MBB: Boise State University (0-1) vs Washington State University (1-0)
Boise State University vs Washington State University
Date: Saturday November 12, 2022
Time: 5:00pm MT
Stadium:Idaho Central Arena (5,732))
Stream: Mountain West Network
Radio: KBOI 670 AM
Commentators: Bob Behler and Abe Jackson
Know Thy Enemy
Nothing like a good ol’ fashion early season basketball game against a Pac12 opponent to get your blood pumping. Tyson Degenhart welcomes his hometown team to his new home in Boise for a rematch with the Washington State Cougars in the Capital City Classic. The Cougs are coming off an impressive 83-61 win over Texas State on Monday. Four WSU starters were in double figures as they were led by the duo of Junior Guard Justin Powell and Sophomore Forward Mouhamed Gueye. All night long Powell and Gueye worked the pick n’ roll game to perfection to pick apart the Bobcat defense.
Washington State comes into this season off of a really good season last year. The Cougs made it to quarterfinals in the Pac12 tournament before falling to UCLA. WSU received an invitation to the NIT, for the first time since 2011, where they made it all the way to Madison Square Garden before their season came to an end at the hands of Texas A&M in the semifinals.
This year it's all about making the Big Dance for the Cougs. Coach Kyle Smith did a really good job over the offseason improving his roster through the transfer portal and recruiting and the team is poised to make some noise in the Pac12 this season. Like Boise State, Washington State is having to replace key parts of their team from a season ago, but are confident in their new pieces and look forward to having a good if not great season.
WSU is coached by Kyle Smith. Smith is entering his fourth season with the Cougs and has an overall record of 52-44. Before coming to Pullman, Smith spent three seasons as head coach of the San Francisco Dons men’s basketball team.
Boise State and Washington State have met just one other time on the hardwood and the Broncos lead the series 1-0
What Happened Last Time
Abu Kigab scored 16 points in the second half and was 6-of-6 from the free throw line in the final 70 seconds to guide Boise State's 58-52 come-from-behind victory against Washington State at Spokane Arena.
Tyson Degenhart scored nine of his 11 points in the second half, including a a pair of free throws with 3:14 left that gave Boise State a lead it never surrendered. WSU climbed to within one a minute later, but Degenhart drilled a three-pointer with 2:05 to play and sent the blue-clad portion of his hometown crowd into a frenzy.
The Cougars did not go away quietly in the final minutes, but Kigab and Marcus Shaver, Jr. combined to go 9-for-10 at the free throw line down the stretch to keep the Broncos in front. Boise State was 18-for-21 from the free throw line for the game.
Kigab finished with a game-high 19 points and Shaver added 15. Both were 5-for-11 from the field.
Washington State raced out to an 18-9 lead before the Broncos locked in defensively. Boise State held WSU without a field goal for more than seven minutes to crawl back into the game. The Cougars led 24-19 at halftime.
The defense continued to shine at the outset of the second half. Boise State scored the first six points of the period and did not allow WSU to score until the 14:35 mark. From there, it was a back-and-forth affair until Degenhart's triple gave the Broncos breathing room.
Player to Watch
WASHINGTON STATE
JR., JUSTIN POWELL, G #24
Powell had the offense cooking on Monday night in their season opener against Texas State. Powell had 14 points, 12 assists and 5 rebounds in 36 minutes for the Cougars. Powell was a menace in the pick and roll game which is what the Cougs will try to attack the Broncos with on Saturday night.
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BOISE STATE
SO., TYSON DEGENHART G #2
The sophomore will look to dominate his hometown team in a rematch of last season. Last year the reigning Mountain West Freshman of the Year didn’t start for the Broncos until midway through the season, but after being inserted in the Starting lineup the Broncos went on a 14-1 run that changed the trajectory of the season. Last year against the Cougs Degenhard went 3 of 10 from the field for 11 points and 6 rebounds. Degenhart will have a little bit of extra motivation to lead the Broncos to victory on Saturday.
PROBABLE STARTERS
Boise State
WASHINGTON STATE
Rev's Route to a Bronco Win
Stop the Roll
On Monday night the Cougars had the Pick and Roll working big time against the Bobcats. Washington State’s Mouhamed Gueye was scoring at will and the defense couldn’t stop it. Boise State will have to figure out how to defend the pick and roll and force Justin Powell to make poor decisions with the basketball.
5 for 5
Wednesday two of the five starters didn’t score a basket. In a game that was decided by one possession, having your best five contribute on offense is essential. Along with that, the new guy Agbo got into some foul trouble early and was unavailable during the final stretch of the game. I know these guys are getting used to playing with each other, but both Agbo and Milner need to match the production from the other three starters.
Editor Note:
I know I’m new to the basketball scene, but even in the loss it was fun to see our guys compete from start to finish against a really good SDSU team. At a couple of points I was worried that they would get their doors blown off, but they kept competing and by the end I thought they might actually pull that off.
Saturday looks like another early season tough test. WSU didn’t make the “Big Dance” last year but had a really deep NIT run. Boise State will have to work out the kinks and fast if they want to win.
I will have to get better at the score predictions, but I’ll give it shot. Boise State keeps it close, but runs out of steam
Washington State 75, Boise State 68
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