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Broncos head to Fresno
for WAC Championships
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The Boise State men’s basketball team begins its quest for
a postseason berth tonight at the WAC tournament in Fresno, facing
the hometown Fresno State Bulldogs at 9:30 p.m.
The Broncos are in the midst of a six-game win streak and are
looking to claim the school’s first WAC title, and solidify a
bid to the NCAA tournament.
“It’s been a big season for us so far. We just want
to keep it going and play against Fresno,” senior forward
Aaron Haynes said.
The 2004 McCaffery WAC Tournament will be held at the Save Mart
Center, and the Broncos will be playing the host team in the
quarterfinals. The Bulldogs are led by Shantaey Legans, last
weeks’ WAC Player of the Week. Legans, a senior guard from
Goleta, California was also named to the second team All-WAC
team.
Coach Graham understands the difficult task at hand as the
Broncos will face the only team with a home court advantage.
“It’s a big one. That’s why you try to get the
tournament at your site,” Graham said.
The Bulldogs won their final two games of the regular season,
but are still without three of their top scorers, who were
suspended from the program. The team members, Renaldo Major, Terry
Pettis and Jonathon Woods, all averaged double-digits for the
Bulldogs before their suspensions, and are ineligible to play in
the conference tournament.
The two teams split the regular season meetings, both wins
coming for the road team. The Broncos easily played their worst
second half of the season versus the Bulldogs on Jan. 15. The score
was tied at halftime at 37, but the Bulldogs went on a 12-1 run to
start the second half, and the Broncos never found their groove.
The win improved Fresno State’s WAC record to 5-0, but they
have won only five of their last 14 games since. On the flip side,
the Broncos have won 11 of 14 since they lost to the Bulldogs,
including a defensive stand against Fresno State on the road on
Feb. 14. The Broncos held the Bulldogs to a season-low 44 points at
the Save Mart Center.
The 20-win season is the first since the Broncos went 21-8 in
1998-99, and the Broncos tied a school record with 9 road
victories. Boise State is the hottest team in the WAC currently,
and they are doing it opposite their normal style of play. Defense
has been the determining factor for the team over the recent win
streak, which was apparent last Saturday versus UTEP. The Broncos
held the Miners to a season low 45 points, 34 points below their
season average of 79.4 points per game.
But don’t get confused about the mentality of Coach
Graham’s strategy. The team will play an up-tempo style,
something that has hurt their opponents in the past.
“That’s our style, that’s what’s got us
the record we have now. Playing high tempo, teams have trouble
keeping up with us, so that’s going to be the plan,”
freshman guard Eric Lane said.
When the Bronco’s leading scorer, Jermaine Blackburn, went
down with a shoulder injury last month, the Broncos knew they
needed to step up their defense to ensure they could stay
competitive in the WAC. Over the six-game win streak, the Broncos
have held opponents to only 51.8 points per game, nearly 13 points
below their season average.
comes from down low with center Jason Ellis, who was selected on
Sunday to the first team All-WAC squad. Ellis leads the Broncos in
rebounding with 9.1 per game, despite being relatively undersized.
At only 6’7’’ and 211 pounds, he usually gives up
nearly 40 pounds per game to his opponents. Yet, the junior from
Kent, Washington goes down low and keeps the big men out of the
paint.
Another key to the defense this season has been point guard Joe
Skiffer. The senior from San Francisco has been assigned night
after night to guard the top scoring guards on the opponents’
teams. Skiffer was not nominated to the All-Defensive team, but his
efforts have been recognized by his teammates.
“He’s the best defender on the team. He usually
guards the best guard player,” Ellis said.
Senior forward Aaron Haynes was also recognized for his
performance this season. A preseason all-conference first team
pick, Haynes backed up that accolade by being named to the
postseason first team All-WAC team. Averaging 16.5 points per game
in conference play, Haynes led the Broncos to a 12-6 record in the
WAC, and a 6-1 record without leading scorer Jermaine Blackburn for
the end of the regular season.
“I just went out and played like I did last year,”
Haynes said.
Haynes will be able to play in front of his family wearing a
Bronco uniform, and the Fresno native will try to help the Broncos
take home the WAC championship.
“I’m excited because my family gets to come and
watch me play in my last year. It’s been a big season for us
so far. We just have to keep it up and play against Fresno,”
Haynes said.
Trevor Horn
Sports Reporter
