Cougar faithful excited to watch BYU basketball in Maui

BYU basketball players weren't the only ones excited for the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational tournament.

Fans from all over came to support the boys in blue. Dave Swenson from South Jordan, Utah and his wife are BYU fans who just happened to be in Maui at the same time as the tournament.

They’ve been fans since "forever" and are primarily BYU football fans, but they thought they’d support the basketball team since the timing was right. 

"We were already here and then decided to come while we were here," Swenson said.

Taylor Millett from Seattle, Washington and his brother-in-law, Dane Erickson from Texas, saw the Maui Invitational as a win-win for them and their spouses. Millett and Erickson married sisters and made the trip a family affair.

"I told (my wife) there was a tournament in Hawaii and she set it all up," Millett said. 

Millett, who attended BYU from 2006-2010, and Erickson, a current BYU student, both hoped to see a victory against San Diego State University, but also expected a learning experience for the Cougars.

"I’m hoping to see Kyle Collinsworth’s leg stand up, and I’m hoping to see some big men show up," Millett said. "We’ve got a really young team on our front court, and so I’m hoping we can see some improvement there."

"(SDSU is) a well-coached team," Erickson said, "so it’s going to be a good game."

The Wrights, from Wasilla, Alaska, wanted to see the same thing.

"We want to see a good game," Kerry Wright said. Wright, his wife Beth and 14-year-old son Steve are big BYU sports fans and have been for quite some time.

"Marty Haws, he’ll play well," Kerry said.

"Marty Haws? Or Tyler?"

"Tyler. Tyler Haws," Kerry laughed. "(Marty) played when we were there."

The Wrights, like most of the others interviewed, thought BYU would have a good season regardless of the outcome.

"Dave Rose is a great coach and they’ll do really well," Kerry Wright said.