BYU basketball is officially back in action.
The Cougars opened Year 3 of the Kevin Young era with a Friday exhibition against a reigning Sweet 16 squad in Nebraska, defeating the Cornuskers 72-61 at the Marriott Center.
BYU will play another exhibition at UNLV on Oct. 24 before opening the regular season against Ohio State on Nov. 3 in Salt Lake City.
3 takeaways
BYU let the 3-pointers fly. “3-Y-U” is back in full force, with the Cougars attempting 36 shots from beyond the arc against Nebraska.
The efficiency can be improved upon, as BYU shot just 3 of 19 (16%) from deep in the first half and a collective 28% on the night.
But the Cougars still drained 10 total triples, and the fact that nine different players attempted 3s — and four different players made more than one — is promising for the depth and potential of BYU’s perimeter operation.
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BYU huddles up before a free throw during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Robert Wright III (1) gets squished between two Nebraska players during a game at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Collin Chandler (5) shoots the ball during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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Nebraska head coach Fred Hoiberg coaches his team during a game against BYU at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU students move side to side during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Jaxon Kohler (0) shoots a layup through contact during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Bruce Branch III (3) catches an alley-oop and dunks the ball during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Nate Pickens (2) grabs a ball from falling out of bounds during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Jaxon Kohler (0) shoots a layup during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Jaxon Kohler (0) and Nebraska’s Cale Jacobsen (31) fight for a rebound during a game at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Tyler Betsey (9) shoots the ball during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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Nebraska’s Cale Jacobsen (31) drives to the hoop during a game against BYU at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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Nebraska’s Jacob Lanier (13) shoots the ball over BYU’s Jaxon Kohler (0) during a game at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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Nebraska’s Taj DeGourville (8) dribbles the ball during a game against BYU at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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Nebraska’s Cale Jacobsen (31) shoots the ball during a game against BYU at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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Nebraska’s Jacob Lanier (13) shoots the ball during a game against BYU at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Jaxon Kohler (0) shoots a 3-pointer during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Collin Chandler (5) shoots a layup during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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Nebraska’s Cale Jacobsen (31) shoots a layup during a game against BYU at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Collin Chandler (5) shoots a free throw during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Bruce Branch III (3) shoots a 3-pointer during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Tyler Betsey (9) shoots the ball over Nebraska’s Pryce Sandfort (21) during a game at the Marriott Center in Provo Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU head coach Kevin Young coaches during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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Nebraska’s Cale Jacobsen (31) points to BYU’s Robert Wright III (1) to signal his guilt in knocking the ball out of bounds during a game at the Marriott Center in Provo Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Robert Wright III (1) drives to the hoop for a layup during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Collin Chandler (5) gives his teammate a thumbs up for an assist during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU students hold up three fingers as BYU’s Tyler Betsey (9) shoots a three pointer during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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BYU’s Robert Wright III (1) shoots a layup during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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Nebraska’s Cale Jacobsen (31) passes the ball to teammate Boden Kapke (33) during a game against BYU at the Marriott Center in Provo Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News 
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Nebraska’s Cale Jacobsen (31) drives to the hoop during a game against BYU at the Marriott Center in Provo Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News
The starting five carried most of the Cougars’ scoring load, providing 63 of the 71 total points and 15 of 18 assists.
Collin Chandler led all scorers with 19 points, while Rob Wright III added 17 points, five rebounds and seven assists.
Jaxon Kohler notched a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds (including a pair of 3-pointers), while Bruce Branch III recorded an impressive collegiate debut of 15 points (including three made triples), six boards and five assists.
BYU dominated in the hustle stats. How do you overcome a 41% shooting night? By being as opportunistic as possible.
You can tell a lot about a team by its production in second chance points, points off turnovers and offensive rebounds — and in that regard, the Cougars made quite a statement on Friday.
BYU grabbed 15 offensive boards, scored 15 second chance points and turned 18 Nebraska turnovers into 21 points. Conversely, the Cornhuskers managed totals of just nine, 11 and seven in each respective category.
There’s a lot to like about BYU’s defensive effort. Poor defense played a major role in dooming the Cougars a year ago, and this current group appears motivated to prevent that from happening again.
BYU forced 18 turnovers and held the Huskers to less than a point per possession, with Chandler, Brooks Bahr and Tyler Betsey each swiping multiple steals.
But the eye test stands out the most from Friday. It didn’t take long to see that the Cougars’ hustle, energy and overall “want-to” on defense is light years ahead of what they showed last season, and if such a trend continues into the regular season, BYU should be able to make some noise in the Big 12 and beyond.