Big Three Carries BYU to Dominant Win Over Arizona State

BYU star AJ Dybantsa against Arizona State | BYU Photo

For the first time since joining the Big 12, BYU is 2-0 in conference play. On Wednesday night, the Cougars crushed Arizona State in a 104-76 victory. BYU's big three combined for 81 points, outscoring Arizona State on their own.

BYU veteran star Richie Saunders had a career high 31 points. Saunders put the exclamation mark on BYU's win with a three in the second half. Rob Wright saved an errant pass and threw it behind his back to Saunders who converted on the open three.

Saunders was an efficient 10/13 from the field including 6/8 from three. He also added 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME!? 🤯

📺 peacock pic.twitter.com/uQJsqZXCnA

— BYU Men's Basketball (@BYUMBB) January 8, 2026

Speaking of career highs, BYU point guard Rob Wright III had a career night as well. Wright finished with 27 points on 9/15 from the floor. He added 4 assists and 3 rebounds to just 1 turnover.

AJ Dybantsa cruised to an easy 23 points. Dybantsa added 7 rebounds and 5 assists. ASU had no answer for Dybantsa's ability to create on the offensive end. Dyanbtsa also added another dunk to his growing list of highlights dunks in his true freshman season.

AJ DYBANTSA OH MY 😱

(via @peacock)pic.twitter.com/1ZWOu11rit

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) January 8, 2026

BYU Big Man Abdullah Ahmed Makes First Career Start

BYU center Abdullah Ahmed made his first career start, replacing Keba Keita. Ahmed made his BYU debut just a few weeks ago after joining the team in the middle of the season. Ahmed left the game early due to cramps, but he made a big impact in his time on the floor.

Ahmed had 5 blocks, 5 rebounds, and 3 points in just 17 minutes. Ahmed is a true rim protector and his addition has proved to be a major boost to BYU's defense. Ahmed's role will continue to grow as the season progresses, and he will be especially valuable against teams with scoring bigs.

Tyler Mrus Provides a Spark Off the Bench

BYU has relied heavily on its starting five. Even though this game was never close in the second half, point guard Rob Wright logged 37 minutes. It would really benefit BYU to find a few reliable contributors off the bench. On Wednesday Tyler Mrus played 17 minutes. He finished with 8 points off the bench on 3/5 from the field. He was 2/4 from three.

Khadim Mboup played 14 minutes off the bench, replacing a few of Keba Keita's minutes. Mboup had 2 points and 4 rebounds.