Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Current Mountain West Men's Basketball Standings

1.   San Diego State 11-1 (pending game with Utah State tonight)
2.   New Mexico 10-2
3.   UNLV 8-4
4.   Wyoming 8-5
5.   Boise State 7-6
6.   Nevada 7-7
7.   Fresno State 6-8
8.   Utah State 5-8 (pending game with San Diego State tonight)
9.   Colorado State 5-9
10.  Air Force 4-9
11.  San Jose State 1-13

Boise State Now in Fifth Place

Boise State has passed Nevada for fifth place in the Mountain West.  The Wolf Pack lost to San Jose State tonight, 66-64.

Boise State Scores 84-72 Road Win At Colorado State

Thomas Bropleh came off the bench for 18 second half points as Boise State downed Colorado State 84-72 in Fort Collins tonight.

Boise State went ahead 27-25 on two Derrick Marks free throws 6 minutes and 37 seconds into the game, and Coach Leon Rice's team never looked back after that.  Anthony Drmic hit three three-pointers and had 12 points as the Broncos carried a 43-36 lead into halftime.

The homestanding Rams wouldn't go away, though, yet every time they crept closer, Bropleh would nail a three-ball or a key jumper to stave off the Rams.  Bropleh finished 7-9 from the field with four treys while Drmic finished with 19 points to lead the Broncos.  Ryan Watkins had 12 rebounds and 9 points in another stellar effort.  Jeff Elorriaga made his biggest contribution in weeks due to battling a back injury--he nailed three three-pointers for the Broncos.

Guard Daniel Bejarano poured in 23 points to lead CSU, while J.J. Avila had 13 while Carlton Hurst and Dwight Smith chipped in 11 each.


Boise State shot an excellent 54.7%, especially since they were 13-22 from three-point range.  The Rams stayed in the game with 16 offensive rebounds.

The Bronco win goes a long way in helping the team get to fifth place in the Mountain West.  The top five teams in conference play receive a bye in the upcoming tournament in Las Vegas.  Boise State is now 7-6 in the MWC and 17-9 overall, while CSU slipped to 5-9 and 14-13.

Wyoming defeated Fresno State tonight and is currently fourth place with an 8-5 league mark and 17-9 overall.  Fresno State dropped to 6-8 and 13-14.

Nevada is the other team with a good chance of finishing in the top five--they are currently 7-6 in the Mountain West pending their game tonight with San Jose State.

Drmic's seven field goals tonight moved him past former Bronco great John Coker for tenth place all-time in career field goals.  Drmic now has 441, just four behind Pat Hoke (1972-1976).

Boise State hosts UNLV in an "Orange Out" in Taco Bell Arena.  Fans are urged to wear Orange for the Saturday night game--tip is set for 6 p.m.

Boise State Wins 84-72

First win ever in Fort Collins, and one I said Boise State had to have to have a good chance of finishing fifth in the Mountain West.

Fresno State looks like they will lose to Wyoming--if so, the Broncos will have a 1 1/2 game lead over the Bulldogs for sixth place.  

With this win, if Boise State goes 2-2 down the stretch, I believe they get fifth.

Boise State Lead Down to 9

Broncos had built a 14-point second-half lead, but it's now 77-68 with less than three minutes left.

Boise State Going for 17th Win

Broncos up at Colorado State, 69-58 with ten minutes left.