BUSTER’S WEEKLY ROUNDUP: Boise State Athletics Update (Nov. 13 – Nov. 20)

Graphic by Sasha White

Here’s what is happening in Boise State Athletics…

FOOTBALL

On Saturday, Nov. 18, interim head coach Spencer Danielson secured his first win after the team blew out Utah State 45-10. 

With one game left in the season, the Broncos are still hopeful for a shot at the Mountain West championship, however they are now officially bowl eligible.

Read more about the game here.

SOFTBALL

Boise State softball is right around the corner as we get ready for the new year.

The team opens their season in Tempe, Arizona, on Feb. 9, to face off against Northwestern and St. Thomas.

As for home games, the Blue and Orange’s home opener is scheduled on March 7, 2024, where they’ll face Kenneway State at Donna Larsen Park.

The Broncos will also host two regular season tournaments in March this year, along with a big home game against Washington.

“Our non-conference schedule will be as tough as anyone nationally,” head coach Justin Shults said. “Playing under the lights and hosting the Mountain West Championship are huge opportunities for our program as we continue to build on the success of the last-two seasons.”

After winning the Mountain West conference in 2023, the Broncos will also get to host the Mountain West championship tournament in May 2024.

Click here to see the full schedule.

VOLLEYBALL

After the Broncos swept the University of Nevada on Nov. 16, the team clutched out a huge 3-1 win over Fresno State University two days later to secure a Mountain West championship berth.

“We really didn’t talk much about the tournament (Mountain West Championship) with the team,” said head coach Shawn Garus. “Our plan all year was to take on one match at a time. The team did a good job of doing that this week, focusing on Nevada Thursday and Fresno State today, winning both matches. Now we can look forward to the tournament.”

The team finishes the regular season at 14-14 and 10-8 in the Mountain West to secure a spot in the championship tournament and will come in as fourth seed.

This isn’t the last Boise State will see of Fresno however. On Nov. 22, they square off again in Las Vegas in the first round of the championship tournament.

The winner will play first seed and regular season champion Utah State University on Thanksgiving Day.

BEACH VOLLEYBALL

Boise State’s beach volleyball head coach Allison Voigt is making moves in the offseason, adding five players to the program as of Wednesday.

“We’re very excited to add these five to our program,” Voigt said. “Each player brings in something different that we need on our team. All five are great people and take care of business in the classroom and will be great students for us. On the court they are all very talented volleyball players. They’re hungry to win and are excited to be Broncos.”

Avery Allen, Susannah Barnett, Charlee Ellena, Angelena Greene and Addison Moss will join the program as part of the 2024 recruiting class.

Click here to read more about the new recruits.

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Boise State loses in their first road game this season, 85-68 at the hands of the Clemson University Tigers.

The game was close going into half with the Broncos only trailing 41-38.

Following a game tying layup in the second half, the Tigers shot 50% from three and scored 44 points to the Broncos’ 30.

“We had a lot of guys do some good things for us,” said head coach Leon Rice. “A couple guys did some really good things . . . That game was lost on the glass. We haven’t been (beaten) like that in (a long time). We knew that coming in – (Clemson) is picked toward the top of the ACC for a reason.”

Boise State moves to 2-2 on the season and will compete in the ESPN Events INvitational tournament from Nov. 23-26. 

The Broncos open the tournament against the 3-1 Virginia Tech Hokies.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

The Broncos continue their dominance this season after a 76-47 win over Weber State University on Nov. 13 and a 63-55 win against the University of California, Riverside.

For the first time since the 202-2021 season, Boise State’s women’s basketball team is 3-0.

In the game against Weber State, sophomore Dani Bays led the team with 13 points, shooting 4-9 from the floor and 3-8 from three.

Boise State controlled most of the game in the blowout victory, however the same can’t be said for the matchup against UC Riverside. 

The Broncos started the game in a 5-0 hole, but dug back out of it to end the first half trailing just 30-28.

After the break, UC riverside jumped out to a 9-4 run. Senior Mary Kay Naro stopped the bleeding with a three point play with 51 seconds left in the third quarter.

In the fourth, the Broncos took the lead and never looked back as sophomore Mya Hansen drilled two 3-pointers to help close out the game.

Up next, Boise State hosts Pepperdine on Nov. 20 to finish their four game homestand.

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