No. 9 BYU Beats Up Badgers In Top 25 Statement Win

SALT LAKE CITY — The No. 9 BYU basketball team picked up its first ranked win in emphatic fashion, handing the No. 23 Wisconsin Badgers their first loss of the season, 98-70.

Richie Saunders led the way for the Cougars with 26 points on 62.5 percent shooting. AJ Dybansta (18), Dawson Baker (11), and Rob Wright III (10) also scored in double figures.

Although Wisconsin showed consistent fight, it was the BYU defense that shone. They held the Badgers to 37.7 percent from the field and 24.1 percent from three.

First Half

Wisconsin lived up to its mascot moniker early, coming out of the gates very aggressively on defense. The early focus on AJ Dybantsa was clear. He settled for triples for his first two shots, and both came up short.

That aggression ended up coming back to haunt them. As the BYU offense settled in, the good looks started to come around, and they jumped out to a 16-6 lead.

The Delta Center crowd, drenched in blue, got louder with every make. By the game’s second timeout, the Cougars were shooting over 55 percent from the field and from three. They held the Badgers to under 25 and 15 percent.

Rob Wright with some nasty handles into a dime 🥵

(via @NBCSports)
pic.twitter.com/pyEYbkg7bP

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) November 21, 2025

Wisconsin, led by Braeden Carrington and Nolan Winter, closed the BYU lead down to four.

From there, Rob Wright and Dybantsa controlled the pace and the Cougars reopened a double-digit advantage on an 8-1 run.

No matter what the Badgers brought out down the stretch before halftime, the Cougars had an answer. They sped up the action on offense and BYU made them pay for mistakes in transition. They slowed it down, and then BYU’s length and defensive activity was on full display.

The three-point percentage came back down to earth, but the Cougars still shot over 50 percent from the field.

At the break, BYU led 45-33. Dybantsa and Richie Saunders led the way with 12 and 11, respectively.

Cougs rolling at the half pic.twitter.com/8DMi9Ounju

— BYU Men’s Basketball (@BYUMBB) November 21, 2025

Second Half

Wisconsin closed the gap a bit after the break. They slowly outscored BYU over the first eight minutes of the half to make it a single-digit lead.

However, it was quickly proved that the methodical comeback wasn’t going to work.

With Dybantsa on the bench, Dominique Diomande and Dawson Baker stepped up to the plate. After the lead was cut to seven, the Cougs went on a 10-2 run to match their largest lead of the game at 16.

Another 3 for Richie 👌

📺 https://t.co/k3AqOYMXri pic.twitter.com/oiLT4Tem5N

— BYU Men’s Basketball (@BYUMBB) November 21, 2025

16 turned to 17, and in what felt like the blink of an eye, the Cougars opened their first 20-point advantage.

Saunders led the charge. He reached 20 points, with nine coming in the first 11 minutes of the second half.

With four fouls, Dybantsa checked back in with just under eight minutes left in regulation. Even with AJ back on the floor, Saunders continued his tear.

He made his next two triples, jumping up to 26 points on 10/16 from the floor and 5/9 from three.

some action shots for your timeline pic.twitter.com/soQinHJaW7

— BYU Men’s Basketball (@BYUMBB) November 21, 2025

The game really broke open from there.

BYU buckled down on both ends, and the 20-point advantage quickly threatened to reach 30. Dybantsa consistently got inside and made trips to the free throw line. With four minutes left, he had 18 points with 11 coming from the stripe.

In the final minutes, Aleksej Kostić checked in and hit back-to-back threes, which all but sealed the deal.

The BYU lead remained mostly untouche,d and they went on to finalize the 98-70 win.

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BYU basketball will hit the road to see Miami at the State Farm Field House in Kissimmee, Florida, on Thursday, November 27.

Mitch Harper is the BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU athletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper.

Find KSL Sports coverage of BYU athletics here.

Chandler Holt is a co-host of the Jazz Notes podcast, a Locals In The NFL Insider, and Digital Sports Producer for sports.ksl.com. Follow Chandler on X for Utah Jazz and Locals In The NFL updates.

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