Expectations are high for Ohio State and No. 25 BYU when they open their seasons Monday in Salt Lake City.
The goal for each is to advance further than the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
That finish was particularly disappointing for BYU after coach Kevin Young led the Cougars to 26 wins and a Sweet 16 appearance during his first season in 2024-25. Last season, BYU was 23-12 (9-9 Big 12) and was upset by No. 11 seed Texas.
For the Buckeyes (21-13, 12-8 Big Ten last season), it was a quick exit in their first trip to the tournament since 2022 when they fell to No. 9 TCU.
Ohio State coach Jake Diebler, starting his third full season after an 8-3 record as interim coach in 2023-24, said simply reaching the NCAA Tournament is not good enough.
“From Day 1 I’ve leaned into the standard of this program,” he said. “That’s the goal, to get back to those peaks of this program. I’m not afraid of those expectations. I’m not afraid of the standard that is this program. In fact, we’re trying to take it to the top and that’s the mentality I want our guys to have.”
BYU has some big shoes to fill after relying heavily on AJ Dybantsa, the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft by the Washington Wizards. He led the nation last season in scoring with 25.5 points per game while making 51.0% of his field-goal attempts.
Richie Saunders (18.0 ppg, 5.8 rpg in 25 games before a season-ending knee injury) was also selected in the draft with the No. 32 pick by the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Cougars will turn to Robert Wright III, who averaged 18.1 points and 4.6 assists last season.
“Rob was one of the best point guards in the country last year, and he’s improved a lot,” BYU associate head coach Tim Fanning said. “His body has improved a lot and his shooting has improved a lot. He’s a guy that’s clearly on an upward trend just as an individual in his development, and so having a guy like that back is massive for the team.
“I think we did a really good job of surrounding him with shooting so I think we’re going to be a really tough team to stop.”
John Mobley Jr. leads the Buckeyes. He averaged 15.7 points per game in his second season and is expected to be ready for the Cougars despite twisting his ankle late in Ohio State’s final exhibition game vs. Butler on Oct. 25.
“I feel good. I just stepped on a foot. Little roll. Felt there was no need to go back in. It’s better off just resting it,” Mobley said, emphasizing it was a “minor” injury.
He and Amare Bynum are the returning starters. Bynum averaged 9.7 points and 4.9 rebounds as a freshman last season.
Bynum agreed with Diebler’s assessment that he needs to be more involved in the offense.
“Especially in transition, if I see that open lane, I’m going to go and take it and get a bucket,” Bynum said. “I know we still have to work on some things before the BYU game. But we just have to keep playing together and we have to be better on defense with a little bit better communication.”
