Tyson Degenhart had 21 points and Alvaro Cardenas added 16 points, seven assists and six rebounds as the Boise State men’s basketball team picked up a massive 82-65 win over Utah State on Wednesday night at ExtraMile Arena.
Andrew Meadow had 17 points and O’Mar Stanley added 10 for the Broncos, who have won three games in a row and seven of their past eight as they continue to strengthen their case for a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
On Jan. 22 the Broncos lost for the fourth time in six games and hit ‘rock bottom’ as they dropped to 13-7 overall and just 5-4 in Mountain West play. Wednesday’s win over Utah State improved them to 20-8 on the year and 12-5 in Mountain West play.
The Broncos held Utah State to just 42.3 percent from the field after the Aggies shot better than 60 percent in a win in Logan back in January. Boise State also had a 32-25 edge on the glass.
Degenhart is now just 72 points away from the all-time scoring record at Boise State with four guaranteed games remaining (three regular season and one Mountain West Tournament game).
The Broncos have two winnable road games at Fresno State on Saturday and at Air Force next Tuesday before finishing the regular season a week from Friday on March 7th with Senior Night against Colorado State. Wins in all three games could be enough to put the Broncos in the NCAA Tournament for a fourth straight season.
The Broncos improved to No. 43 in the NET rankings following the win and now sit at 7-6 in the first two quadrants. BartTorvik.com now gives the Broncos a 63.2 percent chance of making the NCAA Tournament.
Plenty of work remains, but the Broncos appear to have a shot at making their fourth NCAA Tournament in a row.
What a difference a month can make.
Bronco Nation News had full postgame coverage from Wednesday’s win. Check it out below:
POSTGAME SHOW
INTERVIEWS
HIGHLIGHTS
