PROVO — One of the star seniors from last year’s BYU basketball team has signed a pro contract with an overseas team.
Guard TJ Haws, who started every game during his Cougar career — a school-record 133 consecutive contests — will play for Trefl Sopot in Poland, first reported by Sportando and confirmed by the Deseret News.
Haws, a two-time All-West Coast Conference selection, helped lead BYU to a 24-8 record and a No. 18 national ranking last season. He finished his Cougar career ranked in the top 10 in assists, steals, 3-point field goals and free-throw percentage.
His older brother, Tyler, who is BYU’s all-time leading scorer, also played professionally in Poland, for Anwil Wloclawek, four years ago.
In conference play last season, Haws averaged 16 points, 2.6 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.8 steals and shot 50% from the floor, 42.3% from 3-point territory and was among the top 10 in the WCC in eight statistical categories — assists (second), assist/turnover ratio (second), free-throw percentage (third), steals (third), field-goal percentage (fifth), tied for seventh in 3-pointers per game, eighth in scoring and 10th in minutes per game.
Haws dished out 14 assists against Portland and 13 at Pepperdine, had 20-plus points four times and recorded two double-doubles.
He also etched his name in Cougar basketball lore with three memorable game-winning plays.
Haws knocked down a jumper at the buzzer to propel BYU to a victory at Houston last November. In February, he hit a 3-pointer with nine seconds remaining to defeat Saint Mary’s at the Marriott Center, hours before the birth of his first child. Then, a few weeks later, Haws’ alley-oop pass to Yoeli Childs with 11.1 seconds remaining lifted the Cougars to a 72-71 victory at San Diego.
“TJ’s a terrific player. He is a competitor and he’s really skilled,” coach Mark Pope said last season. “He’s trying to do things the way that we ask him to do it. He’s a special player.”
Haws’ dad, Marty, also played for BYU.
TJ graduated from Lone Peak High and left for a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in France before Tyler’s senior year, so the brothers never played together in college.
“It would have been fun to play together at BYU. Our games are so different. We’re two totally different players,” Tyler said. “It would have been cool to complement each other. But there are no regrets there. I’m happy that Teej has carved out his own path and his own career that way.”