BYU basketball: 2019-20 season review and 2020-2021 early preview

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 09: Cameron Pearson #15, Trevin Knell #21 and Taylor Maughan #13 of the Brigham Young Cougars react on the bench during the team's game against the Saint Mary's Gaels during the West Coast Conference basketball tournament semifinals at the Orleans Arena on March 9, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Gaels defeated the Cougars 51-50. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

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Trevin Knell #21 of the Brigham Young Cougars (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

How did BYU do this season?

When you consider the state of expectations for BYU in the preseason this season was an unqualified success. BYU had already improved its win total by five from 2018-2019 when they went 19-13 and lost in their first West Coast Conference Tournament game.

There were few offenses in the country that were more explosive than BYU’s, which thrived on its ability to knock down shots from beyond the arc. Childs was a beast when healthy and there is a decent shot BYU could have put up an even more robust win total if Childs was available for more than 19 games.

The most encouraging part of the season for this BYU team is the fact that this group got stronger as the year progressed. The Cougars lost to the WCC’s other top dogs, Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s, in their first meeting before picking up wins in the second matchup.

The Gaels did trip up BYU in the WCC Tournament, sneaking out a one-point win in the semifinals, but it would have had little impact in the Cougars’ overall seeding in March Madness. BYU was a lock to make the NCAA Tournament and would have been placed somewhere on the 5-8 lines if the tournament was held.

I am convinced BYU had the firepower to be a Final Four sleeper but a lot would have depended on their draw. A path lined up with teams that could slow the game down would have been deadly, but if BYU had to win a string of shootouts a path to Atlanta was certainly possible.