The No. 6 seed BYU Cougars' NCAA Tournament run ended with a first-round loss to the No. 11 Texas Longhorns. It was a disappointing end to the year after opening the game as 2.5-point favorites according to DraftKings. The Cougars finished the season with a 23-12 overall record and went 9-9 in Big 12 matchups.
Now into the offseason, head coach Kevin Young and the rest of his staff are focused on the transfer portal. Early on, BYU has already suffered a handful of transfer departures. Since it officially opened on Tuesday, the Cougars have lost seven players to the portal.
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However, BYU isn't just standing by as players get snatched up. On3's senior national recruiting analyst, Jamie Shaw, reports that the Cougars are one of several teams pushing for former Wright State Raiders guard TJ Burch.
"Burch has hosted Zoom meetings with Kansas State, SMU, Grand Canyon, George Mason, and USC," Shaw wrote. "He is scheduled to have a Zoom meeting with Maryland on Monday and is talking with BYU and Providence about scheduling times."
Burch just wrapped up his first season with the Raiders after transferring from Ball State. He appeared in 34 games and made 23 starts, averaging 12.4 points, 2.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists. All three averages marked career highs.
The sophomore also shot 45.7% from the field and 34.7% from the three-point line. His performance on the court led to him being named the Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year.
With two more years of eligibility, Burch is garnering interest from a handful of top schools. If BYU can come out on top, he would be the program's second transfer portal addition this offseason, joining former Kentucky Wildcats guard Collin Chandler.
