BOISE – Gordy Presnell had spent the better part of two years constructing a roster he hopes will return the program to its former glory.
Therefore, the longtime Boise State women’s basketball coach didn’t want to lose anyone to the transfer portal. So he handed out blue wristbands with the words “True to Blue” engraved on them to each one of his players at the end of last season.
The plan worked.
The Broncos head into the 2023-24 campaign with all five starters and all but one player back overall. As a result, they were picked fourth in the Mountain West preseason poll. It’s their highest preseason rankings since 2020.
Boise State will tip off the season against the College of Idaho (0-4) at 6:30 p.m. Monday inside Extra Mile Arena.
“We’ve hopefully built a tradition here that people will look at our program with respect,” Presnell said. “Year in and year out, we field a competitive team and we want to win championships at Boise State. We’ve won 10, but they seem a long way off now.”
It’s been since 2020 when the Broncos captured their fourth straight Mountain West Tournament title. Since then, they’ve gone 39-46 (.459) and haven’t advanced past the semifinals of the conference tournament, much less made it to March Madness during that timespan.
The low point came during the 2021-22 season when Boise State posted a record of 8-21 – the worst since 1981. It lost 12 of those by nine points or less.
“To go through a losing year is hard. You want to win. You want to do well,” Boise State senior guard Mary Kay Naro said. “Especially since we lost so many close games. We were right there. We just need to close it out.”
And thanks to bringing in a talented group of freshmen, along with some impressive performances by their upperclassmen, the Broncos were much better last season.
The quartet of Dani Bayes, Mya Hansen, Natalie Pasco and Tatum Thompson combined for 42.8% of Boise State’s scoring a year ago. It was the fourth-most by a freshman class in the country.
They all had their moments, too.
Bayes hit three or more 3-pointers in seven games.
Hansen became the first Bronco in two seasons to score 30 or more points with 31 against BYU on Dec. 1, 2022.
Pasco became one of only three players ever to be named MW Freshman of the Week four or more times.
And Thompson scored in double-figures four times after a broken foot sidelined her for part of the season, including 19 points against UNLV.
Hansen also missed some time with a PCL tear.
Bayes and Pasco made the All-MW Freshman Team.
All four are back.
“I definitely think they’re going to be better,” Naro said. “I know when I was a freshman, a long time ago, the game is definitely faster the first year you play.
“So I think having that year under their belt is going to help them just grow as players, be more confident and just continue to contribute on the floor like they already have.”
Hansen and Pasco are expected starters. Bayes is currently dealing with a bit of an ankle injury. But it’s not expected to keep her out long, according to Presnell. And once healthy, she and Pasco will rotate in the starting lineup. Thompson will anchor a strong second group with junior guard Jayda Clark and junior forward Trista Hull, who Presnell said has shown the most improvement.
“I’ve always felt like six, seven and eight, win games for you because everyone’s first five is usually always good,” Presnell said. “I really think six, seven and eight are just critical. We’ve tried to do some fun things this year with different wrinkles offensively to try and keep them all engaged.”
The other three starting spots belong to seniors, who all could come back next season with their COVID year. They are Naro, forward Elodie Lalotte and of course, record-setting forward Abby Muse.
Last year, Muse shattered the school’s single-season blocks record with 93, which ranked sixth in the country. It led to her becoming the Broncos’ all-time blocks leaders (171) and the Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year – a first in program history. She also came within one board of tying the school’s single-season rebounding record of 289.
Lalotte was an All-MW player last season, as well. She earned honorable mention honors after becoming the first Bronco to be named MW Player of the Week with a combined 47 points against UC Davis and Portland State.
And Naro, the granddaughter of Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer, Rick Adelman, is sixth all-time in assists right now with 327.
The Broncos finished last season 17-16, winning eight of their last 11 games. They had a fourth-quarter lead in a 59-52 Mountain West Tournament quarterfinal loss to No. 3 Colorado State. But Boise State still won 10 conference games for the ninth time in 10 seasons – the most of any MW team during that period.
So Presnell, the Broncos’ all-time winningest coach (334), who also sits 34th on the NCAA’s all-time wins list (730), wanted to run it back. That’s when he came up with the idea of the wristbands.
Fourteen letterwinners – the most in the Mountain West – are back this season.
“I think it just says commitment,” Naro said. “I think it also shows that we’re willing to deal through adversity because I think the transfer portal is kind of an easy cop out for when things get hard.
“I think that’s going to make our group much stronger because we have gone through hard times and we stuck with it. We wanted to be a part of this program. That hard work I think is going to pay off in the end.”
Boise State’s lone new addition is local product Alyssa Christensen. The New Plymouth native comes over from the College of Southern Idaho. The junior forward was named to the Region 18 First Team after leading the Golden Eagles to a 31-3 record and a trip to the NCJAA D1 Women’s Basketball Championship Semifinals a year ago.
She’s now inserted onto a team that’s the only one in the Mountain West to return all five of its starters. The group also represents 89.7% of the scoring, the most in the league by far.
So could this be the start of another dynasty for the Broncos?
They’re certainly hoping so.
“We started completely over. And we had it rolling here. We just had some things not go our way,” Presnell said. “So it would be a real sense of accomplishment and maybe one of the highlights of my career that’s for sure.”
