Provo • In the postgame interview room after the last two home losses, BYU men’s basketball coach Mark Pope has been the only person to address the media and answer questions. He’s been the protector of his players, taking the brunt of the responsibility for subpar performances against San Francisco and Gonzaga. He’s been the captain of a ship that, with just five games left in the regular season, is on the precipice of sinking.
But behind the scenes, in moments to which media and the outside world are not privy, the players have been upping their level of leadership, taking responsibility for their play on the court. Last week, Pope and senior guard Te’jon Lucas spoke at length about the soul searching the team is doing, which included a small players-only meeting at Alex Barcello’s apartment.
Freshman guard Trey Stewart said Tuesday that Barcello has taken an even larger leadership role amid BYU’s four-game losing streak than he already had.
“I’ve definitely seen AB take a huge role recently,” Stewart said. “He’s a great leader, but he’s definitely stepped it up, and everyone’s just kind of stepping up a level.”
Barcello is the best player on the Cougars’ roster. He takes the most shots, and conversations about the state of the team ultimately surround how well he plays. He scored just nine points in the outing against Gonzaga, but put up 25 in the loss to San Francisco.
Pope said Barcello has been “unbelievable” throughout the team’s tough stretch.
“I think he’s got a lot of hope and a lot of confidence and a lot of trust,” Pope said of his star player.
When asked how much personal responsibility his players have taken for the recent stretch, Pope described a squad that is internalizing the difficulties of losing. He described a squad that seems “special” and “impenetrable” to the outside world, but is in reality made of humans that care a great deal about winning.
“The emotion that is poured out of these guys as they’re chasing this through wins and through some losses is enormous,” Pope said. “Fortunately, the whole world doesn’t see these guys in the moments when things are really hard because these guys are super vulnerable.”
Stewart said he loves the fact that people care about the success of BYU basketball — even the dads that stop them while shopping to make a “smart comment.” And even though it is difficult at times to handle not only outside pressure but internal expectations, he feels the players on this Cougars team are mature and selfless enough to compartmentalize and focus on what needs to be done on the basketball court.
“Everyone’s willing to sacrifice,” Stewart said. “We have the desire, we have the commitment as a team. But at the end of the day ... I guess it comes down to us right now figuring out what the problem is and how we can come back and win some games.”
