DENVER – In his first year as head coach, Kevin Young has led BYU basketball to a Sweet 16 appearance.
On Saturday night inside Ball Arena in Denver, No. 6 seed BYU knocked off No. 3 seed Wisconsin 91-89.
It’s only the third time since seeding began in the NCAA Tournament that the Cougars have reached the regional semifinals.
The previous two occurrences were in 1981 and 2011, led by stars Danny Ainge and Jimmer Fredette.
First Team All-Big 12 performer Richie Saunders leads this year’s squad. But the entire team, BYU’s biggest strength, has led the Cougars to heights they haven’t reached in 14 years.
Kevin Young gives postgame after BYU defeats Wisconsin in the NCAA Tournament
After BYU’s big win over the Badgers, head coach Kevin Young addressed the team and gave a speech that clearly fired up his players—and probably some BYU fans watching the clip.
brb looking for a brick wall to run through pic.twitter.com/Srt5Iyko0q
— BYU Men’s Basketball (@BYUMBB) March 23, 2025
“I’ve told you guys time and time again. This time of year, you can’t make stuff up,” Young said. “You rely on the stuff you’ve been doing all year long. And that’s why we’re in this position. Let’s go!”
BYU is moving on to the Sweet 16
BYU returns to action this Thursday when they take on the winner of Saint Mary’s-Alabama in the Sweet 16 in Newark, New Jersey.
Young has put together an impressive debut season as BYU’s head coach.
Kevin Young leads BYU to the Sweet 16 in year one pic.twitter.com/cexiPXb9Ik
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) March 23, 2025
Along with reaching the East Regional Semifinals in the NCAA Tournament, BYU gathered wins in the regular season on the road over Arizona and Iowa State.
BYU enters the Sweet 16 winners of 11 of their last 12 games. The lone loss was to No. 1 seed Houston, who, like BYU, has also reached the Sweet 16 in this year’s NCAA Tournament.
BYU’s record this season is now 26-9. Kevin Young has racked up the most wins by a BYU basketball team under a first-year head coach.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
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