Here\u2019s BYU basketball\u2019s journey to a Big 12 Conference Championship.<\/p>\n
While BYU\u2019s performance on the court is crucial, their seeding will also play a key role as the Cougars aim to secure their first conference tournament title in over twenty years.<\/p>\n
As many long-time BYU basketball fans are aware, the Cougars have not won a conference tournament title since the 2000-2001 season during their Mountain West days. Now in the prestigious Big 12, claiming that conference championship would be an unmatched achievement at the Marriott Center. Here are the four key steps for BYU to capture a Big 12 title.<\/p>\n
Secure a Top Four Seed\u2026 To start, BYU must finish the regular season strong, get a bit of help, and ultimately secure a top-four seed in the Big 12 tournament. This is crucial due to the structure of the 16-team tournament.<\/p>\n
The top four seeds earn a two-round bye straight into the quarterfinals. As a top four seed, BYU would already be among the final eight teams, just one win away from the semifinals. In a four-team tournament, anything can happen.<\/p>\n
\u2026or Finish as the Sixth Seed If BYU does not finish in the top four, it\u2019s critical they avoid the fifth seed. This is because the No. 5 seed is placed in the same bracket as Houston, the No. 1 seed, who is playing at an exceptionally high level. As the No. 5 seed, BYU would face Houston in the semifinals, so it\u2019s best to avoid that matchup for as long as possible.<\/p>\n
As the No. 6 seed, BYU would get a first-round bye and would need to win in the second round to reach the quarterfinals. In this case, they wouldn\u2019t meet Houston until the championship game.<\/p>\n
If BYU is going to win the Big 12 tournament title, they must stop missing free throws. With a poor free-throw shooting percentage of 68.8%, ranking 12th in the Big 12, it\u2019s a major concern for a team that shoots 37.5% from beyond the arc. Many Big 12 tournament games will be close, and BYU cannot afford to lose points at the free-throw line.<\/p>\n
Rely on the Proven Veterans Finally, while BYU\u2019s 11-player rotation has been surprisingly effective during conference play, the stakes are higher in tournament games. Kevin Young may need to lean more on his seasoned veterans.<\/p>\n
By \u201cproven veterans,\u201d I mean giving more playing time to Fousseyni Traore and Dallin Hall. Traore should take minutes away from Mihailo Boskovic, while Hall should play more, which means reducing minutes for Dawson Baker and freshman Egor Demin. Though Demin\u2019s passing is valuable, his struggles to score, 62.5% free throw shooting, and high turnover rate (3.2 per game in conference play) could be detrimental in close games where every possession counts.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been nearly 25 years since BYU\u2019s last conference tournament title.<\/p>\n
If Kevin Young\u2019s team secures the right seeding, hits their free throws, and leans on experienced leadership, they\u2019ll have a clear path to the semifinals. From there, anything can happen with a team capable of getting as hot as the Cougars.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Here\u2019s BYU basketball\u2019s journey to a Big 12 Conference Championship. While BYU\u2019s performance on the court is crucial, their seeding will also play a key role as the Cougars aim to secure their first conference tournament title in over twenty years. As many long-time BYU basketball fans are aware, the Cougars have not won a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27140,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1869],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27139","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-byu"],"yoast_head":"\n