Anthony Drmic scored a career-high 26 points to lead Boise State to a big win over rival Idaho 76-73 Saturday afternoon at the Idaho Center in Nampa. Ryan Watkins added 11 points and a team-high seven rebounds as the Broncos built a double-digit lead in the 2nd half and then hung on to knock off the Vandals.
Derrick Marks was a perfect 3-3 from the field and scored nine points before fouling out and Kenny Buckner and Thomas Bropleh each scored eight points off the bench. It was Drmic who provided the offensive punch for the Broncos, however, as he drilled 6-9 three-point attempts. Wes Perryman scored only six points but had a game-high nine assists with no turnovers and four steals.
Deremy Geiger led three Vandals in double figures with 17 points as he connected on 4-8 three-point attempts. Stephen Madison added 16 points and a game-high eight rebounds. Kyle Barone was a force in the paint in the 1st half but struggled to contribute much offense in the 2nd half as the smaller Broncos were able to do much of their damage from the outside and avoid the bigger Vandals in the post.
Boise State led 39-33 at halftime as Drmic poured in four straight three point baskets to give the Broncos a 14-8 lead six minutes into the game. He later added five more points to give him 17 for the half. Geiger’s desperation three-pointer at the buzzer gave the Vandals momentum going into halftime as they cut the lead to six points.
Idaho came out firing in the 2nd half and scored eight straight points to take a 41-39 lead just 1:48 into the period. Drmic later added his sixth three-pointer of the game to give the Broncos a one-point lead. The shot sparked a 13-2 run, capped by a pair of Jeff Elorriaga three-point shots. Leading 57-45 with 13 minutes remaining, it looked good for the Broncos.
The Vandals came storming back as Stephen Madison’s three-point play was the highlight of a 7-0 run to get Idaho back in the game. The teams traded baskets over the next several minutes as the Broncos kept Idaho at bay. The Vandals struggled to get the lead under six points but finally did on Mike McChristian’s jump shot with 2:32 remaining that cut the lead to 71-66.
Drmic hit a free throw to give Boise State a 74-68 lead but Geiger nailed a three-pointer to cut the lead in half. Drmic missed a tough shot on the Bronco's next possession, giving Idaho the ball with 30 seconds remaining, trailing by three points. The Vandals decided to run down the clock and try for a game-tying three-point attempt. Instead, Landon Tatum was fouled with 3.4 seconds remaining and hit both free throws to cut the lead to one point.
The Broncos inbounded the ball and Drew Wiley was immediately fouled. The junior transfer stepped to the line with three seconds remaining and calmly knocked down both free throws to extend the lead back to three. The free throws were Wiley’s only points of the game as he missed all four field goal attempts.
The Vandals attempted a long pass down court that was tipped out of bounds by the Broncos with .5 seconds remaining. Idaho had one final shot but Barone’s three-pointer from the corner was long and the Broncos came away with a big win.
The Broncos turned the ball over only seven times but forced 18 Idaho miscues which allowed them to pull out the win despite being badly out-rebounded 37-19 and getting out-shot from the field, free throw line and three-point territory. The extra possessions generated by the turnovers allowed the Broncos to attempt 14 more field goals than Idaho.
The victory moved Boise State to 10-4 on the season and the Broncos have one game remaining on their non-conference schedule, a rematch with Fresno State Monday night. The Broncos beat the Bulldogs at home two weeks ago and hope to win their first true road game of the season after dropping their first four contests away from home. The game at the Idaho Center was technically a neutral court game and the crowd was very evenly split between Bronco and Vandal fans.
Many fans appeared unable to get into the game as the line for tickets at the gate was at least 100 yards long. The venue did not appear prepared for the game-day turnout as many fans chose to come without tickets in hand.
The Monday night game against Fresno State is the last game before their January 14th conference opener at home against Air Force. The Mountain West has had a strong non-conference schedule with the Broncos, picked to finish last in the league, among five teams with at least 10 wins on their resume to this point. Colorado State has two opportunities to become the sixth team to pass the double-digit mark.
Air Force is currently 7-4 with three more games against cupcake opponents in the next two weeks, leading up to the conference opener in Boise. Even last place TCU, at 8-5, has a chance to win 10 non-conference games with two remaining before they travel to Colorado State for their conference opener.
The Mountain West is currently the 4th-rated conference in the country, led by #20 UNLV at 15-2. The Rebels boast a win over then-#1 North Carolina and are back in the top 25 after reeling off six straight wins following losses in two of three contests early in December. New Mexico, San Diego State and Wyoming all currently have 12-2 records and are playing very good basketball.
The Broncos have to be pleased with the way they bounced back after some tough losses on the road. Drmic’s recovery from a sprained ankle was especially nice to see after he was unable to suit up in a loss to Iowa on December 22nd. The nine-day layoff certainly appeared to help as his body got healthy and his shot was still smooth and on target.
Drmic and Marks have been the two most consistently solid performers for Boise State but the Broncos will need more offense and consistency from Ryan Watkins, Wes Perryman and Drew Wiley if they expect to hang with the big boys in the Mountain West.
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