Boise State vs. Colorado (-2.5, 140.5); NCAA First Four at Dayton… Is this the year? Boise is 0-9 in previous Big Dance appearances dating back to 1976 when Bus Connor’s Broncos fell 103-78 in Tempe to Jerry Tarkanian’s most run-n-gun UNLV entry. It’s now the third straight and fifth overall Dance invite for Boise HC Leon Rice, who has twice already gone out in the First Four. To change their Big Dance luck will take a big defensive effort, likely falling to stopper and UCSD transfer G Roddie Anderson, against the Buffs’ high-scoring K.J. Simpson (19.6 ppg), and for more than one of Rice’s shooters among wings Tyson Degenhart (17 ppg), Chibuzo Agbo (41.7% triples), and Leon’s son Max (36% beyond arc). A problem which we have seen for many Mountain West teams in recent Dances, however, is how they deal with the sort off enhanced athleticism they do not often face in their own league; to that end, CU might cause problems, as besides Simpson, there is real frontline presence with 6-9 Tristan Da Silva (15.8 ppg) and bruising, 6-11, 265-lb Eddie Lampkin , Jr (10.2 ppg; 7/1 rpg), who likely neutralizes Boise’s 6-8 ex-St John’s PF O’Mar Stanley (13 ppg). The X-factor for the Buffs is combustible frosh wing Cody Williams (12.6 ppg), brother of the NBA OKC’s Jalen, who just returned to active duty in the Pac-12 Tourney and posted modest numbers, but has electric potential, scoring 20+ on three different occasions in Pac-12 play. Note that Boise also fell short in most of its pre-league intersectional battles vs. power conference foes, including Pac-12 Washington State in December. Unfortunately for Broncos backers, the Big Dance drought might last another year. Colorado 74 – Boise State 66 PLAY COLORADO
Grambling vs. Montana State (-4, 134.5); NCAA First Four at Dayton… This is now old hat for the Bobcats, into the Dance for the third straight year. Only this one wasn’t as expected after HC Danny Sprinkle left for Utah State after last season and took a couple of his best players (F Great Osobor and G Darius Brown II) with him to Logan. Nothing was suggesting that new HC Matt Logie was going to make it a hat-trick for NCAA bids as MSU proceeded rather unremarkably thru the campaign to finish middle of the pack in the Big Sky before picking up steam at the end of the season and into the tourney at Boise, and beating loop heavyweight Weber State twice in the last week before taking down favored, cross-state Montana without too much problem in the title game. Against the Grizzlies, the Bobs hit 50% from the floor, with former Idaho State transfer and sr. G Robert Ford III (15.9 ppg) continuing his late-season uptick when scoring 22 points. Still, MSU was decidedly unremarkable for most of the season, ranking in the bottom half of both offensive and defensive efficiency; the question here is if they have hooked an equally unremarkable foe. Granted, it’s hard to gauge most SWAC reps into the Dance, because they are traditionally overscheduled in non-conference play; Grambling, for example, played against and lost to six different Big Dance qualifiers (Colorado, Iowa State, Dayton, Washington State, Drake,, and Florida) by margins ranging from 12 to 55 points. As usual, then, we’re forced to weigh successes against a lesser collection of reps from the SWAC . No matter, the numbers are modest at best, with a limited offense scoring barely 67 ppg, and top scorer G Kintavious Dozier (13.1 ppg) apt to blow very hot and cold. There is no Willis Reed on this roster as there was in the early 60s, and this first-ever trip to the Dance might find Grambling a bit starry-eyed (they wouldn’t be the first). If being here before means anything, then it’s advantage Bobcats. Montana State 72 – Grambling 63 PLAY MONTANA STATE