The Boise State men's basketball team will look for its first conference road win of the season tonight in a place where the Broncos have had their share of success.
BSU (11-15 overall, 4-10 WAC) plays San Jose State (6-17, 3-10) at The Event Center, a 5,000-seat gym where the Broncos have won two years in a row. A win tonight would prevent BSU from going winless in conference road games for the first time since the 1972-73 season. Tonight's game is the second-to-last chance to snap the road skid ? the Broncos close the regular season March 5 at UTEP.
BSU, which defeated Weber State 80-66 in its Bracket Buster Saturday contest, is trying to build momentum these final two weeks of the regular season to get the best seed possible at next month's WAC Tournament in Reno, Nev.
"We've got our confidence up," BSU senior Franco Harris said. "We want to get every win that we can before we go to the WAC Tournament."
Harris is one of four players from California on the BSU roster. His hometown of Richmond is about 30 minutes from San Jose. Tez Banks, Eric Lane and Andrew Green are the other Californians on the BSU team.
"We get to play in front of our family and friends, and they don't get to see us play much," Harris said. "It gives you a boost of energy."
The Broncos can use any energy they can get. Tonight's game is the third in six days in three different time zones. BSU played at Hawaii on Wednesday, flew overnight back to Boise for Saturday's game, then left Sunday night for San Jose.
The Spartans have endured a similar stretch. They lost at home to UTEP on Wednesday, then lost at Drake on Saturday in a Bracket Buster game. SJSU flew from Des Moines, Iowa, back to California on Sunday.
"They had a tough game (Saturday), but they had been playing well," Graham said. "If you look at their scores, they play much better at home. I think the key that (coach Phil Johnson) is looking for and what we're looking for is to play well. I think it's important to us. The last few games, we haven't won them all, but we played at a pretty good level. We need to continue that."
Playing well on the road hasn't been easy for the Broncos. In conference games, BSU shoots 37.9 percent on the road, compared to 44 percent at home. BSU also is more turnover-prone away from home, giving the ball away almost four times more per game.
BSU senior Jason Ellis spelled out what his team needs to do to snap its eight-game losing streak on the road.
"Energy, intensity, play good defense, limit turnovers, and everything else will take care of itself," Ellis said.
The Broncos also must contend with San Jose State's Marquin Chandler, who averages 20.2 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. The former George Washington player had 15 points and 16 rebounds against BSU earlier this season.
"He can play any place," Graham said. "He makes 3s, can post you up or drive to the hole. He's become a top-notch player in our conference. He's just a handful. We had trouble with him here and last year. The other guys are stepping up, too. They have the potential to really light it up at home. They got shut down (Saturday), so I'm sure they'll be looking to fire it up and get rolling."
The Broncos currently are in eighth place in the conference and probably need to win their final four games of the season to climb to the seventh spot. BSU probably wants to avoid finishing eighth or ninth because that would put the Broncos in the same half of the WAC Tournament bracket as host Nevada, which likely will end up with the top seed.
Graham said he isn't looking ahead in the brackets at all.
"We want to win all we can and get as high as we can," Graham said. "We're going to play (in a play-in game), so you want to win as many as you can going in. You can't worry about who you get the next game. You've got to worry about that first game because you might not get through that one because we're all very even. Anyone can beat anyone in this league."
A win tonight would be a step in the right direction.
"It's a process," said Ellis, who needs three points and 39 rebounds to become the first member of the 900-point, 900-rebound club in BSU history. "We got a win (Saturday), and now we need to start putting wins together."
Keys to Boise St Victory:
1. Keep sharing the ball. BSU made extra passes to ensure good looks on Saturday against Weber State. Those extra passes also make a defense work longer, which could be even more effective against what should be a tired San Jose State team.
2. Play pressure defense. The Spartans turned the ball over 20 times against Drake on Saturday. If BSU can apply pressure, it could force turnovers or quicken the pace of play, something the Broncos try to do anyway.
3. Keep Chandler under wraps. The WAC's most-overlooked star is Marquin Chandler, who ranks in the Top 25 nationally in both scoring and rebounding. BSU needs to try and contain him defensively and make other SJSU players try to beat them.
PROBABLE STARTERS
Boise State
? G Eric Lane, 6-1, 187, so., 8.9 points, 2.0 rebounds
? G Coby Karl, 6-4, 200, so., 12.8 points, 3.8 rebounds
? F Jermaine Blackburn, 6-6, 216, sr., 15.1 points, 4.7 rebounds
? F Jason Ellis, 6-7, 220, sr., 9.3 points, 8.2 rebounds
? F Tez Banks, 6-8, 235, jr., 5.2 points, 4.0 rebounds
San Jose State
? G Donta Watson, 5-10, 170, jr., 6.0 points, 2.4 rebounds
? G Alex Elam, 6-4, 200, jr., 10.2 points, 2.9 rebounds
? G Eric Bloom, 6-4, 200, jr., 7.9 points, 1.5 rebounds
? F Marquin Chandler, 6-7, 220, sr., 20.2 points, 9.2 rebounds
? C Matt Misko, 6-11, 225, jr., 6.3 points, 4.7 rebounds
BSU (11-15 overall, 4-10 WAC) plays San Jose State (6-17, 3-10) at The Event Center, a 5,000-seat gym where the Broncos have won two years in a row. A win tonight would prevent BSU from going winless in conference road games for the first time since the 1972-73 season. Tonight's game is the second-to-last chance to snap the road skid ? the Broncos close the regular season March 5 at UTEP.
BSU, which defeated Weber State 80-66 in its Bracket Buster Saturday contest, is trying to build momentum these final two weeks of the regular season to get the best seed possible at next month's WAC Tournament in Reno, Nev.
"We've got our confidence up," BSU senior Franco Harris said. "We want to get every win that we can before we go to the WAC Tournament."
Harris is one of four players from California on the BSU roster. His hometown of Richmond is about 30 minutes from San Jose. Tez Banks, Eric Lane and Andrew Green are the other Californians on the BSU team.
"We get to play in front of our family and friends, and they don't get to see us play much," Harris said. "It gives you a boost of energy."
The Broncos can use any energy they can get. Tonight's game is the third in six days in three different time zones. BSU played at Hawaii on Wednesday, flew overnight back to Boise for Saturday's game, then left Sunday night for San Jose.
The Spartans have endured a similar stretch. They lost at home to UTEP on Wednesday, then lost at Drake on Saturday in a Bracket Buster game. SJSU flew from Des Moines, Iowa, back to California on Sunday.
"They had a tough game (Saturday), but they had been playing well," Graham said. "If you look at their scores, they play much better at home. I think the key that (coach Phil Johnson) is looking for and what we're looking for is to play well. I think it's important to us. The last few games, we haven't won them all, but we played at a pretty good level. We need to continue that."
Playing well on the road hasn't been easy for the Broncos. In conference games, BSU shoots 37.9 percent on the road, compared to 44 percent at home. BSU also is more turnover-prone away from home, giving the ball away almost four times more per game.
BSU senior Jason Ellis spelled out what his team needs to do to snap its eight-game losing streak on the road.
"Energy, intensity, play good defense, limit turnovers, and everything else will take care of itself," Ellis said.
The Broncos also must contend with San Jose State's Marquin Chandler, who averages 20.2 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. The former George Washington player had 15 points and 16 rebounds against BSU earlier this season.
"He can play any place," Graham said. "He makes 3s, can post you up or drive to the hole. He's become a top-notch player in our conference. He's just a handful. We had trouble with him here and last year. The other guys are stepping up, too. They have the potential to really light it up at home. They got shut down (Saturday), so I'm sure they'll be looking to fire it up and get rolling."
The Broncos currently are in eighth place in the conference and probably need to win their final four games of the season to climb to the seventh spot. BSU probably wants to avoid finishing eighth or ninth because that would put the Broncos in the same half of the WAC Tournament bracket as host Nevada, which likely will end up with the top seed.
Graham said he isn't looking ahead in the brackets at all.
"We want to win all we can and get as high as we can," Graham said. "We're going to play (in a play-in game), so you want to win as many as you can going in. You can't worry about who you get the next game. You've got to worry about that first game because you might not get through that one because we're all very even. Anyone can beat anyone in this league."
A win tonight would be a step in the right direction.
"It's a process," said Ellis, who needs three points and 39 rebounds to become the first member of the 900-point, 900-rebound club in BSU history. "We got a win (Saturday), and now we need to start putting wins together."
Keys to Boise St Victory:
1. Keep sharing the ball. BSU made extra passes to ensure good looks on Saturday against Weber State. Those extra passes also make a defense work longer, which could be even more effective against what should be a tired San Jose State team.
2. Play pressure defense. The Spartans turned the ball over 20 times against Drake on Saturday. If BSU can apply pressure, it could force turnovers or quicken the pace of play, something the Broncos try to do anyway.
3. Keep Chandler under wraps. The WAC's most-overlooked star is Marquin Chandler, who ranks in the Top 25 nationally in both scoring and rebounding. BSU needs to try and contain him defensively and make other SJSU players try to beat them.
PROBABLE STARTERS
Boise State
? G Eric Lane, 6-1, 187, so., 8.9 points, 2.0 rebounds
? G Coby Karl, 6-4, 200, so., 12.8 points, 3.8 rebounds
? F Jermaine Blackburn, 6-6, 216, sr., 15.1 points, 4.7 rebounds
? F Jason Ellis, 6-7, 220, sr., 9.3 points, 8.2 rebounds
? F Tez Banks, 6-8, 235, jr., 5.2 points, 4.0 rebounds
San Jose State
? G Donta Watson, 5-10, 170, jr., 6.0 points, 2.4 rebounds
? G Alex Elam, 6-4, 200, jr., 10.2 points, 2.9 rebounds
? G Eric Bloom, 6-4, 200, jr., 7.9 points, 1.5 rebounds
? F Marquin Chandler, 6-7, 220, sr., 20.2 points, 9.2 rebounds
? C Matt Misko, 6-11, 225, jr., 6.3 points, 4.7 rebounds
