BYU drops another ranked matchup.
The Cougars fell 90-82 at No. 14 Kansas Saturday, losing consecutive games for the first time all season.
BYU is now 17-4 on the year and 5-3 in Big 12 play.
3 takeaways
The Cougars couldn’t overcome another slow start. As has often been the case this season, BYU had a poor first half before heating up after halftime, but there was no crazy comeback in the cards this time.
BYU trailed by 20 points at intermission Saturday, having shot 25% from 3-point range compared to Kansas’ 75% mark.
The Cougars did win the second half by a 49-37 margin, but their early struggles proved too much to overcome in the eventual 8-point loss.
Richie Saunders stole the show in the AJ Dybantsa/Darryn Peterson showdown. There was a great deal of hype for the first college meeting between Dybantsa and Peterson, who are widely considered to be the top two prospects in the upcoming NBA draft.
Though he left the contest after just three minutes in the second half, Peterson clearly outplayed Dybantsa by effortlessly scoring 18 points on 6 of 8 shooting with three made 3-pointers.
Dybantsa wasn’t bad, scoring 17 points on 6 of 12 shooting, but he didn’t attempt a shot until eight minutes of play had passed and appeared flustered at times by Kansas’ defensive resistance.
Saunders, however, outdid both top prospects, putting together the best game of his career amid the hostile Allen Fieldhouse environment.
The defending First Team All-Big 12 selection scored a career-best 33 points on 11 of 19 shooting, hitting six triples, grabbing 10 rebounds and adding two steals as well.
Saunders shot 42.8% from long distance against Kansas, with the rest of his teammates combining to make just 27.7% of their such shots.
There were plenty of NBA scouts and executives in the building for the Dybantsa/Peterson matchup, but they all had to have loved what they saw from Saunders.
BYU needs to get right. Though the Cougars lost to the No. 1 team in the country and in one of the toughest road environments in the sport this past week, two consecutive losses is still cause for concern, especially considering BYU’s inconsistency on both ends of the floor.
Some might say the Cougars are regressing, or they’re just struggling against elite competition. Whatever the case, BYU has to get back to its winning ways. Favorable March seeding is slipping away.
There are 10 games left in the regular season, with KenPom projecting the Cougars to win nine of them — but as everyone knows, winning 9 of 10 in the Big 12 is a massive challenge.
Such a slate begins next week at Oklahoma State, who is currently 2-5 in Big 12 play. After visiting the Cowboys, BYU will return home to host a top 10 Houston team before going on the road again to play Baylor.