BYU lost to No. 5 Houston 73-66 in the quarterfinals of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament at the T-Mobile Center on March 12.
The defeat ends BYU’s run in the conference tournament and leaves the team waiting for its postseason fate, which will be determined during the NCAA Selection Show on Sunday, March 15.
Head coach Kevin Young said after the game, “Credit to Houston. They played a good game. They deserved to win. They made the plays that were necessary down the stretch. When you play Houston, you’ve got to keep the possession game pretty close the best you can. There were too many offensive rebounds down the stretch. Turned us over too much. We turned them over as well, but that was really the story. And Kingston Flemings is a special player that made a big play. So give them credit.”
BYU led at halftime but was outscored by Houston in the second half, with Houston earning a trip to the tournament semifinal by scoring 36 points after halftime compared to BYU’s 25.
AJ Dybantsa led BYU with a game-high 26 points, including three three-pointers on five attempts. The freshman reached at least 20 points for the twenty-seventh time this season, tying him for second most in program history alongside Devin Durrant (1983-84) and Michael Smith (1988-89). Keba Keita contributed nearly a double-double with thirteen rebounds and eight points; his ninety offensive rebounds this season tie him for seventh most in a single season in program history, and his seven offensive boards against Houston are tied for third most in a conference tournament game for BYU.
Both teams struggled with turnovers—BYU had eighteen while Houston had sixteen—with each side scoring nineteen points off turnovers from their opponent. Second-chance points also played an important role as Houston scored nineteen such points.
The Cougars now look ahead to Sunday’s NCAA Selection Show on CBS at 4 p.m., where they will learn if their season continues.
