BYU Slides One Seed in Lunardi's Latest Bracketology

The Cougars suffered a narrow loss to no. 1 Arizona

Jan 26, 2026; Provo, Utah, USA; BYU Cougars guard Aleksej Kostić (6) reacts to a three pointer made during the second half against the Arizona Wildcats at Marriott Center. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Baker-Imagn Images | Aaron Baker-Imagn Images

After suffering a narrow loss to no. 1 Arizona, ESPN's Joe Lunardi downgraded his NCAA Tournament projection for the BYU Basketball program. Prior to the game, BYU was a 3-seed in Lunardi's bracketology. After the loss, the Cougars slid to a 4-seed in Lunardi's latest.

In Lunardi's projections, BYU would be a 4-seed facing 13-seed Hawaii in the first round of the tournament. The winner of BYU-Hawaii would advance to take on the winner of 5-seed Alabama and 12-seed FAU. The Crimson Tide eliminated BYU from the NCAA Tournament in the Sweet 16 last season.

Kevin Young Explains Final Play Against Arizona

After an improbable rally in the final 70 seconds of BYU's loss to no. 1 Arizona, the Cougars had the ball and the chance to take the lead with 11 seconds remaining.

BYU inbounded the ball all the way across halfcourt to point guard Rob Wright. Wright attacked the room and had a good look, but Brayden Burries came off his assignment and blocked Wright's go-ahead shot. A pair of Brayden Burries free throws ended the game at 86-83.

After the game, many BYU fans questioned the decision to give Wright the ball instead of star wing AJ Dybantsa. Wright, who is typically one of BYU's best scorers, had struggled up to that point in the game. Wright was 3/15 from the field before attempting the go-ahead shot.

BYU head coach Kevin Young was asked about the decision to go with Wright on the final possession. Young explained that the original plan was to get the ball to Dybantsa.

"Rob's a gamer. You know, we saw it in the Garden," Young said. "I trust him in those moments. Quite frankly, him and AJ, neither one of them had really had it going. But those are our guys and we're going to ride or die with them...the first option was to get AJ the ball. They clogged the area we were trying to get to, and we got the ball in Rob's hands to try to make a play."

As BYU tried to inbound the basketball to Dybantsa, he was being face-guarded by Koa Peat. The Cougars couldn't lob it over Peat's head either, as an extra Arizona defender was in the area to prevent an inbound pass to Dybantsa. Therefore, the ball was sent out to Rob Wright.

As Coach Young pointed out, Rob Wright has already shown up in a similar situation earlier this year against Clemson. Wright hit a game-winning three at the buzzer in Madison Square Garden.