his sixth 35-point game of the season. He also had seven rebounds and two assists against the Wildcats.
AJ DYBANTSA vs Iowa State
— BYU Men's Basketball (@BYUMBB) February 22, 2026
29 PTS | 10 REB | 9 AST pic.twitter.com/XwwOhABZSv
The nation’s leading scorer led BYU to its second ranked win of the season and first over a Top 10 opponent in Provo since 2020 on Saturday as the freshman nearly had his second triple-double finishing with 29 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists in a 79-69 victory over No. 6 Iowa State. He went 10-of-17 from the field, 2-of-4 from three and 7-of-9 from behind the arc playing all 40 minutes.
He also held the Cyclones leading scorer and nation’s top 3-pointer shooter, Milan Momcilovic, to five points on 1-of-5 shooting from the field and 1-of-4 from 3-point range.
Dybantsa and BYU return to action on Tuesday, Feb. 24, when the Cougars host UCF in Provo for a second time. Tip is scheduled for 9 p.m. MT on ESPN2.