Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Patrick Andres

BYU, Top Prospect AJ Dybantsa Set Opponent for Massachusetts Homecoming Game

BYU students flank AJ Dybantsa during a game against West Virginia. | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

In 2026, the eyes of the college basketball world will be trained on BYU.

The Cougars—a program that has never reached the Final Four berth, nor cracked the top 10 once in the 21st century—signed forward AJ Dybantsa on Dec. 10. Dybantsa, 18, is both the highest ranked player in his class and a potential national title race-changing signee.

Aside from a superstar-in-waiting, Dybantsa is also a Brockton, Mass. native—and BYU reportedly plans to put a homecoming game on the schedule for him.

The Cougars will meet UConn in a neutral-site game at Boston's TD Garden on either Dec. 14 or 15, according to a Tuesday evening report from Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports. Brockton, a city of about 100,000, is about a half-hour drive south of Beantown.

The two teams have met just once since 1950. On March 20, 2003 in Spokane, Wash., the No. 5 Huskies downed No. 12 BYU 58–53 in the first round of the NCAA men's tournament.


More College Basketball on Sports Illustrated


This article was originally published on www.si.com as BYU, Top Prospect AJ Dybantsa Set Opponent for Massachusetts Homecoming Game.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.