Recap: BYU basketball surges in the second half for sizzling win over Ohio State

Ohio State had won 23 straight season-openers leading into their matchup with the 25th-ranked BYU Cougars. Robert Wright III and his 33 points had something to say about that winning streak as the Cougars tore the game from the Buckeyes in the second half, snapping the streak and giving way to one of their own. BYU notched a 1-0 start on Monday night to the tune of a 94-83 final.

This shiny and new version of Kevin Young's 25th-ranked BYU basketball program got off to a slow start against the Buckeyes. Unable to find nylon, newcomers Bruce Branch III, Jaxon Kohler, and Collin Chandler combined for 3-of-15 shooting. BYU's struggles on the offensive end were magnified by a quick start from Ohio State, who pushed an early lead to as many as 9 points in the first half before a 9-2 run brought the Cougars back within striking distance.

Thankfully, nobody let Rob Wright III or Tyler Betsey know about the lid on the Cougars' basket.

Betsey knocked through a few timely three-pointers, his gooseneck release a thing of beauty, and the ball's flight even more so. Wright picked up the slack and put the offensive burden upon his own shoulders, putting his shoulder into the chest of Justin Pippen (you know who he is), spinning, and using the finesse of his teardrop floater to slip the ball through the cylinder.

Wright led all scorers with 14 by halftime.

But Ohio State's trio of NBA names, Mobley, Bynum, and Pippen, each contributed 8 points and eached missed only one shot during the first half. The Buckeyes were on fire from distance in the first half, pulling from well beyond the Delta Center's permanent NBA 3-point line and connecting on both open and contested jumpers.

Ohio State shot 54% from the field and a scorching 50% from distance in the first 20 minutes, a chasm between themselves and BYU's 39% and 29%, respectively.

Encouragingly, the disparity between these sides' shooting splits equated to just a 3-point difference when the halftime buzzer sounded.

BYU entered the second half at freeway speed. Collin Chandler hit a corner and followed it up with a wicked floater. Wright added another three and an and-one lay-in, which gave way to a Jaxon Kohler and-one of his own to launch the Cougars to a 50-43 lead just 3 minutes into the second half.

Though Ohio State, led by Amare Bynum, managed to shrink the Cougars' advantage in spurts, BYU's grasp on this game only got stronger as the game progressed. Kohler and Branch came to life as they -- along with every other BYU starter -- eclipsed double-digits in the points column.

Three-pointers and highlight dunks reanimated an uneasy Delta Center crowd, with this behind-the-back-inbound-save-turned-lob-slam just about ripping the dome off the home of the Utah Jazz. Thank goodness at least one basketball team can make that happen in 2026.

Player of the Game: Robert Wright III

Rob Wright began his All-American campaign with a roaring introduction. His statline was prestine, featuring 33 points on 9-of-15 (4-of-5 three-point) shooting, 5 assists, and a solitary turnover. The steady hand that gripped the steering wheel, Wright was the biggest acquisition of the offseason bar-none.

But I'd like to give an honorable mention to Tyler Betsey, a player who arrived in Provo with one job: shoot the three-ball. And he's done just that in his first appearance, knocking through four of his five attempts from distance with a sweet-shooting release.

The Cougars advance to 1-0 to start the season. While the bench produced relatively little by way of points, the biggest question facing this year's team was how well the pieces of Kevin Young's lineup could compliment one another on the court. There's very little question about that now.

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