Provo, Utah – BYU basketball fans got their first look at upcoming 2024-2025 team in the blue vs white scrimmage.
The blue team outscored the white team 49-39 in the first half. The second half was shortened with different rosters, so there wasn’t a clear winner.
It’s a meaningless game in the grand scheme of things, however, there were some interesting tidbits that help paint a picture for what this team could become.
Let’s get to some of my notes from the scrimmage.
Newcomers made plays early
There is plenty of hype around newcomers like Egor Demin, Keba Keita, and Kannon Catchings.
It didn’t take long for them to introduce themselves to Cougar Nation. The opening play of the game was an alley-oop dunk from Keita off a pick’n’roll pass from Demin.
#BYU Basketball Scrimmage Rosters
Blue
– Kanon Catchings
– Elijah Crawford
– Egor Demin
– Keba Keita
– Trey Stewart
– Max Triplett
– Townsend TrippleWhite
– Dawson Baker
– Mihailo Boskovic
– Dallin Hall
– Mawot Mag
– Jared McGregor
– Brody Kozlowski
– Richie Saunders
-…— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) October 10, 2024
Demin’s playmaking ability was obvious and will provide some ball-handing help for Dallin Hall, something that was lacking last season.
Kanon Catchings started the second half with Demin, Keita, Richie Saunders, and Dallin Hall on the white team. They were coached by Kevin Young. Perhaps this will be the starting lineup when they play Central Arkansas on election night.
Catchings led all players in plus/minus in the first half. He made multiple three-point buckets while also showing off his elite range and athleticism.
Improved ball handling
BYU has four guys who can run the offense. Dallin Hall will assume starting point guard duties, but Dawson Baker, Demin, and Elijah Crawford displayed abilities
In the first half, Crawford used a nasty crossover to get into the lane before firing off a perfect pass to Trey Stewart for a corner three-pointer (he made the shot).
Dawson Baker, who never got healthy last season, looked fluid and agile. Baker is one of the teams best finishers at the rim.
Kevin Young has plenty of options to work with when it comes to initiating the offense.
BYU Basketball has depth
The last player added to the roster showed well in his first action as a BYU Cougar.
Mihailo Boskovic was an important edition for head coach Kevin Young because of his experience, size, and ability to stretch the floor.
The depth on this #BYU basketball team is off the charts.
It’s going to be fun to see how Kevin Young pieces this thing together. #BYUBasketball #Big12
— Matthew Baiamonte (@baiamontematt) October 10, 2024
He made two three pointers in the first half. He’ll provide a nice change of pace from Keita and Fousseyni Traore.
Boskovic, Keita, Catchings, and fan favoriteB Traore will be fighting for minutes all season long. That’s a great problem to have.
Returning players showed improvement
Admist the excitement of having Demin, Catching, and other highly recruited players on the roster, it’s somewhat forgotten that Kevin Young retained several key players from last years team.
Trey Stewart was one of the first players to re-commit to BYU following the departure of Mark Pope to Kentucky.
He showed remarkable improvement from last season. Stewart was decisive in his decision-making, and displayed better three-point shooting making
Richie Saunders is another returning player who appears to have made a jump in his game. His high motor was on display, as usual.
He was quick to shoot when open and made several layups off baseline cuts.
It was an exciting debut for a team with high expectations. Nothing seen from the scrimmage will lessen those expectations.
You can hear Matt Baiamonte every Saturday on KSL Newsradio for Cougar Sports Saturday from 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. or you can find him on Twitter @baiamontematt here.
Take us with you wherever you go.
