How BYU Basketball Has Fared Against No. 1 Ranked Teams
Jan 25, 2026, 2:07 PM | Updated: Jan 26, 2026, 9:06 am
PROVO, Utah – BYU basketball has faced the No. 1-ranked team a total of 10 times in program history.
The Cougars are 1-9 overall in games against the No. 1 team in the country.
Here’s a look back at the first 10 matchups BYU has played against No. 1 teams.
March 9, 2021: Gonzaga, Loss, 88-78 (WCC Tournament)
The third wasn’t the charm for BYU against the undefeated Gonzaga in 2021.
Gonzaga head coach Mark Few wants everyone to know how good @BYUbasketball is this season.#BYU #GoCougs #BYUHoops pic.twitter.com/mkiUZFakia
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) March 10, 2021
BYU built up a 53-41 lead at halftime of the WCC Tournament Championship, and they looked to be knocking on the door of ending a 20-year drought without a conference tournament title. But Gonzaga stars Jalen Suggs and Corey Kispert had other plans as they led the Zags to a big second half, as Gonzaga outscored BYU by 22 in the second half.
BYU reserve Trevin Knell knocked down five 3-pointers in this game off the bench to score a team-high 20 points.
February 8, 2021: vs. Gonzaga, Loss, 82-71
BYU was originally scheduled to close out the regular season with a home game against Gonzaga, but that contest was moved to a Monday night primetime slot in early February after both of Gonzaga’s WCC opponents for the week were on pause due to COVID outbreaks.
#BYU falls to No. 1 Gonzaga, 82-71.#BYUHoops #GoCougs pic.twitter.com/PsiYPJFgKA
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) February 9, 2021
The WCC, as a whole, had five teams on pause, allowing for BYU and Gonzaga to move the Marriott Center matchup.
It was a revenge game for Gonzaga, as their previous visit to Marriott Center the year prior was BYU’s upset win over the Zags.
BYU guard Alex Barcello scored 20 points, but the Cougars couldn’t keep up with four Zag starters in double-figures, headlined by Suggs with 24 and Drew Timme dropping 20.
January 7, 2021: at Gonzaga, Loss, 86-69
BYU basketball had a two-week holiday break in its schedule due to two WCC games being postponed because of league opponents dealing with COVID-19.
After 15 days off, they moved around some league games, and the WCC league opener for BYU ended up being a visit to The Kennel to take on No. 1 Gonzaga.
No. 1 Gonzaga rolls through #BYU in the Cougars WCC season opener. #BYUHoops #GoCougs https://t.co/jBztWek5r6 pic.twitter.com/4NEsqBSgWl
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) January 8, 2021
The long break was on display as BYU opened the game trailing 16-2. They went into the halftime locker room down by 23.
Corey Kispert scored 23 points to lead the Zags.
January 18, 2020: at Gonzaga, Loss, 92-69
Everyone remembers BYU’s win over Gonzaga in Provo on senior night in 2020, but the trip to The Kennel the previous month wasn’t as pleasant for Mark Pope’s program. Without Yoeli Childs, who was out due to an injury suffered in practice, BYU had had no answer for Killian Tillie as the Zags rolled to a 23-point win.
Oddly enough, this was the last time BYU faced a No. 1 team with fans in attendance. The three meetings against Gonzaga in 2021 were during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Final: No. 1 @ZagMBB 92, @BYUbasketball 69
Zags have now won a WCC record 33 consecutive regular-season league games.#BYU is now 14-6 overall and 3-2 in WCC play.#BYUhoops #GoCougs
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) January 19, 2020
February 25, 2017: at Gonzaga, Win, 79-71
In 2017, BYU basketball pulled off a massive upset, taking down the 29-0 Zags on their home floor on the Zags’ senior night. Fans at The Kennel were ready to coronate the Bulldogs with a 30-0 regular-season record, but BYU had other plans.
To highlight how improbable BYU’s chances were going into that night. Ken Pomeroy’s projections gave BYU a 1.5 percent chance of pulling off the upset. BYU was a 20-point underdog entering that matchup.
The prognosticators looked right early on, as the game started with Gonzaga jumping out to an early 18-2 lead. But BYU kept chipping away before closing the game out on a 10-0 run.
Eric Mika scored a game-high 29 points, and TJ Haws dropped 17 as a true freshman to give BYU its first and only win over a top-ranked team.
February 2, 2017: vs. Gonzaga, Loss, 85-75
BYU’s first game in program history at the Marriott Center against a top-ranked team. Nigel Williams-Goss and the Zags jumped out to a 15-point lead early in the first half and were in control the entire way. Williams-Goss scored 33 in front of the sold-out Marriott Center crowd.
November 24, 2007: North Carolina, Loss, 73-63 (Las Vegas)
The national breakout game for BYU center Trent Plaisted resulted in a loss against No. 1 North Carolina at The Orleans Arena.
ESPN’s Dick Vitale couldn’t get enough of the BYU big man who dropped 24 points and pulled down 17 rebounds.
BYU went back-and-forth with the Tar Heels in the second half, taking a 44-42 lead. But Tyler Hansbrough proved to be too much, scoring 21 points as UNC took down the upset-minded Cougars, who had defeated No. 6 Louisville the previous night in Las Vegas.
December 23, 1992: Duke, Loss, 89-66 (Maui Invitational)
After a pair of upset wins over Oklahoma and Memphis State in the 1992 Maui Invitational, BYU had a championship clash before Christmas with top-ranked and defending national champion, Duke.
The Blue Devils had a starting five that featured Bobby Hurley, Grant Hill, Antonio Lang, and Cherokee Parks.
It's not often #BYU basketball faces a top-ranked team.
Who remembers this game against a defending national champ?#BYUhoops @kslsports pic.twitter.com/uIIxY6ExZr
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) January 6, 2021
BYU didn’t have any more Maui magic up its sleeve to take down Mike Krzyzewski’s loaded Blue Devils.
March 18, 1971: vs. UCLA, Loss, 91-73 (NCAA Tournament)
BYU, led by legendary head coach Stan Watts, squared off against college basketball’s greatest coach, John Wooden, and UCLA at the Huntsman Center in the NCAA Tournament. Only 25 teams made it to the Big Dance back then, and BYU took a shot at the greatest dynasty college basketball has ever produced.
BYU’s trio of Kresimir Cosic, Bernie Fryer, and Steve Kelly was not enough to counter the balanced Bruins that had six players score in double-figures, led by Henry Bibby and Sidney Wicks.
December 28, 1951: vs. Kentucky, Loss, 84-64 (New Orleans)
The reigning 1951 NIT Champion, the BYU Cougars, faced the 1951 NCAA Tournament champions, Kentucky, in the Sugar Bowl classic. BYU lost legends Mel Hutchins and Roland Minson to graduation, leaving the Cougars with a roster that couldn’t hang with Adolph Rupp’s Wildcats.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE). Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio.
Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU athletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper.
