BYU basketball has reached the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year in as many tries for head coach Kevin Young. Back in their comfortable home as the 6-seed, BYU hoops has the path laid before them. BYU, a program that leads the nation in tournament berths without a Final Four appearance, entered this season with sky-high expectations.
Injuries have shot these Cougars back down to Earth.
Behind a dynamic twosome of AJ Dybantsa -- the nation's leading scorer and potential number-one NBA draft pick this summer -- and Rob Wright, who boasts one of the tighetest handles in college hoops and is hitting 3s at an absurd clip as a sophomore.
BYU matches up against the winner of Texas and NC State, which will face off in the First Four before the round of 64. Texas, led by Dailyn Swain, is not your typical 11-seed. Long, athletic, and versatile, the Longhorns struggled in SEC play, but they have the athletes to match up with BYU. NC State's personnel matches up less favorably to the Cougars in a potential first-round meeting, despite being led by Texas Tech transfer Darrion Williams, who hits over 40% of his three-pointers.
As The Ringer suggests, BYU fans should be cheering for NC State to win this matchup, though the Cougars will be favored against either foe.
How to watch BYU vs Texas/NC State:
Date: Thursday, March 19, 2026
Time: 5:25 PM MT
Location: Moda Center, Portland, OR
Channel: TBS
BYU's path in the 2026 NCAA Tournament. pic.twitter.com/2Q3EKNOEZw
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) March 15, 2026
The Cougars' path gets no easier if they manage to hold off the dangerous 11-seed, as they likely face a meeting with old West Coast Conference rival, Gonzaga. Mark Few had BYU's number for most of the Cougars' stay in the WCC, and would be favored agasint Dybantsa and company despite being an untraditional Spokane squad.
Obviously, the second round is simplified if 14-seed Kennesaw State pulls an upset in round one.
Down the tracks come the Boilermakers of Purdue, who likely advance to the Sweet 16, assuming they can handle the scrappy 7 or 10 seed that stands in their path. Miami and Missouri are both more than capable of toppling an unsteady Purdue squad, and would be a far preferable matchup for the Cougars, who have already defeated Miami on a neutral floor earlier in the year.
The Sweet 16 is the benchmark set by last season's BYU basketball team, though the path to the second weekend feels like much more of an uphill battle in Kevin Young's second season.