BYU's men’s basketball team opened the season and kicked off AJ Dybantsa’s much-hyped college career with a victory over Villanova.
Related: AJ Dybantsa, BYU basketball weather a Villanova storm and escape with a season-opening win
The No. 8 Cougars are 1-0, and in the big picture that’s all that matters. But when breaking down the box score there’s one stat that jumps off the page for coach Kevin Young, his staff, and his team to improve:
Limiting offensive rebounds.
Yes, the Cougs are 1-0 but they nearly squandered a victory with their inability to control the glass.
So what’s the problem?
BYU was -5 in the offensive rebounding department, giving up 17 while securing 12. And it wasn’t just the five extra possessions Villanova manufactured that almost cost BYU the game; it was when the Wildcats grabbed them.
With 17:53 left in the game, the Cougars were cruising. They led 46-32 after an AJ Dybantsa layup and were poised to close out the game with one more run. But instead, a few minutes later, the wheels came off, and it was the number of offensive rebounds the Cougars gave up that was the primary culprit in loosening the lugnuts.
With 12:47 left Villanova hit two free throws after an offensive rebound to cut the deficit to six.
With 12:13 left the Wildcats drilled a three after an offensive board to cut the Cougars lead to 51-48.
With 10:55 remaining Villanova scored after another offensive rebound to cut the deficit to one point.
With 8:05 left Bryce Lindsay knocked down a 3-pointer off another offensive rebound to give the Wildcats a 56-55 lead.
With 6:28 remaining Lindsay hit another three after yet another Wildcats offensive rebound for a 59-57 Villanova lead.
In summary, over a six-minute, 19-second stretch in the second half BYU gave up five offensive rebounds that resulted in a staggering 13 points. Instead of throwing a second half haymaker to build on their once 14-point lead, the Cougars absorbed one due to their inability to secure defensive rebounds.
So what’s the solution?
Now, Kevin Young is a basketball genius. He’ll find a solution. But it’s not going to be easy.
Once again, BYU lacks a paint player who can inhale defensive rebounds like I inhale maple Cougar Tails. The Cougars haven’t had a player average nine rebounds per game since Yoeli Childs in 2019-20 (9.0 RPG).
Keba Keita is a great player, but he’s undersized at 6-foot-8 for a center and isn’t a dominant rebounder. Mihailo Boskovic is 6-foot-10 but he’s a stretch four who last year averaged just 1.7 rebounds in 11.1 minutes per game. Freshman Xavian Staton is 6-foot-11 and in time can blossom into a dominant post presence, but he’s raw and his development will take time.
The solution could be AJ Dybantsa and Khadim Mboup crashing the glass from the wing. Both are 6-foot-9 freshmen (Mboup’s a redshirt) and they combined for 13 boards against Villanova. Defensive rebounding is about scheme, priority, and effort. Both Dybantsa and Mboup have high motors, but Coach Young and his staff will need to deploy them differently to crash the defensive glass, especially when opposing teams make runs like Villanova did on Monday.
BYU is 1-0 and that’s all that matters.
But if they’re going to control their destiny this year, they’re going to need to better control the defensive glass.