BYU opens 2026-27 campaign against Idaho State

PROVO, Utah — The Cougars kick off the 2026-27 campaign as they host the Idaho State Bengals on Tuesday, Nov. 3, at the Marriott Center.

Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. MT, with the game streamed on ESPN+, with Spencer Linton, Kristen Kozlowski and Jasmine Poppinga on the call. Fans can also tune in to live play-by-play on BYU Radio 107.9, byuradio.org and the BYU Radio App with Jason Shepherd.

Matchup Breakdown

The Cougars and Bengals play Tuesday in their 20th all-time meeting, with BYU holding a 16-3 series lead. The teams last met on Dec. 11, 2025, when Olivia Hamlin recorded a then-career-high 22 points on 9-of-19 shooting, five steals, three assists and a rebound to lead BYU to a 68-59 win at the Marriott Center. Bolanle Yussuf and Lara Rohkhol also finished in double figures with 10 points apiece.

The Bengals outrebounded the Cougars 57-31, including 23 offensive boards that led to 14 second-chance points. Despite those rebounding struggles, BYU forced 25 ISU turnovers, held the Bengals to 4-of-21 shooting in the final quarter and shot 7-for-14 from the field to secure the nine-point victory. Delaney Gibb missed last year’s matchup due to injury.

All-Time: BYU leads 16-3 ⋅ W7

At BYU: BYU leads 11-1 ⋅ W8

BYU Cougars

Overall: 0-0 ⋅ Big 12: 0-0 ⋅ Last 5: 0-0

THE OPENING TIP

After a 26-12 record under first-year head coach Lee Cummard that ended in the WBIT championship game, the Cougars set their sights on a return to the NCAA Tournament for the 2026–27 season.

BYU looks to win its fourth consecutive season opener as the Idaho State Bengals visit the Marriott Center on Tuesday. In 2023, the Cougars knocked off Montana State on the road, before earning wins over Idaho and Coastal Carolina in 2024 and 2025, respectively. 

LONE TUNE UP

BYU defeated Western Colorado 120-36 in its lone exhibition ahead of the 2026–27 season. Seven Cougars finished in double figures: Brinley Cannon (15), Bolanle Yussuf (15), Delaney Gibb (13), Olivia Hamlin (13), Liza Astakhova (13), Stella Sakalas (13) and Mariam Traore (12).

The Cougars notched 33 assists on 49 made field goals for a 67.3 percent assist rate, with 12 coming from Sydney Benally, six from Gibb and five from Traore. BYU also forced 37 Mountaineer turnovers, converting them into 57 points. The Cougars cashed in on 13 triples in the win, one shy of last season’s single-game high.

YOUNG, BUT WISE

Despite having no seniors or fifth-year players on its roster, BYU returns a wealth of experience. The Cougars feature four players who rank among the top six in all-time freshman minutes played: Benally checks in at No. 2 (1,108), Hamlin at No. 3 (1,097), Woolston at No. 4 (1,067) and Gibb at No. 6 (1,013).

Three of those players also rank in the top five in all-time freshman scoring: Gibb is No. 2 with 522 points (while ranking first in points per game), Hamlin sits at No. 3 with 490 points and Woolston is No. 5 with 425 points. Woolston was also the second-ranked 3-point shooter in the NCAA during her 2023–24 freshman season at 46.6 percent.

CARRIED BY UNDERCLASSMEN

Last season, BYU’s freshmen and sophomores made major contributions to the offense. Hamlin, Benally and Yussuf combined for 36.7 percent of the Cougars’ total points. With the addition of sophomores Gibb, Cannon and Kambree Taylor, underclassmen accounted for 72.2 percent of BYU’s scoring.

FAMILIAR COUGS

Cummard returns four starters from last year’s squad, alongside Woolston, who started all 32 games in 2023–24 before missing the last two seasons while serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. BYU returns 72.3 percent of its scoring, 58 percent of its rebounding, 82.9 percent of its assists, 55.1 percent of its blocks and 76.5 percent of its steals production from a year ago.

NEW FACES IN COUGAR BLUE

Cummard welcomed four newcomers for the 2026–27 season: freshmen Prasayus Notoa, Vahayliah Seumanutafa and Stella Sakalas, and North Carolina transfer Liza Astakhova.

Notoa chose BYU over reigning national champion UCLA and TCU, which reached the Elite Eight last season. She led the Australian National Team to a silver medal at the 2025 FIBA U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup, averaging 7.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.7 steals. She shot 54.8 percent from the field and 46.7 percent from deep, recording an 11-point, 13-rebound double-double with six assists and two steals against Argentina in the Round of 16.

Astakhova spent her freshman season at North Carolina, appearing in 12 games and averaging 4.7 minutes per outing. She scored a career-high six points in the season opener against NC Central and grabbed a personal-best three rebounds three times, including twice in ACC play against SMU and Pitt.

Seumanutafa is a first-generation college student and the first cousin of teammate Prasayus Notoa. After suiting up for the U19 Australian National Team at the 2024 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup, she played for the NBL1 Logan Thunder in 2025 and 2026, averaging 6.5 points, 2.8 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 0.7 steals over 13 games.

PERPETUAL PERIMETER PRECISION

BYU holds the second-longest active and third-longest all-time NCAA Division I streak of games with a made 3-pointer at 832 consecutive games. The streak began on March 2, 2000, in an 86-69 win over Air Force. Chattanooga holds the longest active streak at 838 games.