Boise State men earn 200th win for Rice; women assure ‘Coach P’ victory in 1,000th game
Leon Rice was an assistant coach when Gonzaga coach Mark Few received a pizza with the number 200 written in pepperoni for his 200th career victory.
It was Rice’s turn for a commemorative pizza on Friday night, and his son, Max Rice, served as honorary delivery boy.
The younger Rice set career highs for points (16) and rebounds (12) for his first collegiate double-double as the Boise State men’s basketball team defeated College of Idaho 86-49 at ExtraMile Arena.
It was Rice’s 200th career victory as head coach of the Broncos. He is just 12 wins shy of matching Bobby Dye’s program record of 212 wins in 12 seasons, and he’ll likely accomplish the feat a year quicker if the 2020-21 season cooperates.
“That’s such a credit to all the guys that have played here and the coaches that have been here,” Leon Rice said. “I love the milestone for them, and it’s an honor to be the coach at Boise State and to have been here for long enough that I’m able to get that 200. It’s a pretty humbling deal and pretty amazing.”
Friday’s game was a feat in and of itself. Boise State’s Mountain West series against New Mexico was postponed earlier in the week, so the Broncos picked up a game with Montana Western. But with less than 24 hours to tipoff, Montana Western backed out because of COVID-19 issues.
College of Idaho coach Colby Blaine, whose NAIA Yotes compete one county over in Caldwell, agreed to the last-second matchup.
“First of all, I’d really like to thank College of Idaho for being able to be Johnny-on-the-spot for us,” Leon Rice said. “… This happened last night, and for them to be able to rally and get over here and play us, I’m really so appreciative of them for doing that for us.”
After missing the Broncos’ first two games of the season going through COVID-19 protocol, redshirt junior Emmanuel Akot made his Boise State debut against the Yotes. The Arizona transfer had nine points, three rebounds and two assists in 26 minutes, giving fans a few hints at the versatile role he’s likely to play this season as a 6-foot-8 guard who can distribute and score with efficiency.
“He’s gonna bring scoring. He’s gonna bring rebounding. He’s gonna bring defense. He’s gonna pass the ball,” said senior Abu Kigab, who scored a game-high 19 points on 7-for-8 shooting. “He’s a floor general. … We’re very fortunate to have him on our team. It’s a blessing. As time goes on, we’re just gonna keep getting better and better and keep clicking more and more.”
The Broncos (2-1) forced 23 turnovers and held the Yotes to 25.8% shooting in the second half for as much as a 37-point lead. Even if the score wasn’t close, the Broncos said they were grateful to get on the court together.
“We were very excited to play a game. It’s corona(virus). You never know how many games you’re gonna get,” Kigab said. “We take every game like it’s our last. It literally could be, so we’re very grateful that we got the opportunity to play, because a lot of teams around the country, they’re not as fortunate as us.”
The Yotes (1-1), whose roster includes 10 players from the Gem State, were led by Ricardo Time with 17 points and Mountain View High graduate Jalen Galloway (15 points). The loss ended C of I’s streak of 26 straight wins that began Nov. 30, 2019.
“They’re one of the best NAIA teams in the country, and I’ve got a lot of respect for them,” Max Rice said.
Boise State is scheduled to resume nonconference play at 7 p.m. Wednesday against BYU in Provo, Utah. The game will be broadcast on BYUtv. The Mountain West also announced Friday that the Broncos’ series with New Mexico will be played Dec. 21 and Dec. 23 at ExtraMile Arena. The Dec. 21 matchup will tip off at 7 p.m. and will be televised on Fox Sports 1.
Boise State’s home game against Loyola Marymount, which was initially scheduled for Dec. 22, will be rescheduled.
“We have done so much practice that we really needed to get the uniforms on and get some game conditioning going, so there was some value to that game for us,” Leon Rice said. “E-man (Akot), that was his first game. He needed to work through some mistakes and get comfortable out there before we go down to BYU.”
WOMEN: BOISE STATE 90, COLLEGE OF IDAHO 43
With eight true freshmen and two redshirt freshmen outnumbering Boise State’s three returners, most aspects of Friday’s season opener at ExtraMile Arena felt unfamiliar.
Except one.
Coach Gordy Presnell was on the Broncos’ bench for his 1,000th collegiate game, guiding the blue and orange to a 47-point victory over College of Idaho. Presnell, who is in his 16th season at the helm in Boise and 34th as a head coach, has compiled an overall record of 692-308.
“I love having Coach P as a coach. He cares about everybody,” Boise State junior forward Rachel Bowers said. “He is just such a stand-up coach, and I have a lot of respect for him.”
Presnell ranks 41st on the all-time victories list of NCAA (all levels) and NAIA women’s basketball coaches, and is 21st among active coaches. His record at Boise State is 296-181. He coached 18 seasons at Seattle Pacific (396-127).
“I’ve been fortunate to be hanging around a long time, and I’ve gotten to work with two great universities and administrations,” Presnell told reporters in a postgame Zoom interview. “I was really excited about some of the things my old players said today. It was kind of reminiscing, so it was a little nostalgic for me. But, you know, it’s another season and it’s another opportunity to work with young people (despite) all the stuff that’s going on, so I really appreciate it.”
The Broncos (1-0) started juniors Jade Loville and Bowers along with three true freshmen: Mary Kay Naro, Abby Muse and Alexis Mark. Redshirt senior Mallory McGwire, who was voted to the Preseason All-Mountain West Team, did not play against the Yotes (0-1) as she works through COVID-19 protocol.
Loville picked up right where she left off last season, scoring a career-high 22 points on 10-for-19 shooting, with two rebounds and five assists. The Sammamish, Washington, product led the Broncos with 20 points in their final game of the 2019-20 season, which was an 80-76 overtime victory over Fresno State in the title game of the Mountain West Tournament.
Bowers added 18 points and eight rebounds, and teamed with Loville as the only players on the court Friday who scored for Boise State a year ago.
“Those guys know what we’re trying to do. They know our culture,” Presnell said.
Naro held her own at point guard in her first collegiate start. She facilitated the Broncos’ transition game, leading to 32 fast-break points and 33 points off turnovers.
Naro, who is from Beaverton, Oregon, totaled a team-leading seven assists to go with a game-high 10 rebounds and five points. Mark chipped in 16 points and six boards, redshirt freshman Chinma Njoku had 14 points and eight rebounds, and true freshman Martina Machalova scored all seven of her points over the final 1:30 of the game. All nine Broncos who played made at least one basket.
“Even though she’s a freshman, I think she’s a natural leader. It just comes so naturally to her,” Bowers said of Naro. “… She’s talking on defense and offense, and she does have really good court vision. She sees everything, and … she almost passes like (single-season assists leader) Jayde Christopher did last year. She’s just throwing dimes down the court.”
Boise State is scheduled to resume nonconference play Sunday against Weber State. Tipoff is 1 p.m. at ExtraMile Arena, and the game will be streamed online on the Mountain West Network.
“Boise State is a great team,” College of Idaho coach Janis Beal said in a press release. “They lost a lot of kids, but they are still a great program.”
MEN: BOISE STATE 86, COLLEGE OF IDAHO 49
COLLEGE OF IDAHO (0-1)
Ricardo Time 7-12 1-1 17; Jalen Galloway 6-12 1-1 15; Connor Desaulniers 2-6 0-1 4; Derek Wadsworth 1-5 0-0 3; Charles Elzie III 0-4 2-2 2; Paul Wilson 0-3 2-2 2; Tyler Robinett 1-4 0-0 2; Ivory Miles-Williams 1-3 0-0 2; Nathan Burman 1-2 0-0 2; Jacob Russell 0-1 0-1 0; Connor Cooper 0-0 0-0 0; Otto Taylor 0-0 0-0 0; Elijah Jackson 0-1 0-0 0; Jake O’Neil 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 19-56 6-8 49.
BOISE STATE (2-1)
Kigab,Abu 7-8 4-5 19; Rice,Max 6-10 2-2 16; Alston Jr,Derrick 5-15 1-1 14; Akot,Emmanuel 3-8 3-5 9; Dennis,RayJ 2-7 4-8 8; Armus,Mladen 3-8 1-1 7; Pryor,Kasean 1-2 3-7 5; Shaver Jr,Marcus 1-2 0-0 3; Milner,Lukas 1-1 0-0 2; Kuzmanovic,Pavle 1-3 0-0 2; Smith,Burke 0-0 1-2 1; Smith,Naje 0-2 0-0 0; Winter,Sam 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-66 19-31 86.
Col. of Idaho................. 26 23 — 49
Boise St...................... 47 39 — 86
3-point goals — Col. of Idaho 5-17 (Ricardo Time 2-3; Jalen Galloway 2-5; Derek Wadsworth 1-4; Tyler Robinett 0-2; Nathan Burman 0-1; Jake O’Neil 0-1; Charles Elzie III 0-1), Boise St. 7-24 (Alston Jr,Derrick 3-10; Rice,Max 2-4; Kigab,Abu 1-1; Shaver Jr,Marcus 1-2; Pryor,Kasean 0-1; Kuzmanovic,Pavle 0-1; Smith,Naje 0-1; Dennis,RayJ 0-2; Akot,Emmanuel 0-2). Fouled out — None. Rebounds — Col. of Idaho 32 (Derek Wadsworth 5), Boise St. 45 (Rice,Max 12). Assists — Col. of Idaho 6 (Charles Elzie III 2; Ivory Miles-Williams 2), Boise St. 10 (Akot,Emmanuel 2; Dennis,RayJ 2; Rice,Max 2; Kigab,Abu 2). Total fouls — Col. of Idaho 26, Boise St. 13. Technical fouls — None.
WOMEN: BOISE STATE 90, COLLEGE OF IDAHO 43
COLLEGE OF IDAHO (0-1)
Lexi Mitchell 5-12 2-2 12; Kiersten Rasmussen 4-6 1-2 9; Sophia Jackson 2-5 0-0 5; Allie Cannon 2-9 0-1 5; Emma Anderson 1-3 2-2 4; Kenadee French 1-6 0-0 3; Sienna Riggle 1-8 1-2 3; Chevelle Shepherd 1-3 0-1 2; Kate Renfro 0-8 0-0 0. Totals 17-60 6-10 43.
BOISE STATE (1-0)
Jade Loville 10-19 2-2 22; Rachel Bowers 9-16 0-0 18; Alexis Mark 8-12 0-1 16; Chinma Njoku 5-5 4-4 14; Martina Machalova 3-4 0-0 7; Mary Kay Naro 2-8 1-2 5; Kimora Sykes 2-8 0-0 4; Elodie Lalotte 1-4 0-0 2; Abby Muse 1-4 0-0 2. Totals 41-80 7-9 90.
Col. of Idaho................. 11 8 17 7 — 43
Boise St...................... 21 26 22 21 — 90
3-point goals — Col. of Idaho 3-18 (Sophia Jackson 1-3; Kenadee French 1-6; Allie Cannon 1-4; Chevelle Shepherd 0-1; Kate Renfro 0-3; Lexi Mitchell 0-1), Boise St. 1-15 (Martina Machalova 1-1; Rachel Bowers 0-3; Mary Kay Naro 0-2; Kimora Sykes 0-4; Jade Loville 0-5). Fouled out — none Rebounds — Col. of Idaho 37 (Allie Cannon 9), Boise St. 48 (Mary Kay Naro 10). Assists — Col. of Idaho 8 (Allie Cannon 2; Sophia Jackson 2; Kate Renfro 2), Boise St. 17 (Mary Kay Naro 7). Total fouls — Col. of Idaho 10, Boise St. 16. Technical fouls — none.
This story was originally published December 4, 2020 at 5:23 PM.
