After a big win over No. 4 Iowa State last week, BYU’s season appeared to be back on track.
Maybe the Cougars and star forward AJ Dybantsa would be just fine.
Some BYU fans might feel differently now, especially after the Cougars were upset by UCF 97-84 at the Marriott Center on Tuesday night. They let the Cougars and head coach Kevin Young hear their feelings with a barrage of boos during the loss.
“I hope there was a level of embarrassment,” Young said of the boos. “I wasn’t upset with the fans. Our fans are incredible, you know? They deserve to see a product that has a lot more effort than what our guys showed tonight.”
(Tyler Tate | AP) BYU forward AJ Dybantsa (3) goes to the basket for a dunk during the first half an NCAA college basketball game against Iowa State, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026, in Provo.
The Cougars appeared outmatched by the Knights from tipoff. Dybantsa described his team’s effort as “lazy” in the contest, especially in the second half.
“I think it was just a lack of effort,” Dybantsa said of the struggles. “We got lazy and they took advantage of it. ... We just have to be better coming out of halftime.”
BYU will have multiple chances to recover from its latest loss with a two-game road trip coming up against West Virginia and Cincinnati.
“We were sleepwalking out there,” Young said. “It’s hard to pinpoint, but I didn’t expect that in the slightest. I’m super disappointed in our guys, super disappointed in myself and our coaches.
“It just was a night that was not good all around, there was just every breakdown [defensively] that you could possibly imagine.”