Despite the madness of March likely unfolding without the Broncos for the second year in a row, the team continues to grind through the remainder of their schedule.
Boise State men’s basketball finished this past week 3-0, collecting three strong conference wins as they prepare to finish out the season. Regardless of standings, head coach Leon Rice and his squad continue to press onward and stack wins, proving resiliency and persistence can be victories in their own right.
On Saturday, Feb. 28, the Broncos defeated Fresno State 69-53 on the road, backed by a stellar performance from forward Javan Buchanan.
The senior out of Lafayette, Indiana scored a game-high 26 points for Boise State, adding six rebounds, three assists and two steals in the process. Teammates Andrew Meadow and Dylan Andrews each scored double-digit points as well, with the pair picking up five and six boards, respectively.
The contest against the Bulldogs saw a low-scoring first half, with both teams struggling to knock down shots and each shooting under 40%. Despite the slow start on the offensive side of the ball, Boise State gained its rhythm and saw seven different players knock down a total of eight 3s in the half, leading 28-23 at intermission.
In the second half, Buchanan paved the rest of the way for Boise State, dropping 19 points in the second half on 8-of-11 shooting. Andrews iced the game from the foul line late in the game to secure the Broncos’ third-straight win.
“In this league, especially this year, there’s just too many variables that are all over the place that you can’t control or predict,” Rice said when asked if it’s difficult for the team to not track standings and seedings as their March Madness chances grow slimmer. “Why waste your energy following all that when your energy needs to be poured into the team and getting better.”
Despite the standings, the team’s unfazed mentality persisted with the Broncos taking down Wyoming 72-62 at home on Tuesday, Feb. 24.
Against the Cowboys, seniors Dylan Andrews and Drew Fielder were the spark plugs for the Broncos offense. Andrews dropped a game-high 20 points, the sixth 20-piece of his collegiate career. Fielder, on the other hand, picked up 18 while grabbing seven boards and blocking two shots.
The pair scored the team’s first four field goals before Boise State slowed down offensively for most of the first half. The Broncos came back from the dead and scored 10 of the final 12 points in the frame and nine unanswered in the final 2 minutes. As the clock expired, Fielder knocked down a 3 for his third field goal of the game.
To open the second, a different Bronco duo carried the load offensively, with Javan Buchanan and Andrew Meadow scoring the team’s first 10 points.
After trailing by 10 to start the frame, Wyoming hit back-to-back 3s to pull within four points. Despite the Cowboys clawing away and making it a one-possession game, Andrews answered with two 3s of his own to push their lead back to eight.
A steal and fastbreak layup from RJ Keene II in the final minutes of regulation gave the Broncos a double-digit lead and allowed them to coast through the rest of the contest.
“I give a lot of credit to Keene,” Fielder said ofthe team’s dominant run to close the first half, which was supported by blocks and deflections made by Keene. “When we have guys who want to make winning plays like that and confident players who want to capitalize off those plays, it leads to runs like that.”
Making winning plays is nothing foreign to Fielder.
Fielder, a junior transfer from Georgetown, who has been a bright spot for Boise State all season, scored a team-high 20 points to go along with five rebounds, two assists, a steal and two blocks in the Broncos’ 84-69 win over San Jose State on Saturday, Feb. 21.
The win marked a season sweep for the Broncos against the Spartans, with Boise State moving to 24-0 at home against San Jose all-time.
Despite just two games remaining in the regular season and slim chances to qualify for the NCAA Tournament, the mentality of Leon Rice and company is far from wavering.
“You don’t find out who you are when you’re on top of the mountain, you find out who you are when you’re in the valleys,” Rice said. “I’ve found out so much about these guys that has earned my respect, which makes [the coaches] want to pour into them more. We’re all in for them to help them through this and finish this thing the right way with what we know we can accomplish.”
