Wicks on Playing BYU: ‘It’s Oakland A’s versus the Yankees’

LARAMIE -- One team is leading the country in rebound margin.

That same team is averaging nearly 86 points per game, which ranks No. 24 out of 355 Division-I programs. The 11.1 3-pointers an outing has them sitting just outside the Top 10.

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The entire starting five averaged double-figures. Six different players, through just nine games, have led the way on the scoreboard. Earlier this week, that team also secured the top recruit in the nation, AJ Dybantsa.

That team is Brigham Young.

The other team has been solid at defending the arc, allowing opponents to connect on just 28.6% of those shots from deep.

That team, though, has been way too generous through its first nine games, turning the ball over 14 times a night. It's also been middle of the road when it comes to shooting, drilling just over 45% from the field.

That team is Wyoming.

"It's Oakland A's versus the Yankees," head coach Sundance Wicks said Friday morning, flashing his trademark smile. "I love this stuff, man. You just know what you're competing against."

When the Pokes (5-4) and Cougars (7-2) renew their rivalry Saturday night inside the Delta Center in downtown Salt Lake City, it will be the 176th meeting in the series. BYU, as one might expect, holds a lopsided advantage, winning 106 of those matchups.

In fact, Wyoming hasn't knocked off BYU since 2005.

They swept the season series that winter, claiming a 59-58 victory over their then-Mountain West rivals inside the Marriott Center in Provo. Jay Straight netted 23 and Austin Ainge luckily couldn't get his final free throw to drop to force overtime. The tilt in Laramie was a 12-point affair. Justin Williams led the way with 19 points on 8-of-9 shooting.

That was nearly two decades ago. Or 7,244 days ago if you want to get specific. The Cowboys have dropped 14 straight.

Where does Wicks and Co. even begin in this latest meeting with Goliath?

"You don't look at that whole thing and go, 'Oh, man, who are we going to guard? Who are you going to stop? You know, at the end of the day, you just have to try to limit their ability to make threes, in my opinion," Wicks said. "That's one thing that we've done a really good job of that has kept us in a lot of games."

Trevin Knell is hitting 44.7% of his shots from out there. Richie Saunders, BYU's leading scorer, who is averaging 13.4 a night, is converting on a 40% clip. Three others are above the 34% mark.

Obi Agbim, Kobe Newton and Jordan Nesbitt, among many others, have their work cut out for them inside the Jazz's home arena.

"Your whole goal is, can you take away what they want, which is 11 threes (per game)? We've held teams to roughly about six or under," Wicks added. "If you take away half of those attempts, and you take away half of those threes, and you make them play a two-point game. That's a game that we like to get into."

The Cowboys have dropped three straight entering this one. Those losses, all away from Laramie, were by a combined seven points -- or three possessions if you ask the team's analytics guru, Patrick Stacy, Wicks said.

Saturday night, Wicks said his team will attempt to harken back to the Fennis Dembo days. The visitors will even sport 80's-themed warmups on the bench.

"It's in honor a little bit of that rough and tumble, ragtag bunch of guys that really, really like to get after it," Wicks said, referring to Jim Brandenburg's squads, led by Eric Leckner, Sean Dent, Dembo and others, that led Wyoming to a Sweet 16 appearance and a run to the NIT title game inside Madison Square Garden.

Wicks, a Gillette native, is well aware of what this game ultimately means. He's already been preaching the gospel to his new-look lineup, most of which were not in a Cowboy uniform when these two met in Provo last December.

"I've always loved the Cougars," he said sarcastically, throwing in an eye roll. "... You should have seen how I talked about him at practice yesterday. It was nothing but glowing epitaphs. I understand what this is for Wyoming fans, right? I understand what this is for the state of Wyoming. Trust me, I get it."

Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on ESPN-Plus.

"This is where your belief has to kick in. Like, your relentless belief in what you're trying to do has to kick in here," Wicks continued. "Regardless if you come out of here with a win or a loss, you have to show the improvement. You have to get better. We have to get more connected, more competitive as a team every single game we play."

Extra Points

* BYU could be without guard Egor Demin Saturday night. The freshman guard from Moscow, who Wicks says "stirs the drink," missed the Cougars last outing with a knee contusion. He's the team's second-leading scorer, averaging 13.3 an outing. He also has 15 made threes through eight games.

* The Cougars feature plenty of size and length. How important will this matchup be for Wyoming's big men Scottie Ebube, Touko Tainamo, Cole Henry and Oleg Kojenets? Very. Wicks said pay attention, though, that's exactly what he's trying to build in Laramie. "They're big, they're long and they recruit to that," he said of the Cougars. "You know, in a year or two, when you see the Cowboys, you're going to see a roster full of guys that are about 6-foot-4 or bigger. We're going to be switching one through five."

* Wyoming hasn't played a home game since Nov. 22. That, Wicks said, is very much on purpose. "We've intentionally challenged our guys," he added. "You know, we've got to go through this. The Mountain West is grueling."

* BYU was supposed to come to Laramie this winter. That game was slated for Dec. 7 inside the Arena-Auditorium. Wicks said the Cougars will instead make the trip next season. They'll be bringing Dybantsa with them. "They're going to have the No. 1 player in the country, right? That's gonna be cool," he said. "It's something that you don't get a chance often to have that in your program, where you play the No. 1 ranked kid in the United States of America."