KANSAS CITY, Mo. — BYU’s AJ Dybantsa, Richie Saunders and Robert Wright III earned NABC All-Mountain District honors, the organization announced on Tuesday morning.
BYU was one of three schools to have multiple players on the first team, with Dybantsa and Saunders making the list while Wright III was one of four players from the Big 12 selected to the second team. The All-District honors are voted on by NABC-member coaches across NCAA Division I men’s basketball.
Dybantsa continues to lead the nation in scoring as the 6-foot-9 forward is scoring 25.3 points per game while shooting 51.3 percent from the field, 34.0 percent from three and 76.4 percent from the free throw line. He has scored in double figures in all 34 games as a Cougar including a freshman record 27 20-point games.
Entering March Madness, Dybansta’s 859 points are the third-most in single season in program history and sits eight points away from passing Devin Durrant (1983-84) for second. He also owns the third-most free throw attempts, fourth-most field goal makes and attempts and sixth-most free throw makes by a Cougar in a single season.
Saunders picked up first team all-district accolades for a second straight season as the senior averaged 18.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game before suffering a season-ending injury against Colorado. He also shot 48.9 percent from the field, 37.6 percent from three and 81.7 percent from the free throw line.
The Riverton native scored in double figures 21 times in his final season as a Cougar, highlighted by a career-high 33-point performance at Kansas, where he tied a career-high with six 3-pointers. He also had 10 rebounds in the setback to the Jayhawks for one of his three double-doubles on the season.
Wright III is averaging a career-high 18.2 points per game as the sophomore has scored 20-point 13 times this season, 10 more than he had as a freshman at Baylor. He also ranks first on the team in assists with 159 helpers, which are the 14thmost in a single season in program history.
The Wilmington, Del. native was named Dickie V’s National Player of the Week after averaging 34.5 points per game in wins over Baylor and Colorado, including a career-high 39 points against the Buffaloes. He has two double-doubles, highlighted by a 14-point, 12-assist performance in win over Cal Baptist at the Delta Center.
The Cougars open NCAA Tournament play on Thursday, March 19, when they play the winner of Texas and NC State. Tip is scheduled for 4:25 p.m. PT at the Moda Center in Portland, Ore.