Back where they belong, there's one thing that we can virtually guarantee from BYU basketball this season, and that's an appearance at the 6-line of the NCAA Tournament. In line with tradition, this is exactly where BYU basketball has been listed in the latest update from Joe Lunardi's way-too-early Bracketology submissions with ESPN.
This is my surprised face.
In this projection, BYU basketball would match up against 11-seed New Mexico out of the Mountain West. Keep in mind, though, that these are dubbed as way-too-early projections for good reason: we have absolutely no idea how the season will play out (though BYU at 6 is a pretty reasonable prediction). Still, it's fascinating to see how BYU basketball appears from a national lens.
BYU is projected as a 6-seed in ESPN's latest Way-Too-Early bracketologyhttps://t.co/6PSG43LJns pic.twitter.com/LlqBBWnVUR
— Cougar Sports Media (@CougSportsMedia) June 18, 2026
Still without a starting center enrolled (though 7'5" Chinese big Xu Xin is widely rumored to be the Cougars' guy if they can get him through enrollment and get the NCAA to approve his eligibility), it's tough to project a team still in the process of not only rounding out their starting lineup, but filling out their depth as well.
This becomes doubly challenging given the team's recent history of striking above their weight in Kevin Young's first season, and largely disappointing in his second season despite boasting the potential number-one overall NBA Draft pick AJ Dybantsa.
Elsewhere in this projection, Florida receives the top overall seed, Michigan, Illinois, and Duke round out the remaining one-seeds, and West Virginia is the first team out with Utah State not far behind, missing their first NCAA Tournament for a while despite returning some key talent from last year's squad.
The Cougars join 8 other conference members from the Big 12 in this early projection, with the SEC and Big Ten, overrated as ever, each represented by 13 teams in the new expanded format.
Big 12 Conference representation in Joe Lunardi's Bracketology
2-seed: Arizona
4-seed: Houston, Kansas
5-seed: Iowa State
6-seed: BYU, Texas Tech
10-seed: Baylor
11-seed: TCU
12-seed: Arizona State
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