No. 25 BYU faces UNLV on Saturday afternoon

PROVO, Utah - BYU concludes the exhibition portion of its schedule on Saturday, Oct. 24, when the Cougars make the short trip to Sin City to face UNLV. Tip is scheduled for 1 p.m. PT at Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.

Saturday's contest will be broadcast on MW+ with Matt Neverett and Steve Cofield on the call. 

MEETING AN OLD FRIEND FOR LUNCH
Saturday will be the first meeting between the two programs since 2019 and the first at Thomas & Mack Center since 2011. Prior to the Cougars making the move to the West Coast Conference, BYU and UNLV faced off at least twice a season from 2000-11.

BYU is 17-19 all-time against the Runnin' Rebels, including a 5-14 record in Sin City. The Cougars have won three of the last four meetings, including an 89-77 victory in their last trip to Thomas & Mack Center on Jan. 5, 2011, where Jimmer Fredette and Jackson Emery combined for 61 points. The dynamic duo knocked down 13 of the team's 14 3-pointers as they shot 50.0 percent from 3-point range to end a eight-game home win streak for UNLV. 

MAKING A GREAT FIRST IMPRESSION
BYU improved to 40-1 in exhibition games since 2002 with a 72-61 victory over Nebraska on Friday evening in front of 15,864 fans at the Marriott Center. 

The Cougars shot 41.3 percent from the field, 27.8 percent from three and 58.8 percent from the free throw line while holding a 39-35 advantage on the glass. They turned 18 turnovers into 21 points and were +12 in the paint, 30-18. 

In the final game of the home-and-home series with the Cornhuskers, Collin Chandler scored a game-high 19 points. In his first 'unofficial' game as a Cougar, Chandler went 6-of-13 from the field, 2-of-7 from behind the arc, and knocked down all five of his free throw attempts. The performance was four years in the making as the Farmington native originally signed with Cougars out of high school before transferring to Kentucky for two seasons following his mission to England for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 

After being held scoreless in the first half, Jaxon Kohler scored all of his 10 points in the second half en route to finishing with a double-double. The 5th year had 10 rebounds, four of those coming on the offensive glass. 

REPPIN' THE Y
Robert Wright III, Bruce Branch III and Collin Chandler, along with associate head coach Tim Fanning, represented BYU at the Monster Energy Big 12 Basketball Media Days on Wednesday, Oct. 21, in Kansas City. 

The quartet meet with local, regional and national media throughout the day to talk about the upcoming season. They also met with CBS Sports, ESPN, The Athletic, FOX, TNT, SLAM and Bleacher Report. 

HOME AWAY FROM HOME
BYU has won four straight games in Las Vegas, including a 71-66 victory over Villanova in the Hall of Fame Series Las Vegas in last season's season opener at T-Mobile Arena. The Cougars also won the Vegas Showdown in 2023-24 with victories over Arizona State and an NC State squad that made a run to the Final Four. 

TRENDING UPWARDS
The Cougars put up 36 3-pointers in the win over Nebraska, something that has only happened five times during the Kevin Young era. Creating and taking shots from behind the arc is nothing new under Young as BYU attempted a program record 44 3-pointers in his first-ever game, an 88-50 victory over Central Arkansas. 

BYU made a program record 378 3-pointers during his first season in charge while last season's squad knocked down 298 triples, which are the sixth-most in a single season in program history. They also attempted 1,028 3-pointers during the Cougars run to the Sweet 16, marking just the second time in program history they attempted over 1,000 triples. 

THAT'S A GOOD START
BYU enters the 2026-27 season ranked No. 25 in the AP preseason poll, marking the second consecutive season and eighth time in program history the Cougars have been in the Top 25 to open the season. 

The Cougars are 27-11 under Young when ranked with only three of those losses coming to unranked opponents.