Instant takeaways: No. 25 BYU cruises past Omaha in home opener
Nov 6, 2026, 9:23 PM
BYU basketball cruised to a comfortable 108-67 win over the Omaha Mavericks on Friday night in front of a crowd of 16,190.
Final: No. 25 BYU basketball 108, Omaha 67.
Cougars open the first week of the season with a perfect 2-0 record.
Six BYU players scored in double figures.
Tyler Betsey was lights out, knocking down six of his eight 3-point attempts tonight. pic.twitter.com/69wasHJTiF
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) November 7, 2026
The victory completed BYU’s first week of the regular season with a perfect 2-0 record.
Here are some instant takeaways from the win over Omaha.
Century mark
BYU has opened the 2026-27 season with two games scoring more than 90 points in each. It’s the first time the Cougars have done that in 12 years, the 2014-15 season.
BYU reached the century mark for the fifth time in the Kevin Young era. Young’s program did it three times last season.
The extensive practices with this starting lineup are paying off, as BYU’s offense has hit the ground running this season.
Tyler Betsey was lights out from three-point range in his Marriott Center debut
Former Syracuse transfer Tyler Betsey has made an immediate impact for BYU this season.
The former top-50 recruit from Connecticut, Betsey is a 6-foot-9 forward who has been knocking down shots at a high clip for BYU.
Betsey hit six of his eight 3-point attempts on Friday night.
Including the opener against Ohio State, Betsey has hit 10 of his 14 3-point attempts this year.
BYU head coach Kevin Young has said that Betsey has the potential to be an NBA player with his size and shooting ability. Areas of focus for Betsey when he arrived have been rebounding and the defensive end.
He’s been the complete package so far for BYU.
No turnovers for Rob Wright III
All-American candidate guard Rob Wright III followed up his 35-point performance in the opener against Ohio State with a 19-point effort against the Mavericks on 8-of-11 shooting from the field.
But perhaps most notable for the star guard is that in 24 minutes of action, Wright had zero turnovers.
It’s the sixth time in his college basketball career, which began at Baylor, that he hasn’t committed any turnovers.
As a team, BYU only had eight turnovers on Friday night, compared to 22 assists.
Dominated on the glass
BYU finished with a (+19) advantage in rebounds against Omaha. It was a strong showing on the glass as Omaha, in an exhibition against Minnesota from the Big Ten, outrebounded the Gophers last month.
Khadim Mboup led the team in rebounds with eight off the bench in 16 minutes of action. Followed by Jaxon Kohler with seven and Bruce Branch III with six.
Next up
BYU basketball will host Queens on Tuesday, November 10, at 7 p.m. on ESPN+ and KSL NewsRadio.
Omaha now prepares to take on Utah State in The Spectrum on Saturday, November 7, at 3 p.m. (MST).
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSL 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.
