BYU Cougars || 16-6, 5-5 || Big 12 Conference
WHAT'S AT STAKE?
With a win, BYU would notch its most wins in a season (17) since the 2021-22 campaign, which culminated in a trip to the NCAA Tournament, besting 16 wins in both 2022-23 and 2023-24. Coach Cummard would also record the third-most wins by a first-year head coach in program history, passing Amber Whiting.
SCORING COMES AT A PREMIUM
Cummard’s squad prides itself on its ability to defend. BYU has held 18 of 22 opponents under the 70-point threshold and is 16-2 in such games, with their only losses to No. 18 Baylor and at Oklahoma State. BYU has kept nine of its foes under 60 points this season, and the Cougars are 23-2 over the past three seasons when doing so.
In losses to No. 8 TCU, No. 17 Vanderbilt, No. 18 Baylor and Oklahoma State, BYU held each opponent under their season scoring average: Vanderbilt 3.1 points under, TCU 15.5 points under its 87.5 PPG and Oklahoma State 19.8 points under its 86.8 average. The lone team to outscore their average against the Cougs was No. 22 West Virginia, which put up 91 points, the most BYU has surrendered this season.
YOUNG GUNS, BIG BUCKETS
BYU’s freshmen have made huge contributions to the Cougars’ offensive success. Olivia Hamlin, Sydney Benally, Bolanle Yussuf and Braeden Gunlock have combined for 39.5 percent of all points scored by BYU this season. With sophomores Delaney Gibb, Brinley Cannon and Kambree Barber added to the mix, the underclassmen account for 68.7 percent of all BYU scoring. In Big 12 play, underclassmen have combined for 52.1 of BYU’s 67.7 points per game (77 percent). In the win over No. 22 Texas Tech, Hamlin led BYU with 20 points, Benally hit three triples for nine points and Yussuf contributed six to the cause.
ROAD WARRIORS
BYU is 4-2 through six road contests this season, matching its road win total from 2024-25. The Cougars finished last season 4-8 on the road. A win at Kansas would give BYU its most road wins in a season since 2022-23 (6-6).
THERE'S A MONSTER IN THE CLOSET
The Cougars’ Achilles heel this season has been the turnover monster. BYU averages 18.1 turnovers per game and has recorded 20 or more on seven occasions with a 5-2 record in such games. In losses this season, BYU has recorded 20.2 turnovers and 19.5 points off giveaways to opponents.
BYU coughed it up just 11 times in its last outing, a 77-62 win over rival Utah. The 11 turnovers were the second-lowest total this season and resulted in a 20-11 advantage in points off turnovers in favor of the Cougars.
BYU'S BACKCOURT ANCHOR
Delaney Gibb is averaging 16.9 points, 4.5 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 2.1 steals, while knocking down 2.1 3-pointers per game since returning from an eight-game absence.
BYU is 6-3 in games that Gibb leads the Cougars in scoring, a 5-1 record when she leads the team in steals and a 6-2 record when she records five or more assists. The sophomore standout has recorded four or more assists in 7-of-10 Big 12 games and ranks in the 99th percentile nationally as she assists on 33.2 percent of all Cougar makes while she is on the floor and the 98th percentile with 4.9 assists per game.
Gibb was named to the Ann Meyers-Drysdale Shooting Guard of the Year Midseason Top 10 Midseason Watch List on Tuesday, joining Baylor’s Tahlia Scott as the two Big 12 players on the list. Coach Cummard has said that one of Gibb’s best skills is that of making winning plays, even if that isn’t exactly scoring. In BYU’s first win over rival Utah since 2021, Gibb scored just eight points, but turned in eight rebounds, three coming on the offensive glass, seven assists and four steals that all led directly to Cougar scores.
SECOND-HALF SURGE
The third quarter has been especially kind to the Cougars this season as they have outscored opponents in 16 of 22 games by an average of 9.2 points. BYU is 14-2 when outscoring its opponent in the third period.
The Cougars have also seen great success in the second half, averaging 32.9 first-half points on 39.9 percent shooting. In the second half, those numbers jump to 39 points and 43.3 percent shooting. BYU has outscored opponents in the second half in 14 of 22 games, including besting rival Utah 23-17 in the third quarter and 29-13 in the fourth to overcome a 10-point halftime deficit for a 12-point victory.
Contrary to the norm, BYU scored 40 first-half points on 54.2 percent shooting in the first half against No. 19 Texas Tech to lead by six at the break. The Cougars then outscored the Lady Raiders 33-27 in the second to complete their 12-point win, the first AP-ranked win of the Lee Cummard era.
LIV'N IN FAST FORWARD
Olivia Hamlin was named the Big 12 Freshman of the Week on Dec. 15, the second weekly award for BYU this season (Sydney Benally, Dec. 1). The freshman is BYU’s second-leading scorer at 12.5 points per game, off the bench, and the Cougars are 14-3 when Hamlin finishes in double figures. The Cougars are also 3-0 when Hamlin scores 20 or more points, and 9-2 when Hamlin records multiple steals.
Hamlin is one of the top players in the country at playing in transition. The freshman scores 4.5 points per game, and 36.5 percent of her points come from transition buckets, which both rank in the 99th percentile nationally. The freshman also scores 6.9 points per game in the paint, which ranks in the 95th percentile nationally.
The Santa Clara, Utah, product also leads all Big 12 freshmen and is 13th nationally with 43 steals. She is also first in the conference and 17th nationally in steals per game with 1.95 per contest. Her 1.95 steals per game and 43 total steals also rank 5th and 11th in the BYU freshman record book.
BUILT ON BOARDS
BYU leads the Big 12 with 41.91 rebounds per game and averages 14.2 offensive boards per game, which ranks second in the conference. The Cougars have recorded 143 offensive rebounds since the beginning of conference play, leading to 120 second-chance points, 14.3 and 12.0 per game, respectively. The Cougars grabbed 26 offensive boards in their win over Arizona State, the fifth-most in a game in BYU history and scored 20 second-chance points.
Despite the strong rebounding averages, BYU has been outrebounded 125-99 over its last three games, and is now 3-2 when being outrebounded. The Cougars, who have thrived off second-chance points this season, have grabbed just 26 O-boards and scored 29 second-chance points in their past three contests.
PERPETUAL PERIMETER PRECISION
BYU currently holds the second-longest active and the third-longest all-time streak of games with a made 3-point field goal in NCAA women’s basketball. The Cougars have connected on at least one triple in each of the previous 816 games. The streak began on March 2, 2000, in an 86-69 win over Air Force. The only team with more is Chattanooga, with 828 consecutive games with a made three-pointer.
Head Coach – Lee Cummard
- Alma Mater: BYU, 2009
- Division I Career Record: 16-6 || 1st Season
