Egor Demin's 1st March Madness was 'unforgettable.' Now he has a decision to make

NEWARK, N.J. — Egor Demin's first experience with the NCAA Tournament didn't end the way he wanted after BYU's 113-88 loss to second-seeded Alabama in the Sweet 16.

But the experience for the native of Moscow, Russia, in his first taste of March Madness was everything he wanted it to be — and then some.

Demin scored 15 points on 6-of-14 shooting with seven assists in the Cougars' loss at the Prudential Center — a loss that could be his final game in a BYU uniform for the projected first-round NBA draft pick.

But as for the tournament overall, including the Cougars' first Sweet 16 in 14 years? To use a phrase well-known to much of the BYU fan base, they were days never to be forgotten.

"It was amazing; it was absolutely amazing and unforgettable," said Demin, just a few weeks removed from his 19th birthday. "For me, it's the first experience I've had with something as big as March Madness. I don't think there's anything like that.

"Even the NBA finals are a different story," he added. "But college, it's just amazing. March Madness is super interesting. As a player, every game I felt a big pleasure just being here and having the chance to be on the court."

Demin, who averaged 10.5 points, 5.4 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game on 41.1% shooting, has a big decision in front of him. But the five-star freshman wasn't trying to think of that Thursday night as he spoke with a handful of reporters with a towel draped over his shoulders.

His thoughts, instead, were on his teammates — particularly a senior class of Trevin Knell, Trey Stewart, Mawot Mag and Fousseyni Traore, who welcomed him to Provo with open arms and became like family.

To that point, the whole BYU experience has been "unforgettable" for the 6-foot-9 guard who came to Provo after spending time with the Real Madrid academy in Spain.

It hasn't always been easy for the star freshman on a team picked to finish ninth in the Big 12, and one that started conference play 2-5 before rattling off 12 wins in 14 games to clinch the No. 4 seed in the league tournament.

The Cougars (26-10) then snapped a decade-long winless streak in the Big Dance with an 80-71 victory over VCU — the program's first tournament win since 2014 — before a 91-89 upset over third-seeded Wisconsin prior to Thursday's season finale.

Did Demin want more of his freshman season? Of course he did; he's human and a competitor.

Whether that means a return to BYU — and another NCAA Tournament, particularly one with top-rated recruit AJ Dybantsa — is yet to be seen. But head coach Kevin Young said he won't push the youngster one direction or another, either.

"That stuff's very personal, and it's also very situational," the former Phoenix Suns assistant said. "I'll try to lend some advice to him the best I can, try to lend my NBA connections and see if he understands how they view him, where they view him, and so forth.

"Obviously, we would welcome him back," he added. "He's an unbelievable kid who cares so much about this program, about this university; the guy loves BYU."

Young recounted an experience earlier in the season when Demin turned to the first-year BYU head coach and said, "Coach, I could play here for the next 10 years."

In a moment of levity or humor, or maybe even weakness, from what Young was saying before, he quipped: "Just give me four," with a laugh.

"But that just kind of speaks to how much he's embraced the community," Young added. "Whether he goes to the NBA or comes back, I will be rooting for that kid forever."

A lot of factors will go into Demin's upcoming decision, he says, and he didn't rule out a return to BYU for another year. He even admitted that losing in the Round of 16 could potentially play into his decision.

Demin is a self-admitted perfectionist, and he was far from perfect Thursday night in shooting 6-of-14 from the field and 1-of-8 from 3-point range. He's gotten better in a lot of ways in his first college basketball season — remember when Demin struggled from the free-throw line before knocking down both of his freebies against the Tide?

But in some of those imperfections, Demin may find a reason to "run it back."

That will be a decision for another day.

"I'm not even trying to think about it," he said. "I just want to take some time to enjoy the moment with my team, and the rest of the team that won't be here next year. Just enjoy some time back in Provo, come back to workouts, and we'll see what is going to happen."

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