Boise State freshman with ‘aura’ joins senior in career-high scoring to beat New Mexico
Some of the best players in Boise State’s recent history had to take control of the team at some point as underclassmen.
Tyson Degenhart became a starter seven games into his college career and hasn’t left the lineup since. Max Rice nailed down a regular spot as a redshirt sophomore and never looked back.
A name to add to that list might just be freshman Pearson Carmichael.
Boise State’s long-limbed forward made his first start for the Broncos against New Mexico on Wednesday night at ExtraMile Arena in a game they had to win to try to jump-start a late-season NCAA Tournament push. And Carmichael responded with a career-high 21 points to help steer the Broncos (18-8, 10-5 Mountain West) to an 86-78 victory over the league-leading Lobos (22-5, 14-2).
The victory snapped New Mexico’s eight-game win streak and marked the Broncos’ seventh straight win over the Lobos at ExtraMile.
“We’ve brought in a lot of good freshmen in this program,” Boise State head coach Leon Rice said. “At some point, and it was never the same point, but at some point, they were handed the keys to the car, and they were ready for it. (Carmichael) certainly looked that way tonight.”
Carmichael became the first Boise State freshman to score at least 20 points in a game since Degenhart scored 23 against San Jose State in February 2022.
“He shoots it probably a little better than I was as a freshman,” Degenhart said with a laugh, when asked whether Carmichael reminded him of anyone. “You’re going to have to make a movie about his freshman year, just the way it kind of went.”
Boise State entered the season expecting to redshirt Carmichael, but decided it needed his shooting ability sooner rather than later and burned his redshirt in January. He’s averaged just 6.1 points per game in his 11 games this season, but has shown some flashes of brilliance — none brighter than against New Mexico.
And Degenhart enjoyed a big night himself, scoring a career-high 32 points, including a 15-for-17 performance from the free throw line. Degenhart now has 1,838 career points, putting him just 106 off Tanoka Beard’s program record. With at least six games left to play, he’s in good position to pass Beard.
“We take Tyson for granted. The guy goes and gets 32 (points) off 16 shots. That’s pretty dang efficient,” Rice said. “When you’ve got him out there, you feel pretty good. That’s why I probably never take him out.”
While Degenhart was a constant throughout the night for Boise State — scoring 14 points in the first half and 18 in the second — Carmichael put the Broncos in a position to win.
No more than six points separated the two teams in the first half, and Boise State’s first lead didn’t come until after 15 minutes. The Broncos entered halftime with a 42-39 lead.
A fast-break 3-pointer from Carmichael three minutes into the second half made it 49-43 lead, causing ExtraMile Arena to erupt and New Mexico to call a timeout. The stoppage didn’t matter — the Broncos went on an 18-2 run, with Carmichael scoring 12 of those points.
“Once the first one drops, it kind of comes easy,” Carmichael said.
Senior guard Alvaro Cardenas, who on Wednesday became the first player in program history to record at least 10 assists and five steals in a game, said Carmichael has that “it” factor.
“His swagger and confidence ... he really has some aura about him,” Cardenas said. “He misses his shot, doesn’t care, pump fake, shoot it again.”
Boise State’s 18-2 run gave it a 64-45 lead and perhaps gave New Mexico a hint of the 84-65 beatdown it inflicted upon the Broncos at The Pit last month. But a late 9-0 run made the final score look a lot better, even though the Lobos were out of it most of the second half.
“We’re not satisfied with the games that we lost in conference,” Degenhart said. “A couple that slipped through our fingers and a couple of others that we got blown out.
“In those games, we knew we didn’t play our best, and It was only a matter of time before we pieced it all together. And I think we did a great job tonight.”
This story was originally published February 20, 2025 at 12:41 AM.
