How Te'Jon Lucas left mark on BYU — and its history — with rest of senior group

PROVO — Te'Jon Lucas had barely heard of Brigham Young University before head coach Mark Pope and his staff contacted him about coming to Provo as a graduate transfer.

He knew Pope, Chris Burgess, Cody Fueger and the rest the staff from when the group tried to recruit him to Utah Valley the first time he transferred, when he left Illinois and ultimately ended up closer to him at UW-Milwaukee. Obviously, Lucas' response there was, "thanks, but no thanks."

Something clicked this time around, though, and the 6-foot-1, 187-pound point guard found himself flying out to Provo to commit to the university, almost sight unseen. He met star guard Alex Barcello — who, like Lucas, was also a transfer (from Arizona) and not a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the university's sponsoring institution — and the two became fast friends.

But if Lucas was going to make this work, he didn't want to just be a one-year mercenary, hired to play basketball, win some games, maybe make an NCAA Tournament appearance, and get out. He wanted to learn what BYU was all about — the school, the community, the culture and not just the basketball program.

So Lucas, often accompanied by fellow transfer Seneca Knight, visited several parts of campus when they weren't at practice or in class. The duo famously rolled up to the Smith Fieldhouse for women's volleyball matches, cheered on the women's soccer team as they put together the best season in program history, and sat courtside for women's basketball when they weren't preparing for their own games in the Marriott Center.

If Lucas was going to be a part of the university's basketball program, he wanted to be a part of the campus community, too.

"One of my coaches used to say 'make every place your big time,'" Lucas explained. "I just wanted to soak it in while I was here, enjoy my moment, and not just be a basketball player here. I wanted to experience different things, go to different sports, explore the school, explore Utah; I've never been to Utah in my life. I didn't want to just go to the MC and the Annex … but to soak in the moment.

"You never know when you'll be back to Utah, so I just wanted to soak it in where ever I'm at."

Through it all, Lucas has learned a little bit himself, and a lot about BYU, about Provo, and about Utah. He's found a home in Utah County — one he hopes to visit again after his final game in the Marriott Center, which is Saturday against Pepperdine (6 p.m. MST, ESPNU).

And he's also been pretty good, averaging 10.8 points, 4.7 assists and 2.3 rebounds per game for a BYU team that remains on the NCAA Tournament bubble — just outside or just inside, depending on which projection you consult — one week before the West Coast Conference Tournament in Las Vegas.

Lucas is one of four seniors that will be honored before Saturday's game as part of the Cougars' senior night festivities, and all but one of them started their careers elsewhere. Besides Lucas and Barcello, the Arizona transfer who was honored as a senior a year ago before opting to take advantage of one final season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Orem High product Richard Harward will also be honored as a senior after following Pope to BYU from Utah Valley.

Only Gavin Baxter, the 6-foot-9, 228-pound forward with a 7-foot wing span from Timpview High, started his career in Provo — and the oft-injured forward could still opt for another season of eligibility, due to a mix of COVID-19 and a rash of injuries suffered during his time with the Cougars.

A lot is still unknown about seniors in the era of post-COVID eligibility and the transfer portal. But one thing is certain for players like Lucas and Barcello.

"All I know is I can say that this will definitely be my last home game in college basketball. There's no chance I'll be back next year," said Lucas, who will be accompanied by his mother, grandmother and sister during senior night. "I've been blessed to play at three great universities, to play five years. So I just want to soak it all in and enjoy the moment."

The Cougars (20-9, 8-6 WCC) went from an all-but guaranteed NCAA Tournament team to the edges of the bubble with a four-game losing streak and five losses in their last eight games. ESPN's Joe Lunardi has BYU among on the outside edge of the bubble, while CBS' Jerry Palm lists the Cougars among the First Four teams in Dayton playing for a 12-seed.

Without Barcello, BYU is likely a sub-.500 team. Without Lucas, they probably aren't much better. But both have meant more to the university than just basketball.

"He has given his heart and soul to this university, and to this basketball program," Pope said of Barcello. "He has integrated himself into our setup in a magnificent way.

"He's a guy with a big heart in this community. He's done so much service and so much example setting. … He's been an incredible ambassador for this university here."

Originally signed to Illinois, Lucas transferred back to his hometown of Milwaukee — where he plans to one day open a community center like the one that gave him so many opportunities growing up — and starred in the Horizon League. When he graduated, he still had one year of eligibility due to the pandemic.

And then he wound up in Provo, after also being recruited out of the transfer portal by Utah, Nevada, DePaul and New Mexico State, among other schools.

"He's bounced around, a number of times — went to two different high schools and three different colleges," said Anthony McHenry, Lucas' AAU coach, in a "Deep Blue" feature on BYUtv. "And at the same time, I think every would say that he's a tremendously loyal person. But circumstances arose that were outside his control in every one of those situations, and he had the courage and willingness to step back and ask, 'is this right for me?' If the answer was no, he wanted to go pursue what was the best opportunity for him."

He's also had the chance to make a difference, even in less than 365 days. Lucas was part of a groundbreaking starting lineup in BYU basketball history, what is believed to be the first time a Starting 5 did not feature a member of the school's sponsoring faith, before an 83-82 overtime win at Loyola Marymount.

The starters also included four Black student-athletes, which is also believed to be a program first, in Lucas, Knight and African-born forwards Gideon George and Fousseyni Traore.

The team didn't set out to make history with that starting lineup. But the ramifications of it could have a significant impact on the program — and the school — for years to come.

"It was definitely an honor. I think it was great to show the diversity we have at BYU," Lucas said. "We've been talking a lot about diversity and inclusion here, and I think it was a great moment to show that anybody — no matter your race or your belief — can come here and be successful, no matter your skin color or your background. That's all we were trying to show. We didn't want it to be a big deal about race; that's just how the game played out.

"I'm honored to be a part of something special like that. Hopefully it's just the start of something that could possibly change."

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