No. 10 Cougars relishing opportunity to face ACC’s Clemson in Jimmy V Classic at MSG

How much has the BYU men’s basketball program changed, and how far has it moved forward, since Kevin Young replaced Mark Pope in 2024?

Tuesday’s nonconference game in the Jimmy V Classic at New York City’s Madison Square Garden for the No. 10 Cougars against the ACC’s Clemson Tigers (4:30 p.m. MST, ESPN) provides a clear answer to that question.

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That the 7-1 Cougars are playing in such a prestigious event in December — a month usually reserved for facing cupcakes at the Marriott Center — is a sign in and of itself.

“It is humbling for this event to want us to participate in it, particularly out here in New York City, and in the venue of Madison Square Garden,” Young said Monday in a Zoom call with reporters who cover the program. “It is great for our guys to be able to do it in a cool, marquee-type college event.

“It is great for just where BYU is trending, in all things, not just basketball. … It has only been several years since we’ve been in the Big 12, and it is really showing what the future of BYU athletics can look like.”

Obviously, these are not your father’s Cougars.

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Young has assembled a roster that includes not only probable NBA top-three draft pick AJ Dybantsa, but standouts from Delaware (Robert Wright III), Missouri (Kennard Davis Jr.), Mali (Keba Keita), France (Dominique Diomande), Austria (Aleksej Kostic), Serbia (Mihailo Boskovic) and Africa (Khadim Mboup).

Consider this: Clemson has two starters on its 7-2 squad from Utah: Provo’s Jake Wahlin (a transfer from Utah who originally signed with BYU before a church mission), and Draper’s Carter Welling (a Corner Canyon High product who also played at UC Irvine and Utah Valley).

BYU has three Utahns on its roster — Richie Saunders, Brody Kozlowski and Jared McGregor — but preseason all-Big 12 performer Saunders, from Riverton by way of Wasatch Academy, is the only starter from the Beehive State.

Clemson starting big man Nick Davidson also has BYU ties. His…

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Publish date : 2025-12-09 04:00:00

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