It’s been a near-perfect start for first-year head coach Lee Cummard and the BYU women’s basketball team. With only one loss through their first 13 games, the Cougars have more than enjoyed the first two months of the Cummard era.
But how real is BYU’s impressive start? The Cougars’ non-conference strength of schedule only ranked No. 248 out of 362 teams, and while they boast an impressive win against Virginia Tech, they lost their only game against a top-25 opponent in Vanderbilt.
On Wednesday, BYU will be tested again when it hosts the No. 8 TCU Horned Frogs. This game will be a glimpse into how competitive the Cougars can be in the Big 12, and if their record is real or fool’s gold.
“They’re a legit Final Four contender,” Cummard said about the undefeated Horned Frogs. “It’s a great opportunity for us … [and] another data point at where we’re at.”
TCU is coming off the most successful season in program history, reaching the Elite Eight for the first time in 2025. This season, TCU replaced All-American point guard and WNBA draft pick Hailey Van Lith with fellow All-American and Notre Dame transfer Olivia Miles. Miles is averaging 18.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 7.6 assists per game, and will be by far the best player that the Cougars have faced this season.
Luckily for the Cougars, they will likely have a fully healthy Delaney Gibb to counter Miles’ impact.
Gibb, who was the Big 12 rookie of the year in 2025, missed eight games earlier in the season due to a lower-leg injury.
In her absence, freshmen guards Olivia Hamlin (13.2 points per game) and Sydney Benally (5.4 assists per game) have provided a lifeline for the Cougars. They are a major reason BYU’s record did not suffer with Gibb sidelined.
In Gibbs’ first game back from injury against UCF on Dec. 20, she only played 16 minutes, scoring 12 points off the bench in the Cougars’ first Big 12 win. Against TCU, Gibb will likely not have a minutes restriction.
“As far as I know, there shouldn’t be a minutes restriction,” Cummard said on Monday. “We’ll see how she feels after today’s practice. She didn’t go all of practice today and I anticipate she won’t go all of practice tomorrow, but I haven’t heard the term ‘minute restriction,’ so I’m hoping for her and I’m planning on her.”
BYU players Hattie Ogden and Brinley Cannon talked about how important it is to have Gibb, who was averaging 16.3 points and 6.0 assists per game before her injury, for the game against TCU.
“I think just the playmaking ability that she brings to the team, she just has a way of getting in there and seeing the floor,” Ogden, a senior forward, said. “I think that’s a huge part of our team.”
“Adding another primary ball-handler and point guard will take some of that pressure off [the other guards],” Cannon, a sophomore, said.
A win against No. 8 TCU would not only mean that the Cougars’ hot start is legitimate, but would be an all-time great victory for the program. This would be BYU’s highest-ranked win in the Big 12 era and the first regular season win against a top-10 opponent since 2006, when it took down No. 4 Stanford.
“We try not to focus on the rankings,” Cannon said. “They’re a really talented team, but I think we are as well.”
The Big 12 matchup will tip off on Wednesday at 7 p.m. MST at the Marriott Center.
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