Boise State
2-0,0-0Mountain West
San Francisco
2-1,0-0WCC
Boise State Downs the Dons
11/12/2023 5:09:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BOISE, Idaho – Boise State men's basketball held one of the nation's highest-scoring teams to under 60 points and relied on clutch defense down the stretch to defeat San Francisco 63-58, Sunday at ExtraMile Arena.
The Dons entered the game averaging 106 points per game and were held to 21.1-percent from beyond the arc.
San Francisco's Jonathan Mogbo led a blitz coming out of the half – his dunk in the first 70 seconds of the period trimmed Boise State's lead to four points, its smallest since the final media timeout of the first half.
The talisman that is Max Rice made back-to-back 3-pointers in the span of 19 seconds to get the 10,520 crowd at ExtraMile Arena back on its feet and push the Bronco (2-0) lead back to double digits.
A four-minute 25-second scoring drought gave the opening for an 8-0 San Francisco (2-1) run to pull the score within one possession. Chibuzo Agbo drove in from the right corner, fighting through two defenders to score a lay-up and extend Boise State's narrow lead.
Post plays from Agbo and Tyson Degenhart in the final six minutes drew the foul for a pair of and-1's to maintain a narrow Bronco lead. The duo combined to score 16 of Boise State's final 17 points.
San Francisco was threatening to score on a half-court inbound play, but Max Rice was able to poke the ball out of Jonathan Mogbo's hands with 1:25 remaining in a 61-56 game. While the Broncos were unable to score on the ensuing possession, they ran 30 seconds off the clock to limit the Dons to only two possessions the remainder of the game.
San Francisco scored only two points over the final two minutes.
Quotable
- "We had the largest crowd in November, and I like that," said head coach Leon Rice. "We felt the crowd when USF made a run, they lifted us up and got us through those tough moments."
- "Playing with Tyson (Degenhart), I've noticed him being around makes things so much easier," said Max Rice. "You can give it to him in the post, and if he's doubled they have to rotate so it makes things easier for everyone else."
Top Broncos
- Tyson Degenhart led the Broncos with 17 points, grabbing five rebounds and three steals.
- Max Rice added 15 points and finished with six rebounds and two steals.
- Chibuzo Agbo scored 15 points for Boise State and collected five rebounds.
- O'Mar Stanley shot 3-4 from the field, recording nine points, four rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal off the bench.
Notables
- The announced attendance of 10,520 is the first time Boise State has had a crowd of 10,000 for a November home game.
- Boise State is 16-4 against schools from the WCC under head coach Leon Rice.
- The Broncos improved to 41-18 at home against current members of the WCC.
- Boise State has won 16-straight games at home dating back to a Nov. 26, 2022 win over Utah Valley.
- Chibuzo Agbo and Tyson Degenhart combined to score 16 of Boise State's final 17 points.
- The Broncos held San Francisco – the nation's fourth-highest scoring team with an average of 106 per game – to under 60 points.
- Boise State never trailed and led for 38:33.
What's Next
Boise State continues a difficult stretch to open the season with a 10-day road trip through the Southeast. The Broncos return to action Nov. 19 at Clemson before departing straight for the ESPN Events Invitational, Nov. 23-26, in Orlando, Fla.
