PORTLAND, Ore. — Sean Miller has plenty of history with BYU.
Nearly two decades ago, he led Xavier to a first round NCAA Tournament win over the Cougars. While at Arizona, he was on the receiving end of Jimmer Fredette’s famed 49-point outburst at McKale Center in 2009.
Now at the helm of the Texas Longhorns, Miller will match up with BYU once again in Thursday’s round of 64 action, but the Cougars’ Big 12 program has come a long way from its Mountain West Conference days that Miller last encountered.
“BYU has always been a basketball-centric place when it comes to sports,” Miller told reporters Wednesday. “When you think about sports, you have a lot of respect for their basketball program, their history, and Danny Ainge and those guys. They’re clearly competing for the top prize.
“We have great respect for the Big 12 Conference. Arizona, I’m very familiar with. You look at the top teams in that league, Iowa State, Houston, Kansas, and (BYU is) one of the top teams. No doubt we’re playing against a quality opponent that’s investing in their program, you feel that. I think they’re going to be in this tournament in a prominent role for years to come.”
It’s been a chaotic past 24 hours for Miller and his Longhorns, stunning NC State at the buzzer in Tuesday night’s First Four round out in Dayton, Ohio before hustling to the airport and flying out to the west coast, where Texas arrived in Portland at 6:30 a.m. Wednesday.
But even after the ultimate cross country red eye flight and a draining emotional victory, Miller believes the benefit of coming into a matchup with BYU having just won a game far outweighs any drawbacks from a lack of rest.
“We’re thrilled to be here. Last night seems like it just ended about 10 minutes ago, and here we are in Portland, Oregon, ready to play BYU. But we’re super, super excited about being here,” Miller said.
“There’s nothing like the thrill of being in the tournament and advancing. I think there’s some real confidence and togetherness (with the team). A lot of good stuff comes in March (after) being able to win a game, and we can take that with us and move towards a big test tomorrow.”
Miller has coached a number of notable talents over the years, including former No. 1 NBA Draft choice Deandre Ayton and current Utah Jazz star Lauri Markkanen.
But in BYU’s freshman phenom AJ Dybantsa, Miller sees a “generational” prospect.
“He can do it all,” Miller said of Dybantsa. “I think his ability to get fouled is maybe unlike anything I’ve seen simply because he shoots eight free throws a game. He can do it in and around the rim, driving, kind of in that odd spot, 15 to 17 feet from the basket. It’s a real gift for not only for him, but BYU.
“I can’t give you the words and accolades to describe him. He is a great, great player, a player that we don’t often see in college. You can go a long period of time and not see somebody like him. Obviously watching him in the Big 12, which is a great, great conference, he averaged 25 (points) a game, and that obviously jumps off the page.”
While Miller couldn’t come up with a true player comparison for Dybantsa, he did liken him to LeBron James in his position-less skillset and ability to be a “one-man wrecking crew.”
“He can do so many different things. AJ is his own player obviously, but that’s the unique path he goes down,” Miller said. “His size, mobility, skill level, his mindset of being able to be a smart player, make his teammates better, get to the foul line, that makes it very difficult (to defend against him).”
But Miller did go out of his way to make it clear that he views BYU as much more than simply the Dybantsa show.
“He obviously plays for a really, really good coach, who puts him in that position and is obviously teaching him how to play the game,” Miller said.
“He’s surrounded by a great group of teammates. I know BYU had a tough injury (to Richie Saunders) late in the year, which certainly has hurt them, but their supporting cast is still very good. They’re a good team, led by a great player. But they’re a good team, too.”
