It wasn’t pretty, but a win on the road in conference play should never be taken for granted.

Key Teams Stats of the Night

Field Goal Percentage

Boise State - 49.2%

Colorado State - 51.8%

Rebounds

Boise State - 34

Colorado State - 25

Free Throw Percentage

Boise State - 85.7%

Colorado State - 63.6%

Stat Leaders

Points

Tyson Degenhart (BSU) - 19 points

Patrick Cartier (CSU) - 18 points

Rebounds

Naje Smith (BSU) - 7 rebounds

Patrick Cartier, Isaiah Rivera, John Tonje and Isaiah Stevens (CSU) - 4 rebounds

Assists

Max Rice (BSU) - 4 assists

Isaiah Stevens (CSU) - 12 assists

Story of the Game

Compared to last year’s dogfight at the Moby Center, this one was sparsely attended and didn’t have the buzz of 2022. However, the Rams have been a thorn in the side of Mountain West foes this year despite their poor record.

Niko Medved’s team raced out of the gates with a hot hand, leading early and taking an initial nine-point lead as the halfway mark of the first half approached. Bronco trashman Naje Smith kept Boise State within the game via an individual 6-0 run to cut the deficit to three. After being down for nearly the entirety of the first half, a Boise State 13-0 run vaulted the Broncos ahead to a six-point advantage. Despite a less-than-stellar opening 20 minutes, Leon Rice found his squad ahead by five at the intermission.

Tyson Degenhart extended the lead even further as the second half commenced, but Ram Patrick Cartier made timely three-pointers to prevent the game from being put out of reach. Colorado State managed a 9-0 run to cut the Bronco lead to just one. As the game clock fell under six minutes, the Rams had retaken the lead and looked to have some crucial momentum in Fort Collins. However, the weight shifted once again and Boise State went on a mini-run to go up six with a shade over two minutes remaining.

In case you weren’t aware, Isaiah Stevens is a very clutch player.

Twice during the last 90 seconds, Stevens hit a difficult three to keep the heartbeat of Colorado State alive. After Degenhart made one of two at the charity stripe, the Rams had one last opportunity to stick it to the boys from Idaho. John Tonje got the rock at the wing of the three-point line and shot the ball before time expired, but Degenhart closely contested Tonje’s attempt and looked to get a piece of the ball as it fell way short of the iron.

Disaster averted.

FINAL

BOISE STATE BRONCOS (20-6, 10-3) 80

COLORADO STATE RAMS (12-15, 4-10) 78

BOISE STATE (20-6, 10-3) VS UNLV (16-10, 5-9)

Location: Boise, Idaho (ExtraMile Arena)

Date/Time: Friday, February 19th at 7:00 p.m. (Mountain Time)

Traditional Television: Fox Sports 1 (FS1)

Streaming: Fox Sports app

Radio: KBOI 670 AM

Head-to-Head: Boise State is 16-10 all-time against UNLV. The Broncos have won their last six meetings with the Runnin’ Rebels, including a matchup a little over a month ago, 84-66.

Keys to Watch

1. Can Boise State limit its turnovers?

• Per KenPom, UNLV is 2nd in the nation in defensive turnover percentage at 25.7%.

2. Will Marcus Shaver Jr. play his full allotment of minutes?

• While Shaver did look healthier in their bout against the Rams, he did pull up and appeared to be hobbling at the end of the game.

3. Can Boise State shoot as well as it did in their first meeting with the Runnin’ Rebels?

• The Broncos shot over 50% in terms of field goal percentage and three-point percentage in Las Vegas.

Stat Leaders (Averages)

Points

Boise State: Forward Tyson Degenhart - 14.6 Pts.

UNLV: Guard EJ Harkless - 18.3 Pts.

Rebounds

Boise State: Guard Marcus Shaver Jr. - 6.1 Reb.

UNLV: Guard Luis Rodriguez - 5.5 Reb.

Assists

Boise State: Guard Marcus Shaver Jr. - 4.0 Ast.

UNLV: Guard Keshon Gilbert - 3.5 Ast.

Odds

Via our friends at DraftKings, Boise State is currently a 7.5-point favorite and the total is set at 142.

Prediction

Final Score

Boise State 80 - UNLV 68

What are your thoughts on the Broncos’ performance against Colorado State?

Leave your comments down below.