AJ Dybantsa's teammate Xavion Staton shares his reaction as Richie Saunders makes a major BYU announcement 

AJ Dybantsa's former Utah Prep and future BYU Cougars teammate Xavion Staton shared his reaction to the news of BYU junior Richie Saunders returning to Head Coach Kevin Young's side for his senior year.

Saunders shared the news on his official Instagram account on Sunday along with some highlights of him in Cougars uniform.

"Time to finish what we started, Cougar Nation," the post was captioned.

Staton shared his reaction in the comments section of the post.

"‼️‼️‼️," Staton commented.

AJ Dybantsa's teammate Xavion Staton shares his reaction as Richie Saunders makes a major BYU announcement (Image: IG/ Richie Saunders)

In the 2025 NCAA Tournament, the 6-foot-5 forward led the Cougars to a 14-6 record, earning a six-seed. In the regular season, the Cougars finished with a 26-10 record in the Big 12.

In the first round of March Madness, they defeated VCU Rams by an 80-71 scoreline on Mar. 21. In the second round, they sealed a tight 91-89 victory against the Wisconsin Badgers on Mar. 28.

However, they were knocked out in the Elite 8 Stage after suffering a 113-88 loss against the Alabama Crimson Tide on Mar. 31.

Head Coach Kevin Young had some words of praise for Saunders on Apr. 21:

“I just think his play speaks for itself,” Young said. “He’s been extremely consistent in really all facets of the game, across the board all year. He’s helped us beat some really good teams. The more exposure he gets, I think more people are starting to see what I feel like I’ve known for a while.”

In the 2024-25 season, Saunders averaged 16.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.4 blocks per contest. He also started all 35 games and shot 51.8% from the field, including 43.2% from behind the three-point line.

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AJ Dybantsa and Xavion Staton react to Kennard Davis Jr.'s transfer to BYU

The Cougars fans had another news to enjoy before Saunders announced his return. A former Southern Illinois Saluki, Kevin Davis Jr., transferred to the Cougars in the transfer portal and shared the news on his Instagram page on Friday.

AJ Dybantsa and Xavion Staton shared their reactions to the news in the comment section:

AJ Dybantsa and Xavion Staton react to Kennard Davis Jr.'s transfer to BYU (Image: IG/ kdavisjr30)

"!!!!!," commented Xavion Staton.

AJ Dybantsa commented, "tssss!!"

Chamberlain Burgess will join Dybantsa and Staton as well from the Class of 2025 next season.