PROVO — AJ Dybantsa added to his list of accomplishments never before seen by a BYU freshman in men's basketball history Saturday afternoon.
Dybantsa set a BYU freshman record with a career-high 43 points to go along with six rebounds and three assists as the 13th-ranked Cougars beat Utah 91-78 in front of 18,224 fans Saturday afternoon at the Marriott Center.
Robert Wright III added 21 points, five rebounds and three assists for BYU, which bounced back from its first loss in Big 12 play at No. 12 Texas Tech to improve to 17-2 on the year and 5-1 in league play.
Richie Saunders scored 8 of his 12 points in the second half to help the Cougars pull away from a 5-point halftime lead to sweep their in-state rivals.
Terrence Brown had 22 points and four assists for the Runnin' Utes (9-11, 1-6 Big 12), and Keanu Dawes added 23 points and six rebounds.
But Saturday's performance on FOX was an ode to Dybantsa, the five-star freshman and projected NBA draft lottery pick in June.
The 6-foot-9 jumbo wing, who is a week away from his 19th birthday, had shot 15-of-24 from the field, 4-of-5 from 3-point range, and added 9-of-10 free throws to become the first BYU player to score 40 or more in a single game since Chase Fischer dropped 41 against New Mexico on Dec. 23, 2015.
AJ reaches thirty on this bucket 😮💨
— BYU Men's Basketball (@BYUMBB) January 25, 2026
📺 FOX https://t.co/0CUuu8MfbBpic.twitter.com/yeHunUIEwQ
The Cougars held rival Utah scoreless through the first media timeout, more than four minutes into the game, a combined 0-for-7 from the field to lead by as much as 6 early.
The Utes knocked down five in a row, including a Don McHenry's second 3-pointer of the afternoon to go up 24-23 with 8:01 left in the half.
But Dybantsa converted 7-of-12 from the field and 4-of-5 from the free-throw line for 19 points, and Wright added 13 to help BYU to a 42-37 halftime lead.
McHenry had 12 points in the first half for Utah, but did not score in the final 6:55 as BYU ended the half on a 16-9 run.
Throw the records out when these two rivals meet, even if BYU holds a 137-131 all-time meeting and hasn't lost to the Runnin' Utes at home since 2005.
But "second-half Saunders" had 8 points in the first 12 minutes of the second half, and the Cougars used a 14-3 run to push the lead to double digits with 9:56 to go.
This story will be updated.
