Fresno State
Boise State
Fresno State Edged by Boise State, 66-63
2/4/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 4, 2006
BOISE, Idaho (AP) - Coby Karl scored 19 points, including four free throws in the final 22 seconds, and added 14 rebounds to lead Boise State to a 66-63 Western Athletic Conference victory over Fresno State on Saturday.
Boise State (12-9, 5-5) won the game with free throws, hitting 17 of 21; Karl went 9-for-9. Fresno State (11-9, 4-5) went to the line only nine times, hitting just three.
Tez Banks added 12 points for Boise State, including two key put-backs in the final two minutes, and grabbed a career-high 17 rebounds. Matt Bauscher had 11 points.
Quinton Hosley scored a game-high 21 points for the Bulldogs and added 11 rebounds as he notched his 10th double-double of the season. Dwight ONeil and Hector Hernandez added 13 and 12 points, respectively.
Fresno State suffered a setback when JaVance Coleman, the WAC's fourth-leading scorer averaging 18 points a game, left with a turned ankle with 5 minutes remaining in the first half, and did not play again.
The Bulldogs turned a 32-26 halftime lead into a 46-35 margin on a field goal by Hosley with 14 minutes left. The Broncos chipped away at the Bulldogs' lead until a basket by Karl gave them a 60-59 lead with 2:26 left.
A put-back by Banks gave Boise State a 3-point lead with 1:35 remaining and Karl's four free throws helped offset field goals by Kevin Bell and O'Neil to assure the Boise State victory.
Fresno State tried to make up for the imbalance in free throws by casting up 35 three-point attempts, hitting 12 of them while Boise State could manage only 5 of 23 from 3-point range.
"I thought we gave a good effort and played hard," Fresno State head coach Steve Cleveland said. "We competed but we didn't have that timely rebound or collect that loose ball when we really needed it."It could have been fatigue on our part but they (Boise State) shot free throws for most of the game and they rebounded very well," Cleveland said. "We were still right there in the game despite the setbacks.
"Regardless of the wins or losses, my goal is to keep developing this team so that they are progressing and I think they are doing just that," Cleveland stated. "We can't dwell on the losses, just keep moving forward and keep working harder and harder."
Fresno State is at Idaho on Mon., Feb. 6, 7:00 p.m. That game will be broadcast by the Bulldog Sports Network and shown on KFRE WB 59.
