KANSAS CITY, Mo. – BYU defeated West Virignia 68-48 on Wednesday night in the second round of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament at the T-Mobile Center.
"Hard-fought game. West Virginia is a team that plays extremely hard," second-yead head coach Kevin Young said. "Well-coached team. Coach Hodge has done a great job being a first year coach in this league, this is a hard league. Heís done a great job in his first year."
"We just played them 10 days ago, and we felt like we left a lot to be desired in that game. I thought our guys came out with the 40-minute effort that had a will to win that was kind of unmatched," Young added. "And I thought you saw it in a lot of different areas as far as the rebounding and how active our defense was. I thought our defense was tremendous tonight, arguably the best itís been all year. So it was definitely something that we can look at moving forward as a benchmark for how good our defense can be."
For the first time this season, Kennard Davis Jr. has scored in double figures in three straight games. Davis Jr. posted a season-high 20 points, going 5-of-6 from 3-point range and 7-of-11 from the field. He also added three rebounds and two steals. The junior led BYU in the second half with 17 points.
AJ Dybantsa recorded 27 points while going 5-of 6-from the free-throw line. He also had seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. His 20-point performance marks the 26th time this year he has reached that plateau, now the fourth most in a single season.
Robert Wright III reached the 1,000-point mark in his career with 11 points, giving BYU its third player in double figures.
Dominique Diomande helped power stops in the first half for the Cougars, posting three steals in eight first-half minutes.
BYU shot 50 percent from the field in the second half, finishing at 45.9 percent overall while holding the Mountaineers to 38.1 percent. West Virginia recorded 22 turnovers, which led to 17 Cougar points.
First Half
Both teams exchanged missed shots until Davis Jr. got BYU on the board first with a 3-pointer. The Mountaineers immediately answered with one of their own, and then West Virginia added a 5-0 spurt to push a three-point lead into the first media timeout.
Dybantsa and Wright III got the Cougars back on top as the next two minutes were all BYU, with a 6-0 run in response.
Diomande stopped a cold stretch for the Cougars, snatching the ball on back-to-back West Virginia possessions. On the first, Dybantsa lobbed to the Paris, France product, and Diomande threw it down on the fast break less than 45 seconds later, giving BYU a 17-11 lead with 8:01 left in the half.
DOMINIQUE DIOMANDE WINDMILL FROM EVERY ANGLE 🤯#Big12MBB | 📺 ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/mbhfLjyvjh
— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) March 11, 2026
Dybantsa powered six-straight BYU points as the Cougars and Mountaineers traded buckets. Diomande forced West Virginia’s 11th turnover with his third steal of the half and tried to hit Khadim Mboup for a jumper, but Mboup was fouled.
Wright III made BYU’s second 3-pointer of the game, pushing the lead to 28-17. The Mountaineers cut into BYU’s lead with a 6-0 run, but Dybantsa stopped it with a fast-break dunk. The freshman was fouled and converted the 3-point play. The Cougars stopped West Virginia from scoring from that point to take a 31-23 lead into the locker room.
Second Half
Davis Jr. opened the half with a 3-pointer, but both teams then struggled from beyond the arc, resulting in a 36-29 score with 15:42 left. Wright III hit Davis Jr. for another 3-pointer, but the Mountaineers responded with one to keep it a six-point game.
West Virginia’s defense held the Cougars scoreless for two minutes before Davis Jr. made another bucket. After another drought on both sides of the court, Dybantsa hit Diomande for their second paired dunk. The Mountaineers responded with a 3-pointer, putting the score at 43-38 with 10:40 on the clock.
Dybantsa put BYU up seven with a pair of free throws. Davis Jr. capped a 12-2 Cougar run with another 3-pointer, his fourth of the game. The junior pushed the lead to 55-42 with 5:47 to go.
WEST VIRGINIA COULDN'T GUARD AJ DYBANTSA 😳
— ESPN (@espn) March 12, 2026
Dybantsa passes Kevin Durant for the most points (64) in a two-game span in Big 12 tournament history 🔥 pic.twitter.com/0a1fqvTcDH
The Cougars held West Virginia without a field goal for more than six minutes before it finally made a layup. Defensive stands, led by Keba Keita, closed the game in a 68-48 win.
Up Next
The Cougars return to the T-Mobile Center on Thursday, March 12 in a 5 p.m. MST quarterfinal matchup against No. 2-seeded Houston. Watch live on ESPN2 or listen to live play-by-play with Greg Wrubell on BYU Radio.