The BYU men’s basketball roster is coming together, and Syracuse transfer Tyler Betsey recently mentioned that he’d have shown up in Provo, Utah, even if the Cougars were, say, still a member of the Mountain West.
On Wednesday, Betsey, who first began his career at Cincinnati before leaving for the Orange as a sophomore, told BYUtv Sports Nation that coming to the Big 12 didn’t exactly force his hand in becoming a Cougar.
“Honestly, coming back to the Big 12 didn’t play a factor at all,” Betsey said.
“I would’ve came to BYU if it was in any conference, but I’m definitely excited to come back, just seeing last year how many good teams they had in the Big 12, it’s just something to look forward to. You see what Arizona did, they were probably one of the best teams, a top 3 team in the country. I watch a lot of basketball, so I watch the Big 12.”
Now, BYU can certainly afford a talented transfer like Betsey, the No. 39 power forward available in the portal, and they’re pairing him with a handful of promising additions, including former Kentucky guard Collin Chandler and Clemson big man transfer Jake Wahlin.
But the potential scenario of relinking with Robert Wright III, who withdrew his name from the portal to remain at BYU for his junior season, played a legitimate factor in swaying Betsey over to the league, the Syracuse transfer said.
Wright, who started his career at Baylor, seemingly entertained the idea of playing alongside Betsey upon graduating from high school. Now, they’re linked up with Kevin Young and reshaping his roster at BYU.
“I actually know (Wright) pretty well from high school,” Betsey said.
“I played with him at the top-100 camp. We even joked about going to college together after the game… He was like ‘I’m going to let Scott Drew know.” It wasn’t really that too serious, but it’s definitely someone I have a little bit of a relationship with.”
A former four-star recruit by Cincinnati, Betsey listed offers from Duke, Kansas, St. John’s, Indiana, Michigan State and Creighton. Last season with the Orange, Betsey averaged 6.7 points and 2.8 rebounds per game.
