Leon Paul Rice, Boise state coach made an honest admission following the successful win against San Diego
The Boise State men’s basketball team showcased its defensive skills to secure a 62-52 comeback win against San Diego State in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West Tournament on Thursday afternoon.
The Broncos, who are the fifth seed with a record of 23-9, outscored the fourth-seeded Aztecs (21-9) by a remarkable 40-19 over the last 21 minutes at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.
“We’ve always had tough matchups with San Diego State, so we anticipated today would be no exception,” said Boise State head coach Leon Rice following the victory. “These games are intense with both teams being great competitors. Our players kept fighting and showed remarkable resilience.
“I’m extremely proud of our performance. It was a high-intensity game.”
Here are some key points from Rice’s postgame press conference.
On launching 40 three-pointers and securing 13 offensive rebounds:
We’re one of the top teams in the country for two-point field goals. Their defensive style required us to adapt our game plan, and we aimed to shoot between 36 and 50 threes. A big part of that was our offensive rebounds; we can’t make those attempts if we just stand by and let them rebound. We didn’t do that.
“That’s how we needed to approach this game because driving to the rim against them wasn’t going to work—they’re the top team in the nation for rim protection.”
On finishing the first half strong
They pulled ahead a bit, but we narrowed the gap to only being down five at halftime. We emphasized in the locker room that this game wouldn’t be decided in the first half. They got to some loose balls that proved costly. In the second half, a defining moment was when about 26 players dove for a loose ball, and somehow our guys came away with it, leading to an and-one for Andrew (Meadow).”
On the often-overlooked quality of Mountain West basketball:
The lack of national recognition we’ve received lately stems from our lower numbers due to the performance of some weaker teams we faced this season. Those stats can be misleading. Winning by large margins affects numbers, but I know the quality of teams like (San Diego State), ourselves, Colorado State, Utah State, and New Mexico. These teams are as competitive as any in the nation.
“When we played New Mexico, it was absurd that they weren’t ranked. They had only a few losses and were leading the league, showing that the Mountain West isn’t getting the respect it typically does. Being on the West Coast means fewer people see our late games, and those factors play a role. Still, I believe our teams can compete with anyone in the country.”
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