How is Kevin Young preparing BYU to follow last year’s Sweet 16 run?
BYU is certainly battle-tested, but Kevin Young’s crew is also far from starstruck regarding the stage and stakes of March.
BYU head coach Kevin Young speaks during a press conference the day before a first-round college basketball game against Texas in the NCAA Tournament held at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon, on Wednesday, March 18, 2026. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News PORTLAND — When BYU faces Texas on Thursday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Portland’s Moda Center hardwood will be the fourth different NBA court the Cougars have played on this season. Trips to such venues — in addition to games in Las Vegas, Walt Disney World, national television primetime windows and other high-exposure showcase settings — serve as one example of the significant spotlight BYU has lived in all year long.
Portland will offer the brightest lights of all — those of the Big Dance, where the Cougars are looking to follow last year’s Sweet 16 appearance with another memorable run. Thanks to its tangles with adversity and the grinding Big 12 gauntlet, BYU is certainly battle-tested. But Kevin Young’s crew is also far from starstruck regarding the stage and stakes of March.
“I think there’s just comfort in the known, you know? I guess part of the reason why we want to play in those games, just to give the guys the experience of playing in NBA arenas, playing in showcase type events where everybody’s watching and talking about you,” Young told reporters Wednesday. “It’s not something that we have to get used to already, I think our guys have a comfort level.
BYU forward AJ Dybantsa recalls his favorite bible verse after being posed the question by Cy Pittman, 8, right, and Hank Pittman, 6, both of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, after a practice the day before a first-round college basketball game against Texas in the NCAA Tournament held at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon, on Wednesday, March 18, 2026. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News BYU guard Richie Saunders holds a ball as he watches his teammates warm up during a practice the day before a first-round college basketball game against Texas in the NCAA Tournament held at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon, on Wednesday, March 18, 2026. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News BYU forward AJ Dybantsa (3) reacts after a teammate hit a deep shot during a practice the day before a first-round college basketball game against Texas in the NCAA Tournament held at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon, on Wednesday, March 18, 2026.
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