Early in the second half, BYU trailed Clemson 44–22 and looked every bit like a young team drowning under the lights of Madison Square Garden. The Jimmy V Classic stage felt too fast, too physical, too unforgiving. The Cougars weren’t just behind. They looked lost. What followed became BYU’s largest second half comeback in school history.
When it was over, the voices telling the story belonged to AJ Dybantsa, Robert Wright III, and head coach Kevin Young, each breaking down how BYU crawled back from 22 down to shock Clemson in the Mecca.
Dybantsa refused to make the moment about himself. He explained the decisive decision with blunt certainty. “You got to have trust in your teammates. It don’t matter what the play is, don’t matter if I had 50 that game. Whoever is open gets ball. They decided to double me. He shoot 45 percent from 3 (Wright). I’ll take that.”
Wright III delivered the shot that rewrote the night. “I never had a buzzer beater that’s a three. That was the first one. AJ wasn’t open. He was getting double-teamed. That told me I’ll be coming back to the ball. He just trusted me, and the shot went in.”
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Kevin Young, BYU’s first-year head coach, admitted he barely recognized his team in the opening 20 minutes. “I thought we were kind of blank and a little lifeless in the first half. I challenged the guys to come out with a competitive spirit. That’s a big, strong physical team. I thought our guys responded. Our trench warfare mentality was much better in the second half.”
He explained how Dybantsa’s ability to adjust so quickly changed everything. “He really is a very fast processor. In the first half he was doing a lot of stuff towards the baseline. He was falling away. We have a little saying, him and I, just pick a spot. He was able to pick his spots tonight and made them pay.”
Dybantsa described the turnaround with steady confidence. “Just be patient. Don’t get too down on yourself if you’re missing shots in the first half. They weren’t doubling. I trusted my one-on-one ability. I picked my spot smarter. Not trying to fade as much, just trying to raise above the defense.”
The setting amplified everything. Wright III called the ending “a crazy feeling.” Dybantsa let the moment wash over him. “This is my first time stepping foot in the Garden. I’m from Boston. We have another Garden over there that I’m pretty much used to. This is like the Mecca. It was a surreal feeling to be able to play here.”
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Young summed up the second half in the team’s postgame press conference with simple clarity. “Our second half has been ridiculously efficient and effective. We scored 45 points in the second half. It was pretty impressive. We went to some really simple stuff. Did some early step-up screens for Rob, got the matchups we wanted. Offensively that’s what opened the game up.”
Dybantsa finished with a grin when asked about Clemson’s final push. “It’s Division I basketball. They’re a high level team. I don’t think it should have even got to that. I had a foul to give, but I didn’t foul. So I guess I gave Rob a highlight.”
BYU started the second half drowning and finished it rewriting the record book in the sport’s most famous arena. The tenth ranked Cougars pushed their season mark to 8-1.
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