Fresno State Athletics
'Dogs, Broncos Get Rare Single-Game Showdown
1/8/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Related Links
• Bulldogs Head to Boise for Saturday Battle
• GAME NOTES: Fresno State at Boise State
By Stephen Trembley
strembley@csufresno.edu
www.GoBulldogs.com
BOISE, Idaho --- The Fresno State men's basketball team has walked away with the bitter taste of defeat in its last 11 trips to Taco Bell Arena.
The Bulldogs are looking to taste something much sweeter on Saturday afternoon when they play the Boise State Broncos at 3 p.m. PT. The game will be broadcast on ROOT Sports, the Mountain West Network and 940 AM ESPN Radio.
"The last couple of trips to Boise they've brought the fight to us early in the game," Fresno State head coach Rodney Terry said. "We didn't fight the way we are accustomed to fighting. It's going to be really important that we set the tone defensively from the start of the game and then attack on our terms."
On Saturday, Fresno State (11-5, 2-1 Mountain West) and Boise State (11-4, 2-0 MW) will meet in Boise in their only regular season match-up due to the 18-game conference schedule that is not a true round robin format with two teams each year playing once, instead of the traditional home-and-home series.
This year, Fresno State also plays Colorado State just once with that meeting coming in Fresno.
This is the first time since Boise State joined the Western Athletic Conference in 2001 that the Bulldogs and Broncos will play just one regular season game. The teams continued the series with two non-conference games during the 2011-12 season when Boise State moved into the MW a season prior to Fresno State.
The last time Fresno State earned a road win over Boise State was on Jan. 15, 2004. Senior point guard Shantay Legans, who had transferred to the Bulldogs after playing his first three collegiate seasons at Cal, scored 17 points and Chris Adams added 13 to lead the Ray Lopes-coached Fresno State squad over Boise State 78-61.
After the teams fought to a 37-37 tie at halftime, Fresno State outscored Boise State 12-1 to open the second half for a 49-38 advantage and finished the game with a 61.2 shooting percentage to improve to 5-0 in conference play for the 2003-04 season.
The Broncos avenged that loss twice later in the season with a 55-44 win a month later and Boise State knocked Fresno State out of the 2004 WAC Tournament, which was hosted at the Save Mart Center, in the quarterfinals.
Since then, the teams have played some tight games, like three games decided by a single point and a total of six by a single possession. But there have also been some largely one-sided performances, including Fresno State's 76-56 win over Boise State two seasons ago on Feb. 26, 2014 and last season's 71-52 win for Boise State, which clinched the Broncos' first-ever MW title in men's basketball.
"It's always a great game between Fresno State and Boise State," Fresno State junior forward Paul Watson said. "Boise State is a tough team to play, especially going into Taco Bell Arena. It's a tough environment and tough atmosphere to play in. It's great to be a part of."
Saturday's game features two squads that like to push the ball up the floor and make plays in transition. Boise State leads the MW in scoring margin, assist-to-turnover ratio and defensive rebounding while Fresno State is the best in the conference in offensive rebounding and forcing turnovers and ranks near the top in steals and rebounding margin.
While you could easily predict a high-scoring game, both teams know defense will likely be the difference between winning and losing.
"We're trying to emphasize to the guys that this time of year they have to play with urgency on every possession," Terry said. "Whether you're at home or on the road you have to come play every night in this league. You have to earn a win in this league."
"Be Bold." --- The flagship radio stations for Fresno State men's basketball are 940 AM ESPN Radio and 1600 AM ESPN Deportes.
