BYU Proved They Aren’t ‘One-Trick Pony’ In NCAA Win Over VCU
Mar 20, 2025, 7:37 PM | Updated: 7:37 pm
DENVER – BYU basketball is often labeled as a three-point shooting team. Then it stops there.
Sure, BYU can hit threes at a high clip, but under first-year head coach Kevin Young, there’s more depth to how this year’s BYU squad can win games.
They showed that on Thursday afternoon in front of a pro-BYU crowd of 19,291 fans at Ball Arena in Denver.
BYU basketball showcased their physicality in NCAA win over VCU
BYU defeated VCU 80-71 in a matchup where a big storyline was the physicality of the Rams defense. Instead, it was BYU being the more physical team.
BYU won an NCAA Tournament game for the first time since 2012, on a day where they only hit seven 3-pointers. On the opposite side, VCU buried 15 threes, 11 of which were in a second-half comeback attempt.
“A lot is made of our three-point shooting, but we’re definitely not a one-trick pony,” said BYU head coach Kevin Young on the BYU Sports Network postgame after the VCU win.
“We’ve got Fouss (Traore) teeing off down there on the low post. You’ve got multiple guys getting to the rim. So I thought the game plan in terms of the execution of how we wanted to go about attacking these guys was top-notch.”
VCU put BYU in an early 5-0 deficit, giving flashbacks of what happened in Omaha last year against Duquesne. But Young’s squad quickly responded.
The fears of another physical defense giving BYU headaches quickly evaporated. Instead, BYU was the enforcer.
Kevin Young saw an urgency from his team
Young sensed urgency from his team entering Thursday’s Round of 64 matchup. Particularly from players who experienced last year’s loss in the “Big Dance.”
“I did. I absolutely did,” Young said on the urgency of BYU entering the VCU game. “That was another thing that gave me a lot of kind of comfort as we were preparing for this.
“I pulled a lot of those guys aside and asked them, ‘Are we missing anything? Are we hitting all the right things? They were definitely good sounding boards for me, being my first time through it.”
BYU center Keba Keita was excellent, with two early blocks. The physicality that Keita played with last week in the second half of the loss to Houston carried over to Denver.
Keita clogged the paint against VCU’s bigs and helped limit the Rams to only 12 offensive rebounds. A number below their average of 13 per game, while BYU had 14 on the offensive glass.
“I’m looking to play more physical each game,” Keita said to KSL Sports. “I wanted to set the tone physically. I felt like it was my job to set an example.”
BYU navigated a low-scoring first half, which isn’t a typical roadmap to success for the Cougars.
They started to gain momentum with a strong close to the first half. Then they pounced on VCU early in the second half, building a 20-point lead.
Depth of how BYU can win games
There’s depth in Kevin Young’s rotation with 11 players as Kanon Catchings returned for the first time since March 1. The depth also shows in the ways that BYU can win ball games.
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“Proud of our guys,” Young said. “We felt like we wanted to key in on rebounding, not putting them on the line, and taking care of the ball. Those were the three keys for us coming into the game. We won those three areas. Felt like that was a huge part of the win.”
Next up for BYU is No. 3 seed Wisconsin from the Big Ten Conference. Young’s squad will have to showcase that versatility again, as the Badgers are an up-tempo team.
The Badgers are going to be a tough out. The good news for BYU is that they have the confidence to win in any style thrown their way.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
