Bronco men take on North Carolina State on the road Friday in midst of difficult series of games to start season.
Six of the first seven games away from Taco Bell Arena are against rivals and high-level opponents from major conferences. It's a tough start for the Boise State men's basketball team.
The Broncos are in the midst of perhaps the toughest stretch of the early gauntlet, facing then-No. 3 Wisconsin, Idaho and North Carolina State in a six-day span.
"It's not an exaggeration, it's not coach talk, but it's the toughest stretch in school history, definitely the toughest in my five years. It's not even close," Boise State coach Leon Rice said.
Not only are the games a challenge, but the travel will be, too. After playing in Madison, Wis., on Saturday night, the team arrived in Boise early Sunday. The Broncos won Tuesday night against Idaho, then flew out at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday en route to Raleigh, N.C., for Friday's game against the Wolfpack .
The Broncos' only nonconference games away from Taco Bell Arena last season were at New Orleans and Kentucky, along with the neutral-site game against Idaho at CenturyLink Arena and a three-game tournament in Hawaii.
"Last year, I think we only had Hawaii and (two) away game(s), so this year's a lot different," Boise State sophomore forward Nick Duncan said.
Boise State also has a road game at Saint Mary's on Dec. 6 and two games in Las Vegas on Dec. 22 and 23 after the North Carolina State matchup.
But there is a method to the madness of the early schedule, of which Rice said, "there's nobody in the country that's done that." He also has an eye on March, when the NCAA Tournament teams are selected.
"If we can piece together some wins, you get credit for this," Rice said. "That's one of the reasons I did it. No. 1, to test our team and make us better, but No. 2, I want our team to get rewarded for going and doing something that other schools maybe aren't doing."
ESPN, using a formula similar to the RPI the committee uses as part of its selection criteria, had the Broncos ranked No. 19 entering Wednesday's games.
Though the team is spending Thanksgiving away from Boise - it often has dinner at Rice's house when in town - it still will celebrate Thursday. The team will practice, then hold a dinner in Raleigh, with freshman center David Wacker leading a team prayer.
"We have a lot to be thankful for," Rice said.
NC STATE A TOUGH GUARD
With an 84-72 win over Richmond on Wednesday, the Wolfpack improved to 5-0. Junior guard Trevor Lacey had a career-best 26 points in the victory and is now averaging 18 points per game. He leads a talented trio of guards averaging double figures - sophomore Anthony Barber averages 13 ppg and senior Ralston Turner is scoring 12.3 ppg. The team has been great on the boards, outrebounding teams by 13.8 rebounds per game.
The Wolfpack were picked ninth in the preseason ACC media poll, and received four points in the last Associated Press Top 25.
TRENT A POTENTIAL SPARK
Sophomore guard Dez Trent was suspended for the Broncos' first three regular season games and both exhibitions, but made his season debut Saturday at Wisconsin, playing three minutes and scoring five points late in the loss. He did not play Tuesday against Idaho. Though seemingly a good candidate for a redshirt, which he did not use last season, Rice thinks Trent can provide some needed offense.
"He can really score the basketball, and down the road we'll need more scorers," Rice said. "Thomas (Bropleh) gave us such a great spark off the bench last season. ? You have a strong kid in Dez who can shoot, hopefully in that mold. He wants to be part of this team; he thinks it can have a great year."
The 6-foot-4, 206-pound Trent played in 20 games last season as a true freshman, averaging 5.8 minutes per game, scoring 2.6 points and 1.4 rebounds per game.
"I felt I was ready to play," Trent said last month. "? It was hard sometimes not to play, but I knew I had a lot to learn as a freshman. I think I can help us a lot more this year, think I have a lot better understanding of the game."
Six of the first seven games away from Taco Bell Arena are against rivals and high-level opponents from major conferences. It's a tough start for the Boise State men's basketball team.
The Broncos are in the midst of perhaps the toughest stretch of the early gauntlet, facing then-No. 3 Wisconsin, Idaho and North Carolina State in a six-day span.
"It's not an exaggeration, it's not coach talk, but it's the toughest stretch in school history, definitely the toughest in my five years. It's not even close," Boise State coach Leon Rice said.
Not only are the games a challenge, but the travel will be, too. After playing in Madison, Wis., on Saturday night, the team arrived in Boise early Sunday. The Broncos won Tuesday night against Idaho, then flew out at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday en route to Raleigh, N.C., for Friday's game against the Wolfpack .
The Broncos' only nonconference games away from Taco Bell Arena last season were at New Orleans and Kentucky, along with the neutral-site game against Idaho at CenturyLink Arena and a three-game tournament in Hawaii.
"Last year, I think we only had Hawaii and (two) away game(s), so this year's a lot different," Boise State sophomore forward Nick Duncan said.
Boise State also has a road game at Saint Mary's on Dec. 6 and two games in Las Vegas on Dec. 22 and 23 after the North Carolina State matchup.
But there is a method to the madness of the early schedule, of which Rice said, "there's nobody in the country that's done that." He also has an eye on March, when the NCAA Tournament teams are selected.
"If we can piece together some wins, you get credit for this," Rice said. "That's one of the reasons I did it. No. 1, to test our team and make us better, but No. 2, I want our team to get rewarded for going and doing something that other schools maybe aren't doing."
ESPN, using a formula similar to the RPI the committee uses as part of its selection criteria, had the Broncos ranked No. 19 entering Wednesday's games.
Though the team is spending Thanksgiving away from Boise - it often has dinner at Rice's house when in town - it still will celebrate Thursday. The team will practice, then hold a dinner in Raleigh, with freshman center David Wacker leading a team prayer.
"We have a lot to be thankful for," Rice said.
NC STATE A TOUGH GUARD
With an 84-72 win over Richmond on Wednesday, the Wolfpack improved to 5-0. Junior guard Trevor Lacey had a career-best 26 points in the victory and is now averaging 18 points per game. He leads a talented trio of guards averaging double figures - sophomore Anthony Barber averages 13 ppg and senior Ralston Turner is scoring 12.3 ppg. The team has been great on the boards, outrebounding teams by 13.8 rebounds per game.
The Wolfpack were picked ninth in the preseason ACC media poll, and received four points in the last Associated Press Top 25.
TRENT A POTENTIAL SPARK
Sophomore guard Dez Trent was suspended for the Broncos' first three regular season games and both exhibitions, but made his season debut Saturday at Wisconsin, playing three minutes and scoring five points late in the loss. He did not play Tuesday against Idaho. Though seemingly a good candidate for a redshirt, which he did not use last season, Rice thinks Trent can provide some needed offense.
"He can really score the basketball, and down the road we'll need more scorers," Rice said. "Thomas (Bropleh) gave us such a great spark off the bench last season. ? You have a strong kid in Dez who can shoot, hopefully in that mold. He wants to be part of this team; he thinks it can have a great year."
The 6-foot-4, 206-pound Trent played in 20 games last season as a true freshman, averaging 5.8 minutes per game, scoring 2.6 points and 1.4 rebounds per game.
"I felt I was ready to play," Trent said last month. "? It was hard sometimes not to play, but I knew I had a lot to learn as a freshman. I think I can help us a lot more this year, think I have a lot better understanding of the game."
