Boise State loses Mountain West title game — and perhaps NCAA berth, too

LAS VEGAS (Idaho Statesman) — It looked good for about five minutes Saturday afternoon for the Boise State basketball team in the Mountain West Tournament championship game.

The Broncos raced out to a 6-0 start against Colorado State, holding the Rams scoreless for the opening five minutes. Then it all fell apart. Colorado State embarked on a 25-3 run over the next nine minutes, leaving Boise State chasing a lead it would never regain. When it was over, the Rams (25-9) were the ones cutting down the nets at the Thomas & Mack Center, beating Boise State 69-56.

“It sucks,” senior guard Tyson Degenhart said. “We’ve fought through two incredibly tough games on Thursday and Friday, and I thought this was our chance. I thought we were the team of destiny this week, and it just didn’t happen today.”

Degenhart scored a team-high 22 points despite not recording his first points until 15 minutes into the game. No other Bronco scored in double digits.

The loss leaves Boise State’s NCAA Tournament fate up to the committee on Selection Sunday. Leading bracketologists like ESPN’s Joe Lunardi and CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm had the Broncos (24-10) among the “Last Four In” heading into Saturday, meaning an opening-round game would be required to reach the 64-team bracket.

In last year’s tournament, the Broncos lost to Colorado at the same stage, 60-53. But with the Broncos sitting right on the edge of the bubble, it’s possible the Rams stole the Broncos’ bid on Saturday, leaving Boise State on the outside looking in.

Lunardi’s latest prediction is that Boise State will be the first team out.

“We’ve got a great body of work, playing great ball now,” Boise State head coach Leon Rice said on why Boise State should be included in the field. “We’ve got some quality wins, played an aggressive schedule, won games away from our home arena. And the top of this league is as good as it has been.”

As has been the case all tournament, Boise State struggled to shoot. While the Broncos leaned on defense in the preceding victories over San Diego State and New Mexico, that wasn’t the case against Colorado State.

Boise State shot just 19-for-49 (38.8%) from the floor and 8-for-27 (29.6%) from 3-point range. Colorado State felt nearly unstoppable at the other end of the court. While the Rams shot a modest 22-for-51 (43.1%), they were a hot 12-for-24 (50%) from beyond the arc.

“I think when you look at a lot of our wings and guards, there’s a lot of inexperience there,” Rice said. “It’s the experience that matters a lot.”

Freshman guard Julian Bowie was the Broncos’ next-best scorer with eight points, followed by redshirt junior guard RJ Keene’s six points. Keene hit two 3-pointers, bringing his season total to 10.

Colorado State swept Boise State in the regular season, so when the Broncos held the Rams scoreless for the opening five minutes, it looked like Boise State may have expelled some demons. San Diego State also swept Boise State in the regular season before Boise State beat the Aztecs on Thursday.

But once the Rams got going, there was no stopping them. They hit six 3-pointers in 10 minutes to pull ahead 25-9, including three from Bowen Born and two from Keyshawn Williams off the bench.

“Five threes off the bench, it’s hard to do that,” Degenhart said. “(Ethan) Morton played very, very well, 11 points off the bench. And so when you have those guys come in and do that, it’s pretty hard to overcome.”

Colorado State had 28 bench points compared to Boise State’s 20. The start of the second half closely mirrored the first. Boise State came out of halftime down 32-22 and jumped into a quick 5-0 run. But just when it looked like the Broncos were back in it, Colorado State hit three straight 3-pointers and a pair of free throws to restore a 16-point, 43-27 lead.

A 10-2 run for the Broncos across the final three minutes made the score look more respectable, but it only came as the Rams were beginning to think about their trophy celebration.

The Broncos don’t have to wait long to learn their postseason fate: the NCAA Tournament selection show begins at 4 p.m. Sunday on CBS. If the Broncos sneak in as a Last Four In team, they will play Tuesday or Wednesday in Dayton, Ohio.

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