Once AJ Dybantsa was done torturing the Kansas State defense, thoroughly picking apart every coverage imaginable, his head coach just had to marvel at his star freshman.

“I think he is the most skilled offensive player in college basketball,” Kevin Young said, shaking his head last week. “He was scoring in the post, scoring in transition, scoring in isolation, coming off pin downs, making good passes. It was a full display of his skill set.”

Forty points later, the Big 12 tournament’s scoring record for a freshman was toppled.

And by the time Dybantsa and the Cougars were knocked out of the conference tourney, the young forward had scored 93 points, toppling a tournament record set in 2007.

Step aside, Kevin Durant.

And Young is hoping it’s just the opening act of a record-breaking March from the potential No. 1 NBA draft pick. If BYU is going to reach the same heights from a season ago — dancing into the Sweet 16 for the first time in a decade — it’s going to require plenty more scoring outbursts from Dybantsa.

“I’m just trying to win games,” Dybantsa said. “If I have to score 40 to do that, fine. But I’m not going for records.”

If Dybantsa was being candid, he didn’t anticipate carrying such a heavy offensive burden going into the NCAA Tournament.

When he committed, Young told him he’d have a roster stocked with shooting and outfitted to Dybantsa’s superstar specifications.

But that gradually fell apart as the months wore on.

First, Nate Pickens was sidelined by a surgery. Then, Dawson Baker hobbled off the floor during a Thanksgiving tournament in Orlando. And just last month, All-American candidate Richie Saunders was reeling in pain on the Marriott Center baseline with a torn ACL.

Nearly 30 points a game transitioned to street clothes, leaving Dybantsa as Young’s only real answer.

The silver lining: Young could rebuild BYU’s offense with only one man in mind.

It means maximum spacing for college basketball’s most dynamic scorer.

“With the different iterations of our team, his spacing has been a little bit different based on who is out there. He’s done a good job adjusting,” Young said. “He’s making the simple play. As great of a player as he is, when he makes the simple play it opens the floor up to attack.”

That’s exactly what Dybantsa has done since Saunders went out.

He is averaging 27 points per game in his last 10 outings, including two 35-plus performances. He already led the nation in scoring before the injuries, but now his usage rate is at a historical pace.

Young is letting him do it all. He clears the floor for Dybantsa’s midrange game and spaces the offense for his drives to the paint. He lets Dybantsa pull up from three if everyone is packed in, even if it’s not his best skill.

At one point this year, Dybantsa looked like he was bogged down in Young’s scheme and forcing shots. Now, he’s just reacting and picking from his menu of scoring options.

“I think he hit a little bit of a lull midway through,” Young said. “He really stepped up when he got past that. I think his decision-making improved.”

The last time Dybantsa scored 40 points was a January night against Utah, breaking Danny Ainge’s record.

That day, Young said Dybantsa was “hands down the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft.”

But since then, it hasn’t always looked that way — particularly when Dybantsa was out-dueled by fellow star freshman Darryn Peterson on national television.

Now, Dybantsa looks the part again.

For BYU, it needs every bit of his star power to make another March run.