BYU and AJ Dybantsa did not disappoint as the eighth ranked Cougars rallied for a thrilling 71-66 victory over Villanova in the Hall of Fame Series in what was the season-opener for both teams.

Dybantsa — the freshman sensation — showed everyone why he will likely be the No. 1 pick next year as he scored a team-high 21 points to go with 6 rebounds and 3 assists in the victory. The only negative on the night — in what otherwise was a solid all-around performance — was the freshman shooting just 2 of 7 from the free throw line, including missing 4 in a row down the stretch.

Still, Dybantsa’s performance got a lot of glowing reviews on social media as national media members tuned in for the game, as well as nearly 20 NBA scouts who were in attendance. Dybantsa also became just the the fifth freshman in program history to score 20+ in their collegiate debut.

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Richie Saunders added 15 points and seven rebounds and Robert Wright III scored 14 points for the Cougars, who spoiled the regular-season debut of new Villanova coach Kevin Willard.

Despite scoring in double digits, both Saunders and Wright struggled on offense as the duo combined to go 9 of 29 from the field, including a bunch of layups. The good news is that most of those shots will drop on nights and when thy don’t — like they did today — the Cougars showed they can play tough defense to pull out the win.

For much of the contest, the Cougars were in comfortably in control as they had a double digit lead for much of the first half and then even pushed it to 14 at the start of the second half. However, turnovers and a cold shooting performance allowed Villanova to storm back and take a lead for a quick minute, before the Cougars rallied for the win.

While Keba Keita didn’t fill up the stat sheet like Dybantsa did, the senior was the glue tonight for the Cougars as he got it done at both ends of the floor. The 6-foot-8 senior finished with 8 points on 4-of-5 shooting (mostly put back dunks), to go with 7 rebounds and 3 blocked shots. It was his 10th time in his collegiate career that he had 3+ blocks in a game as he made his presence known and singlehandedly kept Villanova out of the paint all night.

Here’s a look at the reactions from around the country in BYU’s win over Villanova:

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