Boise State stays atop Mountain West standings as win streak reaches double digits

With their lead down to two points and 27 seconds still to play, Boise State — one of the worst free-throw shooting teams in all of Division I — was going to have to win it at the free-throw line.

Abu Kigab and Tyson Degenhart made those freebies like their lives depended on it.

Kigab and Degenhart went 4-for-4 from the line over the final 17.9 seconds to seal Boise State’s 62-56 victory over Air Force on Tuesday at ExtraMile Arena. It is the 10th straight victory for the Broncos, which is tied for the third-longest active streak in the nation, and keeps them atop the Mountain West standings.

“Division I games and conference games are really, really hard to win,” Boise State coach Leon Rice said. “And you make it really, really hard when you don’t make free throws. Yeah, I want them to make more, and I know we can and I know we will. But the beauty of them, they just find ways to win.”

Going into Tuesday’s Mountain West game, Boise State ranked 355th out of 358 Division I teams with a free-throw percentage of 60.3%, according to KenPom.com. And free-throw shooting woes made this game closer than it should have been, as the Broncos finished 19-for-32 from the line (59.4%) and went a stretch of 7 minutes, 48 seconds in the first half without a field goal.

“I know it wasn’t the prettiest,” Boise State freshman Tyson Degenhart said. “I mean, we started out super good and then kind of had a lull in the second part of the first half. But we just found a way to get it done, and that’s what it takes in the Mountain West.”

Degenhart finished with a game-leading 19 points, 13 of which came in the second half, helping turn a tenuous three-point halftime lead into the Broncos’ 10th straight victory in their first home game since Dec. 28. He also was one of the few Broncos to consistently make his free throws, sinking 8-of-9 attempts.

After combining for 20 points in the Broncos’ first three league games, Degenhart was due for a breakout night. He went a stretch of seven games earlier this season scoring in double figures but had not done so since Dec. 22.

He had two steals in a little more than a minute early in the second half, the second of which he polished off with a dunk that ignited his teammates and the crowd.

“He made some big winning plays. There were a couple big buckets that I thought were huge,” Rice said. “When you play winners, that’s what you get. And I’ve got a lot of guys that are winners. Not just Tyson.”

The Broncos (13-4, 4-0 MW) made their first five shots and raced out to an 18-6 lead over the Falcons (8-7, 1-3) despite losing leading scorer Marcus Shaver Jr. to foul trouble less than 3 minutes into the game.

Senior Emmanuel Akot made three of his four 3-pointers during about a 2-minute stretch early in the first half while Shaver was on the bench, and Kigab wowed the crowd of more than 6,900 with a behind-the-back bounce pass to Mladen Armus for a dunk for a 20-8 lead with 11:57 on the clock.

After a Shaver steal and layup with 11:38 until halftime, the Broncos went cold, making just two field goals the rest of the way to go into the break up 29-26. Kigab ended the scoreless streak in emphatic fashion, however, when he hammered down a one-handed dunk and drew the foul with 3:50 left until halftime.

Only seven Broncos got on the court Tuesday night, and things got worrisome when Akot spent the final 5 minutes of the first half riding a stationary bike on the sideline. Max Rice went limping to the bench for a time in the second half with what ended up being cramping in his calves, and redshirt freshman Pavle Kuzmanovic was “unavailable” for the game, according to a Boise State spokesperson.

Sporting a knee brace in the second half, Akot joined Degenhart in double figures with 12 points. Kigab added nine points, five rebounds and three assists, and Shaver contributed eight points in 23 minutes of action. Max Rice played a season-high 30 minutes off the bench and collected six points, four rebounds, one steal and one assist.

“I pulled (Max) aside at halftime because Shaver had three fouls, E-man was hurting, and I was like: ‘You’ve gotta be a little more aggressive now. You’ve done it all your life,’” Leon Rice said. “And (Max) goes: ‘I’ve got you.’”

Boise State is back on the road for a Mountain West matchup against Utah State. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, and the game will be streamed live on the Mountain West Network, which is available online at broncosports.com/mwn, or listen on the radio on 670 AM.

The Broncos have not won in Logan since 2016.

UP NEXT: BOISE STATE AT UTAH STATE

When: 7 p.m. Thursday

Where: Dee Glen Smith Spectrum (10,270), Logan, Utah

Live stream: Mountain West Network

Radio: 670 AM (Bob Behler, Abe Jackson)

Records: Boise State 13-4, 4-0 MW; Utah State 10-8, 1-4 MW

Series: Utah State 34-18

Last meeting: Boise State swept last season’s series by scores of 79-70 and 81-77 in Boise. The Broncos have not won in Logan since 2016.

Vegas line: Utah State by 1

KenPom rating: Boise State 51; Utah State 65

KenPom & ESPN predictions

Ken Pomeroy, who created the popular college basketball statistical website KenPom.com, ranks every Division I team using an adjusted efficiency margin, which Pomeroy defines as the difference between a team’s offensive and defensive efficiency.

According to Pomeroy’s detailed statistical analysis, Boise State has a 44% chance of beating Utah State. His score prediction is a 67-66 Utah State victory.

ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index: Utah State has a 54.8% chance of winning with a predicted point differential of 1.2.

BOISE ST. 62, AIR FORCE 56

AIR FORCE (8-7, 1-3 MW): Moerman 3-5 0-2 7, Heidbreder 1-5 1-1 3, Octave 0-3 1-2 1, Taylor 4-7 0-0 9, Walker 4-8 0-0 9, Vander Zwaag 3-5 0-1 8, Jackson 6-7 4-8 17, Mills 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 22-43 6-14 56.

BOISE ST. (13-4, 4-0 MW): Armus 2-4 1-6 5, Degenhart 5-10 8-9 19, Kigab 2-3 5-8 9, Akot 4-7 0-2 12, Shaver 3-9 2-3 8, Rice 2-3 2-2 6, N.Smith 1-3 1-2 3. Totals 19-39 19-32 62.

Halftime—Boise St. 29-26. 3-Point Goals—Air Force 6-13 (Vander Zwaag 2-3, Moerman 1-1, Taylor 1-1, Jackson 1-2, Walker 1-3, Mills 0-1, Heidbreder 0-2), Boise St. 5-14 (Akot 4-5, Degenhart 1-4, Rice 0-1, Shaver 0-4). Fouled Out—Moerman. Rebounds—Air Force 23 (Jackson 6), Boise St. 23 (Kigab 5). Assists—Air Force 12 (Heidbreder 3), Boise St. 9 (Kigab 3). Total Fouls—Air Force 23, Boise St. 17. A—6,993 (12,480).