After the Feb. 15 loss to San Diego State University, the Boise State Men’s Basketball team now has six games until the Mountain West Conference (MWC) Tournament. The Broncos are sitting at a 17-8 record and are projected to miss the NCAA March Madness Tournament.
Though the Broncos are on the outside looking in as of now, their tournament hopes are not over yet. There are still ways to slip into the big dance.
Mountain West Conference Championship:
One way the Broncos could make it to the Tournament is simple: Win the MWC Championship.
The beauty of the NCAA Tournament is that each and every team in all 32 of the Division I conferences can each make March Madness by winning their own conference tournament. That means that, hypothetically, a team could end their season 0-31, but win their conference tournament and still have an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
For the Broncos, the simplest ticket into the NCAA Tournament would be to win the MWC Championship. The last (and only) time the Broncos won the championship was in 2022.
The Broncos are sitting at fifth in the MWC with the remainder of the season to go, which would currently match them up against the Colorado State Rams (16-9) in the first round of the tournament.
The 2025 MWC Tournament begins on March 12 and the championship game will be on March 15.
Win out:
If the Broncos do not end up winning the MWC tournament, there are still 34 open spots in the NCAA Tournament that will be left up to debate. Though 34 may seem like a lot of open spots, teams across the country who didn’t win their conference championship will take these spots.
This means that the odds for the Broncos are slim.
In the 2024 season, the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee granted five of these slots to MWC teams: Boise State, San Diego State, Utah State, Colorado State, and Nevada. This was tied for the third most bids given to a conference (Big10 with five, SEC and Big12 with seven).
Though the MWC is not as strong as it was last year, there are still open spots for these teams, including the Broncos.
It is unclear how many bids the Selection Committee will give to the MWC, but the bottom line is that the Broncos need to strengthen their resume so their name will be revealed on Selection Sunday.
The best way to do this is simple: Win the rest of their games.
As simple and obvious as it sounds, Boise State winning the rest of their games could secure them a bid in the NCAA Tournament, especially given the strength of their remaining schedule.
Remaining Broncos Schedule
Feb. 19: vs. New Mexico Lobos (21-4).
Feb. 22: @ Nevada Wolfpack (15-10).
Feb. 26: vs. Utah State Aggies (22-3).
March 1: @ Fresno State Bulldogs (5-21)
March 4: @ Air Force Falcons (3-22)
March 7: vs. Colorado State Rams (16-9)
