2022–23 BYU Cougars men's basketball team explained

Mode:Basketball
Year:2022–23
Prev Year:2021–22
Next Year:2023–24
Team:BYU Cougars
Conference:West Coast Conference
Short Conf:WCC
Record:19–15
Conf Record:7–9
Head Coach:Mark Pope
Hc Year:4th
Asst Coach1:Nick Robinson
Ac1 Year:4th
Asst Coach2:Cody Fueger
Ac2 Year:4th
Asst Coach3:Kahil Fennell
Ac3 Year:1st
Stadium:Marriott Center (Capacity: 17,978 – ↓ 1,009 from 2021–22)[1]

The 2022–23 BYU Cougars men's basketball team represented Brigham Young University during the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. In head coach Mark Pope's fourth season as BYU's head coach and the Cougars 12th and final season as members of the West Coast Conference (WCC) as they will begin as members of the Big 12 Conference in the 2023–24 season. The Cougars played their home games at the Marriott Center in Provo, Utah.

Previous season

See main article: 2021–22 BYU Cougars men's basketball team. The Cougars finished the 2021–22 season 24–11, 9–6 in WCC play to finish in fifth place. In the WCC tournament, they defeated Loyola Marymount in the second round before losing to San Francisco in the quarterfinals.[2] BYU received an at-large bid to the National Invitation Tournament as a No. 2 seed. They defeated Long Beach State and Northern Iowa before losing in the quarterfinals to Washington State.[3]

Offseason

Coaching changes

On April 13, it was reported that then BYU assistant coach Chris Burgess had accepted a position as assistant coach at the University of Utah.[4] Some possible expected candidates to replace Burgess included Mark Madsen (Utah Valley head coach), Kahil Fennell (former Louisville assistant), Dave Rice (former UNLV head coach), and Paul Peterson (Wasatch Academy head coach).[5] On May 11, it was reported that Kahil Fennell was expected to fill the position.[6] Two weeks later on May 26, Mark Pope announced that Kahil Fennell had been hired as the new assistant coach.[7]

Departures

Four scholarship players from the 2021–22 season graduated at the end of the year. Graduates Alex Barcello and Te'Jon Lucas completed their college eligibility, while Gavin Baxter and Richard Harward have one additional year of eligibility remaining.[8] While Richard Harward is expected to end his athletic career, Gavin Baxter entered the transfer portal on April 19.[9] Jeremy DowDell, Nate Hansen, Hunter Erickson, Seneca Knight, and Caleb Lohner also entered the transfer portal during March and April.[10] [11] [12] Additionally, Gideon George entered the transfer portal after declaring for the NBA draft. However, he later withdrew his name from the transfer portal stating, "Finishing what we started."[13]

!Name!Number!Position!Height!Weight!Year!Hometown!Reason for Departure
Hunter Erickson0G6'3"191SophomoreProvo, UtahEntered transfer portal on April 5. Committed to Salt Lake Community College on July 5.[14]
Jeremy DowDell2G6'2"174FreshmanSalt Lake City, UtahEntered transfer portal on March 31 Committed to Westminster College.[15] [16]
Te'Jon Lucas3G6'1"187SeniorMilwaukee, WisconsinGraduated
Nate Hansen10G6'3"178FreshmanProvo, UtahEntered transfer portal on April 2
Alex Barcello13G6'2"192SeniorChandler, ArizonaGraduated
Seneca Knight24F6'6"224SeniorNew Orleans, LouisianaEntered transfer portal on April 30.[17] Committed to Illinois State on May 11.[18]
Caleb Lohner33F6"8"235SophomoreDallas, TexasEntered transfer portal on April 19. Committed to Baylor on April 22.[19]
Gavin Baxter42F6'9"228SeniorProvo, UtahGraduated and entered transfer portal on April 19. Committed to Utah as a walk-on on April 29.[20]
Richard Harward51C6'11"256SeniorOrem, UtahGraduated

Incoming transfers

On May 7, 2022 Rudi Williams committed to BYU with one year of eligibility remaining as a graduate transfer.[21] Williams narrowed his choices to 8 schools which included San Diego State, UConn, Cal, Butler, Xavier, Wichita State and Mason before selecting BYU.[22] Jaxson Robinson announced on Twitter on June 16 that he had committed to BYU. Since Robinson entered the transfer portal after May 1, he required—and received—a waiver to play during the 2022–23 season.[23] After previously committing to St Bonaventure in early June, Noah Waterman announced he would be transferring to BYU on June 27. Waterman previously played basketball at Detroit Mercy and Niagara.[24] On June 30, it was reported that Tredyn Christensen had committed to play for BYU as a preferred walk-on. He previously played two years at Snow College and most recently at Division II Chaminade University of Honolulu.[25] On July 6, the head coach at Umpqua Community College, Daniel Leeworthy, announced that one of his players, Nathan Webb, had committed to play at BYU. Webb will have 3 years of eligibility remaining.[26]

NameNumberPositionHeightWeightYearHometownPrevious schoolYears remainingWalk-on/ScholarshipRivals247SportsESPNESPN GradeCommit date
Noah Waterman0G/F6'11"210JuniorSavannah, New YorkFinger Lakes Christian School, Detroit Mercy, Niagara2ScholarshipN/AN/AN/AN/AJune 27, 2022
Jaxson "Jax" Robinson2G6'6"185JuniorAda, OklahomaTexas A&M, Arkansas3Scholarship4-star4-star4-star80June 16, 2022
Rueadale "Rudi" Williams3G6'2"190SeniorHamilton, OntarioNE Oklahoma A&M, Kansas State, Coastal Carolina1ScholarshipN/A3-star (JUCO)N/AN/AMay 7, 2022
Tredyn Christensen10G6'6"225JuniorEagle Mountain, UtahSnow College, Chaminade2Walk-onN/AN/AN/AN/AJune 30, 2022
Nathan Webb33F6'7"205JuniorRexburg, IdahoUmpqua Community College3Walk-onN/AN/AN/AN/AJuly 6, 2022

Returned missionaries

Four returned missionaries were added to the roster for the 2022–23 season. Dallin Hall, Richie Saunders, and Tanner Toolson each hold scholarship positions while Tanner Hayhurst will join as a preferred walk-on. All four players have four years of eligibility remaining.

NameNumberPositionHeightWeightMissionary service yearsMission locationHometownPreviousschoolYearsremainingRecruitingclassRivals247SportsESPNESPN Grade
Tanner Toolson13G6'5"1852020–21 & 2021–22Florida[27] Vancouver, WashingtonUnion High School42020N/AN/AN/AN/A
Richie Saunders15G6'5"1802020–21 & 2021–22Washington & Madagascar[28] Mount Pleasant, UtahWasatch Academy420203-star3-starN/AN/A
Tanner Hayhurst24G6'6"1752020–21 & 2021–22Louisiana[29] Eagle, IdahoEagle High School42020N/AN/AN/AN/A
Dallin Hall30G6'3"1802020–21 & 2021–22California & Philippines[30] [31] Ogden, UtahFremont High School420203-star3-starN/AN/A

Currently serving missionaries

Five players are completing missionary service during the 2022–23 academic year. Townsend Tripple delayed his missionary assignment to Argentina and was part of the roster during the 2020–21 season.[32] Jake Wahlin was part of the 2021 recruiting class and plans to join the team for the 2023–24 season after missionary service in Lithuania.[33] Paora Winitana was also part of the 2021 recruiting class and will start missionary service after one year on the team.[34] Collin Chandler and Adam Stewart were part of the 2022 recruiting class.

NameNumberPositionHeightWeightMissionary service yearsMission locationHometownPreviousschoolYearsremainingRecruitingclassRivals247SportsESPNESPN Grade
Townsend Tripple24F6'8"2002021–22 & 2022–23Argentina[35] Meridian, IdahoRocky Mountain High School42020N/AN/AN/AN/A
Paora Winitana40G6'5"2422022–23 & 2023–24CaliforniaHawkes Bay, New ZealandAmerican Heritage42021N/AN/AN/AN/A
Jake WahlinF6'8"1952021–22 & 2022–23Lithuania[36] Provo, UtahTimpview High School420213-star3-star3-star75
Collin ChandlerG6'4"1752022–23 & 2023–24Sierra LeoneFarmington, UtahFarmington High School420224-star4-star4-star89
Adam StewartC6'10"2102022–23 & 2023–24FranceHouston, TexasReal Salt Lake Adademy42022N/AN/A3-star78

2022 recruiting class

Collin Chandler committed and signed with BYU on November 10, 2021.[37] Chandler was recruited by Utah, Arizona, Stanford, and Utah State. He will go on a mission and enroll at BYU in 2024. He is the highest ranked BYU recruit since Eric Mika in 2013.[38] Adam Stewart committed to BYU after being recruited since 7th grade. He will be a walk-on starting with the 2024–25 season after completing a mission to Paris, France.[39] Braeden Moore committed to BYU after he had originally committed in 2021 to play at Rutgers. He was recruited by Kansas, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Arizona State, Houston, San Diego State, and Auburn.[40] On July 29, 2022, Hao Dong committed to BYU as a walk-on and will join the team for the 2022–23 season.[41]

Media coverage

Radio

Greg Wrubell and Mark Durrant return to call men's basketball for the 2022–23 season. Jason Shepherd will act as the host for most games, though Ben Bagley will fill-in for Shepherd when he has women's soccer, baseball, or college basketball duties.

Affiliates:[42]

Television

In September 2019, the West Coast Conference (WCC) agreed to a multi-year deal through the 2026–27 season with ESPN and the CBS Sports Network to broadcast numerous basketball games each year. Previously, the WCC had an agreement with ESPN, but the new agreement adds additional television coverage of basketball games through the CBS Sports Network. Games broadcast on the CBS Sports Network are carried on channel 158 on the Dish Network, channel 221 on DirecTV and channel 269 on Xfinity. Under the terms of the deal, ESPN will broadcast 17 games during the regular season and the CBS Sports Network will broadcast a minimum of 9 games. ESPN will continue to broadcast the quarterfinals, semifinals and the championship game of the WCC tournament.[43] BYU maintains the rights to broadcast home games on BYUtv (11.1 in Salt Lake City, Utah, channel 374 on the Dish Network, and channel 4369/9403 on DirecTV).[44] Meanwhile, Stadium broadcasts will be simulcast on KJZZ or KMYU. The broadcasts became even more important after Sinclair sold KSTU, causing Stadium to leave the Digital 3 station.

Future opponents

The upcoming 2023–24 season is the first season BYU will play in the Big 12.[45] Their Big 12 conference schedule is expected to be 18 games, or two more compared to the 16 games that the WCC has scheduled for the most recent five years.[46] For the 2023–24 season, the schedule is also expected to include the following non-conference opponents:.

See also

See also: 2022 BYU Cougars football team, 2022 BYU Cougars women's soccer team, 2022 BYU Cougars women's volleyball team, 2022–23 BYU Cougars women's basketball team and 2023 BYU Cougars men's volleyball team.

References

  1. Web site: Men's basketball opens 2022-23 season with exhibition against Ottawa . 2022-11-03 . BYU Cougars . en.
  2. Web site: 2022-03-06 . BYU Basketball: Three Observations From WCC Tournament Loss To USF . 2022-04-22 . KSL Sports.
  3. Web site: Washington State vs. BYU - Game Recap - March 23, 2022 - ESPN . 2022-04-22 . ESPN.com . en.
  4. Web site: Sources: BYU assistant coach Chris Burgess leaving for Utah . 2022-05-04 . The Salt Lake Tribune . en-US.
  5. Web site: McCombs . Robby . 2022-04-13 . Early Candidates to Replace BYU Assistant Chris Burgess . 2022-05-04 . Vanquish The Foe . en.
  6. Web site: Sources: BYU basketball expected to hire former Louisville assistant Kahil Fennell . 2022-05-11 . The Salt Lake Tribune . en-US.
  7. Web site: 2022-05-26 . BYU men's basketball hires new assistant coach . 2022-05-28 . Deseret News . en.
  8. News: Lundquist . Casey . An Early Look at the 2022-2023 BYU Basketball Roster . 2022-04-23 . BYU Cougars on Sports Illustrated: News, Analysis, and More . en.
  9. Web site: McCombs . Robby . 2022-04-19 . BYU Forward Gavin Baxter Enters Transfer Portal . 2022-04-23 . Vanquish The Foe . en.
  10. Web site: 2022-04-05 . Another BYU basketball guard has reportedly entered the transfer portal . 2022-04-23 . Deseret News . en.
  11. Web site: 2022-04-19 . What BYU's Caleb Lohner and Gideon George said about their decisions to transfer . 2022-04-23 . Deseret News . en.
  12. Web site: McCombs . Robby . 2022-04-02 . BYU Guard Nate Hansen Enters Transfer Portal . 2022-04-23 . Vanquish The Foe . en.
  13. Web site: 2022-04-21 . BYU's Gideon George is out of the transfer portal, says 'Finishing what we started' . 2022-04-23 . Deseret News . en.
  14. Web site: 2022-07-07 . Former BYU guard Hunter Erickson announces his transfer destination . 2022-07-15 . Deseret News . en.
  15. Web site: 2022-23 Men's Basketball Roster . 2022-09-09 . Westminster College Athletics . en.
  16. Web site: BYU men's basketball makes final adjustments to 2022-23 schedule . 2022-09-09 . heraldextra.com . en-US.
  17. Web site: 2022-04-30 . BYU basketball's Seneca Knight has reportedly entered the transfer portal . 2022-05-01 . Deseret News . en.
  18. Web site: 2022-05-11 . Seneca Knight, who helped make history at BYU, announces new destination . 2022-05-11 . Deseret News . en.
  19. Web site: McCombs . Robby . 2022-04-22 . BYU Forward Caleb Lohner Transfers To Baylor . 2022-04-29 . Vanquish The Foe . en.
  20. Web site: 2022-04-29 . Utah Basketball Adds BYU Transfer Gavin Baxter To Their Roster . 2022-04-29 . KSL Sports.
  21. Web site: 2022-05-07 . Rudi Williams Gives BYU Basketball First Transfer Portal Commit . 2022-05-10 . KSL Sports.
  22. News: Lundquist . Casey . Coastal Carolina Transfer Rudi Williams Commits to BYU Basketball . 2022-05-10 . BYU Cougars on Sports Illustrated: News, Analysis, and More . en.
  23. Web site: Walker . Sean . June 16 . KSL com Posted- . P.m . 2022 at 5:29 . BYU basketball adds Arkansas transfer Jaxson Robinson . 2022-06-18 . www.ksl.com . en.
  24. Web site: McCombs . Robby . 2022-06-27 . Transfer Forward Noah Waterman Commits to BYU . 2022-06-28 . Vanquish The Foe . en.
  25. Web site: McCombs . Robby . 2022-06-30 . BYU Basketball Lands Chaminade Transfer Tredyn Christensen . 2022-07-03 . Vanquish The Foe . en.
  26. Web site: Christensen . Tyler . 2022-07-08 . BYU lands 6-foot-7 forward transfer Nathan Webb (Class of 2022) . 2022-07-15 . BYU Insider . en.
  27. Web site: What does BYU basketball's latest signee Tanner Toolson bring to the Cougars? . 2021-05-24 . www.ksl.com . en.
  28. Web site: 2021-03-20 . One year later: Where the Greatest Roster in Wasatch Academy history is now . 2021-05-24 . The Hive Sports . en-US.
  29. Web site: Tanner Hayhurst . 2021-05-25 . www.facebook.com . en.
  30. Web site: Call . Jeff . 2020-04-15 . It's official — Dallin Hall is a Cougar; BYU coach Mark Pope calls Fremont guard 'a great competitor' with 'Hollywood caliber charisma' . 2021-05-24 . Deseret News . en.
  31. Web site: 2022-04-13 . Future BYU Guard Collin Chandler Receives Latter-day Saint Mission Call . 2022-04-23 . KSL Sports.
  32. Web site: 2020-06-19 . BYU men's basketball picks up walk-on commitment from Idaho standout BYU Men's Basketball heraldextra.com . 2022-04-29 . 2020-06-19 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200619024633/https://www.heraldextra.com/sports/college/byu/basketball/men/byu-mens-basketball-picks-up-walk-on-commitment-from-idaho-standout/article_7a117ad8-d3df-561b-90ab-43dfdfaf3278.html . dead .
  33. Web site: Timpview's Jake Wahlin signs with BYU men's hoops . 2022-04-29 . heraldextra.com . en-US.
  34. Web site: McCombs . Robby . 2021-08-08 . New Zealand Native Paora Winitana Commits to BYU Basketball . 2022-05-01 . Vanquish The Foe . en.
  35. Web site: New BYU walk-on, Townsend Tripple. 6'8 forward from Rocky Mtn high in Boise . 2021-05-24 . CougarBoard . en.
  36. Web site: Media . Broadway . BYU Hoops commit Jake Wahlin receives mission call – ESPN 960 Sports . 25 February 2021 . 2021-05-24 . en-US.
  37. Web site: 2021-11-10 . Collin Chandler signs with BYU Cougars basketball . 2022-04-23 . Deseret News . en.
  38. Web site: 2021-11-10 . Chandler, No. 28 in class of '22, commits to BYU . 2022-04-23 . ESPN.com . en.
  39. Web site: McCombs . Robby . 2022-04-16 . 3-Star Big Man Adam Stewart Commits to BYU . 2022-04-22 . Vanquish The Foe . en.
  40. Web site: 2022-05-13 . BYU basketball adds 3-star forward Braeden Moore to its 2022 recruiting class . 2022-05-13 . Deseret News . en.
  41. Web site: 2022-07-29 . BYU men's basketball gets commitment from Chinese RSL Academy forward Hao Dong . 2022-07-31 . Deseret News . en.
  42. Web site: KSL NEWSRADIO/BYU RADIO SPORTS NETWORK AFFILIATES . 2020-06-18 . www.ksl.com . en.
  43. Web site: Herald . Darnell Dickson Daily . WCC signs TV agreement with CBS Sports Network, extends with ESPN . 2020-06-18 . Daily Herald . en.
  44. Web site: 2019-09-19 . WCC Signs Extension With ESPN, Adds CBS Sports In New Media Rights Deal . 2020-06-18 . KSL Sports.
  45. Web site: TylerWeeks . 2022-06-10 . Cincinnati, UCF, and Houston To Join BYU To Big 12 in 2023 . 2022-09-02 . Vanquish The Foe . en.
  46. Web site: WCC Announces 2022-23 Men's Basketball Conference Schedule . 2022-09-02 . wccsports.com . 2 August 2022 . en.
  47. Web site: Schedule 2022-23 - CougarCorner . 2022-05-31 . www.cougarcorner.com.
  48. Web site: Utah, BYU agree to new, four-game men's basketball deal. Teams will next meet Dec. 12 in Provo. . 2022-04-29 . The Salt Lake Tribune . en-US.
  49. Web site: McCombs . Robby . 2022-08-31 . BYU-Utah State Hoops to Not Play in 2022; No Future Games Scheduled . 2022-09-02 . Vanquish The Foe . en.