‘Knock them down, they get up stronger.’ Boise State advances to Mountain West semifinals
Senior forward RJ Williams fouled out with 8 minutes, 3 seconds remaining when Boise State lost Feb. 26 at UNLV.
There was no such gift for the Rebels this time around.
Williams dominated UNLV inside with 23 points and 15 rebounds as fifth-seeded Boise State upended No. 4 UNLV 67-61 in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West Tournament on Thursday at the Thomas & Mack Center.
It was Williams’ team-leading 11th double-double of the season, but perhaps his most significant. He also passed out three assists, one short of tying his career high.
“It means everything, especially for us seniors,” Williams said. “We knew it could be our last game, or we could keep going. We all fought to keep going.”
The victory sends Boise State to the semifinals for the first time since 2015. The Broncos (20-11) will vie for their first Mountain West championship appearance against top-seeded and fifth-ranked San Diego State. The Aztecs (29-1) dispatched Air Force 73-60 in Thursday’s quarterfinals.
Friday’s semifinal tips off at 7 p.m. MT at Thomas & Mack and will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
“We came in here last week and they handed us our hats,” Boise State coach Leon Rice said. “We responded the right way like these guys always do.”
Boise State looked like a completely different team than the one that faced UNLV (17-15) a little more than a week ago. The Broncos used the “Pack Line” defensive formation to keep the Rebels from penetrating the key like they did in the 76-66 win Feb. 26. The Pack Line is a variation of man-to-man defense that requires on-ball pressure while the rest of the defenders sag into the key.
Instead of giving up 42 points in the paint, the Broncos limited the damage to 18 points Thursday. They also held the Rebels to a season-low 31.6% from the field.
“For teams like that where they just drive, drive, drive and try to get to the paint, you have to play like that. You can’t rely on just guarding one-on-one,” Boise State senior Justinian Jessup said. “… We did a good job of helping each other all night on the defensive end.
“I felt confident in the game plan, maybe more confident than any game plan that we had all year.”
Redshirt junior guard Derrick Alston Jr. added a double-double with 16 points and a career-best 12 rebounds, and Jessup contributed 19 points, including a 3-for-6 effort from 3-point range. Jessup went 4-for-4 from the free-throw line in the final 12.5 seconds to cement the victory. He is shooting 95.8% (68-for-71) from the charity stripe this season and has made 25 straight freebies.
“We’ve got a big opportunity tomorrow to get a great win and have a chance to play for a championship and go to the NCAA Tournament,” Alston said. “You’re not holding anything back at this time. Everyone is kind of hurting and tired, but at this time, it’s March. This is the best time to play basketball, and we’re going to go out there and compete and … try to get a win.”
UNLV trimmed Boise State’s lead to a single possession five times over the final 4:33. Sophomore Bryce Hamilton sank a deep 3-pointer with 18 seconds on the clock to pull the Rebels within 63-61.
But each time the host Rebels tried to mount a comeback with the mostly red-clad crowd of 8,189 looking on, the Broncos answered. Boise State was a perfect 10-for-10 from the line over the last 3:58, Jessup connected on a 3-pointer at 3:21, and Williams delivered a backdoor bounce pass to Alex Hobbs for a scooping layup with 25 seconds to go.
“We were down 27 last week, and I think there’s a lot of people that didn’t give us a chance in this game,” said Rice, whose Broncos reached 20 wins for the eighth time in his 10 seasons at the helm.
“I’ve got good — not good — I’ve got great character guys that respond the right way to adversity. … You knock them down, they get up stronger. That’s kind of one of our things.”
Notes: For fans attending the Boise State football team’s open practice Friday, the basketball team’s semifinal game will be broadcast on the main video board inside Albertsons Stadium. … Williams’ 15 rebounds are the most by a Bronco at the Mountain West Tournament and tied for the fifth-most by a Bronco in any conference tournament game in program history.
BOISE ST. 67, UNLV 61
BOISE ST. (20-11)
Kigab 2-7 2-3 6, Alston 5-16 4-5 14, Dennis 1-5 1-2 3, Jessup 5-11 6-6 19, Williams 7-12 9-13 23, Hobbs 1-4 0-0 2, Dickinson 0-2 0-0 0, Jorch 0-0 0-0 0, Rice 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-57 22-29 67.
UNLV (17-15)
Shibel 0-0 0-0 0, Antonio 4-9 1-2 13, Coleman 2-8 1-2 5, Hamilton 7-22 6-8 24, Hardy 4-13 5-9 14, Blair 0-2 2-3 2, Green 1-2 0-0 2, Mbacke Diong 0-1 1-2 1. Totals 18-57 16-26 61.
Halftime—Boise St. 29-24. 3-Point Goals—Boise St. 3-15 (Jessup 3-6, Hobbs 0-1, Kigab 0-1, Alston 0-2, Dickinson 0-2, Dennis 0-3), UNLV 9-27 (Hamilton 4-6, Antonio 4-9, Hardy 1-7, Blair 0-1, Coleman 0-4). Fouled Out—Kigab, Mbacke Diong. Rebounds—Boise St. 38 (Williams 15), UNLV 38 (Antonio, Blair 9). Assists—Boise St. 9 (Williams 3), UNLV 9 (Coleman 4). Total Fouls—Boise St. 23, UNLV 23. A—8,189 (18,776).
This story was originally published March 5, 2020 at 5:22 PM.
