Border League Recap
Fall Tournament Features Many BYU Targets
7 of the top 14 players in the nation as well as many of the top teams from around the country played in Vegas this weekend for the Border League. BYU coaches were among the hundreds of college coaches present. 10 players with offers from BYU played in the top flight Showcase division. Many matchups featured potential future teammates. Here’s a brief recap of the weekend:
Utah Prep
A week after A.J. Dybansta (6’9” Brockton, MA, Utah Prep) and J.J. Mandaquit (6’1” Honolulu, HI, Utah Prep) took their official visits to BYU, the duo led Utah Prep to an undefeated weekend against some of the best competition in the country. Utah Prep won their first two games relatively easily. In their final game, they defeated the Columbus Explorers. The Explorers feature the #2 player in the country and defeated Utah Prep by double digits at a tournament in San Diego in September. Dybansta and Mandaquit teamed up on a trap to force a shot clock violation to close out the game
Darius Bivins
Darius Bivins (5’10” Alexandria, VA, Bishop O’Connell) - Bivins is a 2026 point guard prospect from Virginia. This weekend he showed a refined set of skills in leading his team to an undefeated weekend. He’s one of the best ball handlers in the country and is able to get anywhere on the court and create shots for his teammates.
Brandon McCoy Jr
Brandon McCoy Jr. (6’4” Bellflower, CA, St. John Bosco) - McCoy played point guard on another team that went undefeated in the showcase division. Bosco defeated three national academy teams as McCoy showed a keen ability to finish in traffic and knock down contested shots at the end of the shot clock.
Millennium vs Iowa United Prep
At 10:30 Friday night, Coach Kevin Young was at Desert Pines High School, 30 minutes away from the strip, watching targets Cameron Holmes (6’5” Goodyear, AZ, Millennium) and Arafan Diane (6’11”, Montreal, QC, Iowa United Prep) go head-to-head. Holmes hit three three-pointers in consecutive possessions to give Millennium an insurmountable lead and eventually the win. Diane may turn out to be something of a unicorn. He possesses rare physical gifts, even among the nations best basketball players. He dunks easily and has excellent footwork around the basket in addition to being a massive human being.