‘Security blanket’ Degenhart knocks off rust in season debut to spark Boise State win
Tyson Degenhart scored 17 points in his season debut and the Boise State men’s basketball team passed its first real test of the season Sunday.
Degenhart missed the Broncos’ season opener against Vanguard because of a broken nose he suffered in practice. Sporting a protective face mask, the two-time All-Mountain West pick made sure his presence was felt on Sunday in a 63-58 win over San Francisco. He scored nine points in the first half and put together a string of baskets that helped Boise State (2-0) pull away late.
“It took me a little bit to get my legs underneath me, but it felt great to help the team get a win,” Degenhart said after the game.
Boise State coach Leon Rice said it’s obvious anytime a player of Degenhart’s caliber isn’t on the floor.
“He’s my security blanket,” Rice said. “He was a little game rusty, but he only sat for six minutes.”
San Francisco (2-1) came into the game with a good resume. The Dons were picked to finish third in the West Coast Conference this season, behind Saint Mary’s and Gonzaga. They rank No. 85 in Kenpom after scoring a combined 212 points in their first two games of the season.
They hung with the Broncos on Sunday. Boise State went into halftime with a 32-24 lead, but San Francisco’s Jonathan Mogbo drove to the basket and finished with a layup to cut the lead to 50-47 with a little more than 9 minutes left.
Boise State’s Chibuzo Ago converted an and-1 play to give the Broncos a seven-point lead a couple of minutes later, and Degenhart’s buckets helped them stay ahead for good.
“We were just able to get stops when we needed them,” Boise State sixth-year senior Max Rice said. “(San Francisco is) a good team, but we’re both just trying to knock the preseason rust off a little bit. They had some possessions down the stretch that I bet they wish they could have back, and we did, too.”
Agbo and Max Rice both finished the game with 15 points. Rice added six rebounds and two steals. St. John’s transfer O’Mar Stanley came off the bench to add nine points.
Mike Sharavjamts led San Francisco with 13 points, while Mogbo added 10 points and nine rebounds.
Next up for the Broncos is a road trip to ACC member Clemson on Sunday, Nov 19. A few days later, they’ll head to Orlando, Florida, for the ESPN Invitational over the Thanksgiving holiday — a tournament that includes Texas A&M, Penn State, Butler, Virginia Tech, Iowa State, VCU and Florida Atlantic. The Broncos face another ACC school, Virginia Tech, in the first round on Nov. 23, which is Thanksgiving Day.
Note: The announced attendance in ExtraMile Arena on Sunday was 10,520. It was the first time in program history that Boise State had an announced crowd of more than 10,000 fans to a game in November.
This story was originally published November 12, 2023 at 5:05 PM.
