Boise State Men's Basketball struggled with rebounding and shooting as they suffered a tough 76-68 loss to San Diego State on Saturday at ExtraMile Arena, snapping their five-game winning streak.
The Broncos came out strong initially but faltered as the game progressed. They gave up 15 offensive rebounds and 21 second-chance points to the Aztecs, who dominated the boards 39-29—a statistic Boise State head coach Leon Rice highlighted after the game.
Despite getting 16 points from Chris Lockett Jr. and 14 from Andrew Meadow, the team showed weaknesses, particularly from their star players Tyson Degenhart and O'Mar Stanley, who combined for only 13 points—far below their usual performance. Degenhart was held to just nine points, shooting only 1 of 7 from the field, as San Diego State's defense focused heavily on limiting his impact.
“Our effort on the glass wasn’t good enough to get it done against a team who had a week to prepare, was locked in and ready to go,” Rice said. “We played some good minutes and did some good things, but in the end, it all came down to rebounding.”
Boise State struggled significantly with their shooting, making just 7 of 30 attempts from three-point range, which marked 23.3 percent success. They were more effective at the foul line, converting 21 of 25 attempts for 84 percent but faced difficulties with two-pointers, hitting only 20 of 53 shots at 37.7 percent.
After tying the game at 58-58 thanks to back-to-back three-pointers from Alvaro Cardenas, the Broncos were unable to maintain momentum. A controversial review reversed one of the three-pointers to a two-point shot, impacting their rhythm. San Diego State quickly responded, scoring the next seven points to extend their lead to 65-57 with just under four minutes remaining.
Leading the Aztecs was Miles Byrd, who had a career-high 22 points, showcasing his scoring ability throughout the match. His strong performance was instrumental to San Diego State, who improved their overall record to 9-3 and moved to 2-1 in the Mountain West Conference.
The defeat marked Boise State's first loss at home this season. With the Broncos now sitting at 11-4 overall and 3-1 in conference play, they will look to bounce back as they prepare to face UNLV on Tuesday night at 8:30 p.m.
Coach Rice expressed pride in the performance of his freshmen players, particularly Lockett Jr. and Julian Bowie, who helped keep the team competitive when senior players faltered. “I was really proud of those two freshmen; they saved our bacon because our big three seniors didn’t do what they usually do,” Rice remarked.
Fans are encouraged to follow the team’s performance and updates through social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter as they aim to regain their winning momentum.