With three regular-season games left, what’s at stake for Boise State’s basketball teams?
There are three regular-season games left on the 2019-20 schedule for both the Boise State men’s and women’s basketball teams.
How the Broncos perform in those remaining Mountain West Conference contests will determine their position heading into the league’s postseason tournaments at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.
The San Diego State men and Fresno State women have already locked up the No. 1 seeds, but second place is still attainable for both Boise State programs. The battle begins Wednesday when the BSU women host San Jose State at ExtraMile Arena (7 p.m.) and the men travel to San Jose, California, to face the Spartans (8 p.m. MT).
Men’s position could vary greatly
Entering Tuesday, seven of the league’s 11 teams still have four games to play, leaving a lot of room for shuffling in the standings.
The Broncos (17-10, 9-6 MW) could finish anywhere from second to seventh, with games remaining against San Jose State (7-19, 3-11), New Mexico on Sunday and UNLV on Wednesday, Feb. 26.
“It’s down the stretch we go,” Boise State coach Leon Rice said. “Whoever can finish the strongest is going to be in the right seeding spots, or what you feel like is the right seeding spots.”
With San Diego State’s fate already sealed and Fresno State, Air Force, San Jose and Wyoming unable to pass the Broncos, let’s look at the teams still in the mix:
Utah State (21-7, 10-5), Colorado State (18-9, 9-5) and Nevada (16-10, 9-5) sit right above the Broncos in the standings, while UNLV (13-14, 8-6) and New Mexico (17-10, 6-8) occupy the two spots directly below them.
The Broncos can assure themselves of at least the No. 5 seed and a first-round tournament bye by defeating UNLV and New Mexico. How much further they climb will depend on how the three teams above them fare. Colorado State and Nevada still have games against fourth-ranked and unbeaten San Diego State. Utah State has a good chance to maintain its No. 2 spot, with games left against Wyoming, San Jose State and New Mexico.
“We know how important and how precious these games are,” Rice said. “We don’t have many of them left with this group.”
Women control their own fate
The BSU women’s team has a more straightforward path heading into a stretch of three games in six days.
The Broncos (18-9, 10-5) are alone in second place, with a half-game lead on third-place San Jose State (15-10, 9-5). They have already secured a first-round tournament bye thanks to an overtime victory at San Diego State over the weekend.
By winning their final three games against San Jose State (Wednesday), New Mexico (Saturday) and UNLV (Monday), the Broncos are assured the No. 2 seed.
“Wherever we’re placed, we’re going to go in and we’re gonna give it our best shot, of course,” Boise State senior Ellie Woerner said. “I think second place, that’s a great spot for us to be and ... it’s good for us to finish out the season strong and to get that second place so that we have confidence going into the tournament.”
Notes: The men’s game at San Jose State will be streamed online by the Mountain West Network, which is available at BroncoSports.com/mwn. ... PacificSource Health Plans has partnered with Boise State to support BroncoBOLD through a matching gift at basketball home games on Wednesday (women) and Sunday (men). BroncoBOLD is a student-athlete mental health initiative that spreads a message of hope, help and resiliency. Fans will have the opportunity to support the program via an in-game text-to-donate feature, and all four teams will wear green patches on their uniforms to symbolize mental health awareness.
