MBB: Boise State (3-2) vs Utah Valley University (3-3)
Boise State University vs Utah Valley University
Date: Saturday November 26,2022
Time: 2:00pm MT
Stadium:Extra Mile Arena (12,644)
Stream: Mountain West Network
Commentators: Mike Walsh and Nick Duncan
Radio: KBOI 670 AM
Commentators: Adam Frenier and Abe Jackson
Know Thy Enemy
The Wolverines of Utah Valley travel to the City of Trees for a battle on the hardwood!
Both teams are coming off trips from in-season tournaments, with Utah Valley going 1-1 at the Jersey Mike’s Jamaica Classic last week in Montego Bay, Jamaica. The Wolverines record of 3-3 is a little miss leading. Two of their losses came in single possession Over Time losses. The first, a 65-68 loss to Wake Forest and then a 72-73 loss to Morgan State. If a bucket or a stop goes the Wolverines way, they could have a much different record of 5-1. The Wolverines are led by their Senior guard, Trey Woodbury, who was picked to be on the preseason All-WAC first team. Utah Valley will need a big season out of Woodbury and others as they lost their star center Fardadws Amiaq to the transfer portal.
So far this season it looks like three players, Trey Woodbury, Justin Harmon, and Aziz Bandaogo, are stepping up to fill the void. All three of these players are averaging over a dozen points per game. The Wolverines love to use the pick n’ roll to attack the basket off the dribble. As a team Utah Valley averages an even 73 points per game while limiting their opponent to just 67.5 points.
Utah Valley is coached by Mark Madsen. Madsen is in his fourth season on the sideline for the Wolverines and has a record of 45-45. Before taking over at Utah Valley Madsen was an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers. Madson also played for the Lakers in 2001-2002 where he won two NBA titles.
Utah Valley and Boise State will meet on the basketball hardwood for the seventh time. Boise State holds an alltime 5-1 advantage in the series. The Broncos have won four straight over the Wolverines, including a 76-56 win last season in Boise. BSU holds a perfect 3-0 record against UVU in games played in Boise. UVU’s lone win in the series was a 74-55 win in Orem on Nov. 27, 2004.
What Happened Last Time
Boise State opened their 2021-22 campaign at home against the Wolverines. Five Broncos scored in double digits in the convincing 76-56 win.
Utah Valley jumped out to an early lead before the Boise State duo of Pavle Kuzmanovic and Naje Smith came off the bench to ignite the Broncos midway through the first half. They combined for nine points on a 12-0 run which saw Boise State take its first lead and never look back. The highlight was a behind-the-back pass from Kuzmanovic to Smith in transition for a two-handed dunk.
The visitors climbed within nine early in the second half but the Broncos answered with a 15-2 spurt and secured their largest lead of the night at 22 (56-34). Mladen Armus and Emmanuel Akot combined for 13 points during the run. Armus scored seven points, including a driving dunk in traffic. Armus and Akot each finished with 11 points.
Abu Kigab chipped in 12 points and team highs of seven rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks.
Player to Watch
UTAH VALLEY UNIVERSITY
SO., AZIZ BANDAOGO, C #55
While Trey Woodbury might be the headliner, Aziz Bandaogo is the one the Broncos will have to find an answer for on Saturday. The 7-foot big man from Senegal is averaging a double-double this season with 13.2 points and 11.2 rebounds. Bandaogo also has shown his rim protecting ability, blocking 17 shots so far this season. This will be the first real test for the Broncos when it comes to stopping a dominant center without Armus.
BOISE STATE
SO., TYSON DEGENHART, G #2
Tyson is coming off a really good weekend where he averaged over 15 points per game. Degenhart is the heart and sole of this Broncos team. He’s averaging over 37 minutes per game which makes him very reliable. Saturday, Degenhart will probably be matched up against their big man from time to time and that could be a good thing for the Broncos because Degenhart is intimidated by no one. Boise State will also look to Degenhart to provide that spark on defense as he usually does when drawing offensive fouls.
PROBABLE STARTERS
Boise State
UTAH VALLEY UNIVERSITY
Rev's Route to a Bronco Win
This Lane Is Closed
The highest percentage shots in basketball are those taken in the “paint” close to the basket. So far this season the Wolverines are averaging more than 32 points in the paint. That means almost half of their total points per game are coming within 15 feet of the basket. On the flip side, Boise State is only giving up 22 points in the paint per game. Saturday will be a tough challenge, but if they can limit the easy buckets by the Wolverines they should be in good shape.
In Transition
Boise State isn’t lighting up the scoreboard this season and that’s okay, because the strength of this team is it’s defense. However, the Broncos are surprisingly efficient this year in scoring in transition. So far this season the Broncos are averaging 14 fastbreak points per game. If Boise State can get out and score some easy ones before the defense can get set it could go a long way in not having to deal with big #55 for Utah Valley
Editor Note:
Knock the Rust Off
Both teams are using this week for much needed rest after coming off tournaments last weekend. Boise State played three games in four days so Saturday will be their first game in almost a week. Same goes for Utah Valley as they last played on Sunday as well. I think the winner of this game will be the team that can come out and get back into playing rhythm the quickest. If Boise State can get out to an early lead it should allow them to settle in and suffocate the Wolverines with their defense.
Boise State gets hot early and coasts to a big win.
Boise State 75, Utah Valley 62
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