It took Tyson Degenhart a little time to get back in the swing of things in his season debut Sunday after he missed Tuesday’s game due to a broken nose.
But once Boise State’s star got going, there was no stopping him – or the Broncos.
Degenhart had 17 points, including two key buckets in the final minutes, and Boise State improved to 2-0 on the season with a hard-fought 63-58 win over San Francisco at ExtraMile Arena.
“We’re a different team with him, no doubt,” Boise State coach Leon Rice said.
The Broncos crushed non-D1 Vanguard by 34 points without Degenhart on Tuesday. In a much closer and more competitive game, the Broncos needed their star – and he produced.
Deganhart had five points on consecutive possessions, two buckets and a free throw, to put the Broncos up 59-50 with 4:27 to go. He later added a free throw with 17.8 seconds left to account for the 63-58 final score.
“It took me a little bit to get my legs underneath me those first eight minutes, but it felt great to help the team get a win tonight,” Degenhart said.
It took until 8:37 remained in the first half for Degenhart to score his first points of the season. His 3-pointer put the Broncos up 22-15, and he followed with a putback and up-and-under layup to extend Boise State’s lead to 26-17.
“He was a little bit game rusty because he had to sit out and not condition or do anything for a couple days,” Leon Rice said. “I was so great I sat him out for six minutes.”
Rice said it’s tough to take guys like Degenhart out of the game because of how much he trusts him, calling him his “security blanket” out on the court.
Degenhart was a preseason first team All-Mountain West selection after averaging 14.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists last season. He’ll likely be among the leading contenders for Mountain West Player of the Year if he plays consistently like he did Sunday.
Another plus with having Degenhart back? It opened things up for others.
Chibuzo Agbo and Max Rice each had 15 points for the Broncos, while O’mar Stanley had nine points and four rebounds.
The ‘big three’ of Degenhart, Agbo and Rice combined for 47 of Boise State’s 63 points.
“Just playing with Tyson, I noticed not having him that first game, it makes it so much easier when you have him out there,” Max Rice said of creating shots for others. “He just makes it easier for all of us out there and you kind of saw him take over there at the end.”
Boise State led 32-24 at the half and led by at least two points the entire second half. The Dons trailed 38-36 with 15:25 to play before buckets from Agbo and Rice and a one-handed slam from Stanley pushed the Bronco lead to 44-38 with 11:52 to go.
Boise State’s defense deserves some credit for Sunday’s win, particularly in the first half. San Francisco, which scored 212 points in its first two games of the season, had just 24 in the first half on 32 percent shooting.
The Dons went just 4 of 19 from 3-point range and couldn’t get the deficit any closer than three down the stretch.
“We were just able to get stops when we needed them,” Degenhart said. “They’d go on a run and we’d answer back. Having these games in November is going to be huge when we have those tough conference games in January, February and March.”
Boise State visits Clemson on Sunday at 11 a.m. MT. The Tigers are currently ranked No. 45 at KenPom, meaning this would qualify as a ‘Quad 1’ game. The Broncos then will face Virginia Tech in the opening round of the ESPN Invitational on Thanksgiving Day.
That’s why Sunday’s win was so important. Not only did the Bronco beat a quality team which will benefit them in the computer rankings all season long, but it gives them a win ahead of a stretch in which wins will be hard to come by the next few weeks.
“Where we’re sitting right now, 2-0 is a heck of a lot better than 1-1,” Leon Rice said. “Especially the dividends this win is going to pay throughout the year. They will be a 20-plus win team, no doubt about it.”
