How a teammate’s words inspired Bryson Tiller’s career night for KU basketball
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Bryson Tiller scored career-high 21 points with seven rebounds, playing aggressively.
- Teammate Melvin Council challenged Tiller, prompting Tiller to attack the rim more.
- NBA evaluators saw his 3-point shooting and interior play, showing signs of pro promise.
Kansas freshman Bryson Tiller had never played like this.
Midway through the second half of KU basketball’s eventual victory over BYU, he showcased why coach Bill Self believes he’ll be a pro.
Tiller jumped from right outside the restricted area, floated between two defenders and converted a thunderous dunk.
For the first time maybe all season, Tiller played true to his size. The freshman big man finished with a career-high 21 points and seven rebounds.
“I feel like my teammates trust me to be aggressive,” Tiller said postgame.
From opening tip, Tiller was aggressive. It’s something that hasn’t happened consistently for the freshman.
In fact, one of his teammates, guard Melvin Council, took some credit for Council’s new-found mojo.
“The reason he played like that, I was in his ear,” Council said. “I like that BT.”
What did Council say?
“I just called him soft,” Council said, “but in a different way.”
It seemed to work. Tiller put together his best game this season, building off last Saturday’s performance at K-State, where he dropped 16 points with seven rebounds.
With more than 30 NBA front-office members in attendance — most focused on the marquee matchup of Darryn Peterson vs. AJ Dybantsa — Tiller showcased multiple skills that the league covets from its big men. That included going 3-for-5 on 3-pointers.
It broke a cold shooting slump, as Tiller hadn’t made a 3-pointer since Dec. 22 against Davidson. And he also showcased his prowess inside.
On several occasions, Tiller created open 3-pointers for teammates with his drives to the rim. The best version of KU’s offense involves Tiller playing aggressive to draw additional defensive attention, rather than letting his man sag off and help on others, like Peterson.
Tiller knows that too.
“I feel like that’s going to open up a lot of things on the court as well,” Tiller said. “Just being aggressive and using my skill, size to my advantage.”
That’s the exact type of thing NBA evaluators want to see from Tiller, including one who spoke to The Star pregame.
Even KU’s coaching staff is pushing Tiller to play to his size — though the way the Jayhawks play has pushed him into a new role.
Tiller often finds himself on the perimeter, needing to preserve space with Flory Bidunga anchored in the paint.
He navigated the line between playing like a stretch big and going inside when needed on Saturday.
“I think sometimes he can get lost and float,” Self said. “Tonight, I didn’t see that at all. I thought he was aggressive the whole game.”
This story was originally published February 1, 2026 at 5:30 AM.
