PROVO — The eight-man rotation employed by No. 9 BYU in the Cougars' 83-73 win over Kansas State in Saturday's Big 12 opener probably isn't going anywhere.
That's not necessarily game-changing or detrimental, especially for a club with project NBA draft lottery pick AJ Dybantsa, who is currently tied for the top scorer in the country at 23.1 points per game.
But the Cougars' 12-1 record through nonconference play will be tested as much as any in a league with four teams ranked in the top-11 of KenPom, six in the top 20, and all but one in the top 85.
To borrow a marketing slogan from commissioner Brett Yormark: there are no nights off in the Big 12. Not even with a trip to No. 128 (and in-state archrival) Utah on Saturday's horizon (8 p.m. MST, ESPN).
"To be honest with you, I haven't even thought about Utah," BYU coach Kevin Young said before Wednesday's home tilt against Arizona State (7 p.m. MST, Peacock). "We're extremely locked in on Arizona State, and trying to make sure we're dialed.
"They're a good team, much better than they were last year," he added of the Runnin' Utes. "But because of Alex (Jensen, Utah head coach) and Wes Wilcox, who I know well, I've followed them. I've watched a few of their games. When the time is right, we'll prepare our guys for that moment. But right now, we're focused solely on Arizona State."
MEDIA AVAILABILITY: Coach Young on our game tomorrow vs ASU. pic.twitter.com/nWdCRlce0a
— BYU Men's Basketball (@BYUMBB) January 6, 2026
Young essentially confirmed Tuesday the long-term injury status of former Corner Canyon High star Brody Kozlowski during his weekly press briefing, saying that Kozlowski won't be suiting up for the Cougars "any time soon."
"The injury is more severe than anybody thought," Young said. "I'm going on what the doctors are telling me to do. But I don't think we're going to see Brody any time soon."
Just three days after Kozlowski was ruled out on the Big 12-mandated player availability report at Kansas State, BYU updated its game notes indicating that the former four-star prospect would redshirt the 2025-26 season due to a season-ending injury.
He's the third player ruled out for the season due to injury, joining UC Riverside transfer Nate Pickens and veteran guard Dawson Baker. KJ Perry, the former No. 1-rated recruit in junior college who joined the Cougars at the semester break, is also likely to redshirt the 2025-26 season with BYU.
Neither BYU nor Young confirmed the specific injury, and Kozlowski himself has remained largely silent about it. But it's not the first time the former four-star prospect by ESPN and Rivals has been sidelined for health reasons.
The 6-foot-8 wing appeared in just nine games as a true freshman last year, making his collegiate debut Nov. 13, 2024 in a 99-55 win over Queens (N.C.) and scoring a career-high 8 points a month later in a 103-57 win over Florida A&M.
But three games into Big 12 play, Kozlowski was ruled out after playing a one minute of an 80-52 win over Cincinnati and didn't suit up again during the Cougars' season-ending run that included their first Sweet 16 appearance since 2011.
Kozlowski returned for the exhibition season in the fall, but has not played in a regular-season game to preserve his redshirt.
Before he arrived at BYU, Kozlowski faced a serious injury from a car accident Nov. 15, 2023, when the Corner Canyon big shattered his clavicle ahead of his senior season. He returned to the court in January, averaging 20.4 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.9 assists on 49% shooting including 43% from 3-point range to help the Chargers to the 6A state championship game.
After initially signing with USC, Kozlowski asked out of his letter of intent when the Trojans hired Eric Musselman, and was swiftly courted by then-new BYU coach Young.
That led him to BYU, where the MaxPreps Utah Player of the Year and Adidas All-American enrolled at the same place his mother Kristen starred on the hardwood and father Travis played outside linebacker.
Kozlowski's continued absence could open up more minutes for Mihailo Boskovic, the 6-foot-10 senior forward from Serbia who is averaging 3.5 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 11.9 minutes per game.
That includes 9 points, three rebounds and an assist in the Cougars' 83-73 win over the Wildcats on Saturday, when his 17 minutes also aided five-star freshman Dybantsa to 24 points, eight rebounds, three assists and three steals in the win.
"I think he mistakenly defines his success on shot-making. I define his success on ball moving and good defense," Young said of Boskovic. "He's one of our smartest defensive players. He's big, and he makes us bigger.
"When he's playing the four, now AJ is the three and we're big. Our length can cause problems, and I think you saw that when he was out there."
Since missing his first nine 3-point attempts of the season, Boskovic is shooting 85.7% from beyond the arc, including 2-of-3 against K-State.
"He's a guy I trust," Young added. "He's helped us win games before in this league, particularly on the road. I think it was good for some of the young guys to see how locked in he was on the game plan, as a good example for the young guys."
