For the Boise State Broncos men's basketball team, the upcoming slate of games could possible leave them stuffed from positive results. And, concurrently, provide the hunger and a glimpse of an exciting season to come.
Boise State (2-0) is off to a strong start in the 2023-24 season. Home victories over Vanguard, 89-55, and the San Francisco Dons, 63-58, are already on the resume. The Broncos' win against the Dons was an impressive early season defensive effort. And given San Francisco has postseason aspirations of their own, should be a nice resume qualifier for Boise State come March.
Tyson Degenhart, face mask and all, made his season debut against San Francisco. The junior led the team with 17 points (on 6-13 shooting) and pulled down five rebounds. Degenhart also spearheaded the attack on defense, with three of the team's 10 steals, and Boise State held the Dons to a frigid 4-19 from deep.
Chibuzo Agbo has already provided glimpses of taking his game up to another level and has 34 points on 54.2 percent shooting in two games. Super-duper senior Max Rice has 22 points but only 3-12 from three-point range in the early going (that middle of the paint floater is still top notch, though).
Degenhart, Agbo, and Rice will be the focus but it's a deep bench that's going to determine how far the Broncos go in '23-24. Especially with high-value resume building opportunities on the horizon.
Boise State vs Clemson
A rotation stretching nine or ten deep is ideal for Boise State. There's a possibility they can go even deeper, if necessary. Some of the numbers are skewed, the season being only two games old and all, but they have been encouraging. Except for maybe three-point shooting but that aspect will turn around.
The Broncos are averaging 76 points per game and their rebounding margin is through the roof (average: 47.5 - 29). The margin was huge against Vanguard, with Boise State holding a +4 advantage against San Francisco.
Rebounding and interior play will be tested against the Clemson Tigers (3-0). Boise State's two big men transfers are off to solid starters. O'Mar Stanley has scored 25 points while shooting 81.8 percent, with seven offensive rebounds to his credit. And Cam Martin has 15 points and 17 rebounds this season.
They will be in for a battle against Tigers big man PJ Hall. Hall averages 21.3 points and seven rebounds per game. He is shooting 56.8 percent from the field and also stretches the floor with fluidity, knocking down six of his 15 three-point attempts.
Clemson can also get it done with the backcourt, too. Chase Hunter averages 11 points and 3.7 assists per game. Joseph Girard III has knocked down seven three-pointers and averages 8.7 points per game.
The Tigers have had a couple of close victories after opening the season with a 22-point win over Winthrop. Clemson held off UAB 77-76 and most recently defeated Davidson 68-65. Entering Sunday's contest against the Broncos, Clemson averages 32 rebounds, 18 assists and 6.3 blocked shots per game. The Tigers are shooting 46 percent from the field and knock down 37.8 percent of their attempts from deep.
Boise State @ Clemson. 11/19 @ 2 pm (ET)
Boise State Broncos: ESPN Events Invitational
The ESPN Events Invitational boasts eight teams who all could be in the NCAA tournament in March. Some will fall by the wayside, yes, but all programs have made tournament appearances in recent years.
Boise State tips-off with a game against the Virginia Tech Hokies, who are currently 2-1 and have a game with Wofford prior to facing the Broncos. Boise State will see another solid big man, with the Hokies boasting Lynn Kidd.
Kidd is shooting 80 percent from the field, averaging 16.7 points and 10.7 rebounds per game.
The Hokies won the ACC tournament in the 2021-22 season, and boast Sean Pedulla (15.3 ppg, 6.7 assists per game) and Hunter Cattoor (10-24 on threes). The Hokies lone loss to date was a two-point game against South Carolina.
Next up will either be Iowa State or VCU. The Cyclones are 3-0 while VCU is 2-1, suffering an 11-point loss to McNeese State.
The other side of the bracket is a beast, with final game of the Invitational for Boise State against one of these four teams: Penn State, Texas A&M, Florida Atlantic, or Butler.
Boise State vs Virginia Tech. 11/23 @ 8 pm (ET)
Boise State vs Iowa State/VCU. 11/24 (5:30 pm ET w/ a gm 1 win OR 8 pm ET w/ gm. 1 loss)
Boise State vs TBD. 11/26
It's a daunting road trip but this is the type of schedule that builds winners in March. Winning all four games would be absolutely stunning and doable for the Broncos. On a more realistic scale, I do expect Boise State plays no worse than 2-2 and hopefully 3-1 in the next week. Predictions: Wins over Clemson and the final two games of the Invitational.
photo credit: Wikimedia Commons
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