Men's Basketball | 12/2/2024 2:00:00 PM

Game #10
Who | Utah Tech (2-7) at Boise State (5-2)
When | Tuesday, Dec. 3 – 7 p.m.
Where | ExtraMile Arena – Boise, Idaho
Broadcast | Mountain West Network / 99.5 The Fan Sports Network
Social Media | Instagram + Twitter (X) + #UtahTechBlazers + #WACmbb

Scouting the Broncos
Boise State heads into Tuesday night's contest with a 5-2 overall record coming off a tough 63-61 loss to Boston College on Nov. 26 to wrap up the Cayman Islands Classic.

The Broncos earned wins over Hampton (83-69) and South Dakota State (83-82) in the first two contests of the tournament on the island and Boise also have victories over Oakland (87-43), Corban (Ore.) (100-65) and Clemson (84-71)

BSU's only other setback came on the road at San Francisco (84-73) on Nov. 9.

After posting a 22-11 overall record in 2023-24, the Broncos tied for second in the Mountain West with a 13-5 mark and qualified for the NCAA Tournament falling to Colorado in the First Four in Dayton, Ohio.

Led by 15th-year head coach Leon Rice, Boise State has made five NCAA Tournament appearances under Rice, who has amassed 295 wins in Boise.

Selected to win the MW this season, the Broncos are led by MW Preseason Player of the Year Tyson Degenhart. The senior forward, a two-time All-MW First Team selection, leads the team averaging 16.4 points per game and has added 6.0 rebounds per contest.

Senior guard Alvaro Cardenas ranks second in the MW in assists per game (5.3) while senior forward O'Mar Stanley sits in the top 10 in the league in blocks per game (1.14) and free throw percentage (80.8).

As a team, the Broncos lead the MW in free throw percentage (80.5), free throws made per game (19.4) and three point percentage defense (29.1).

Series History vs. Boise State & Mountain West Conference
This will be the Trailblazers' first meeting against Boise State.

This will also be the fifth current member of the Mountain West that Utah Tech has played.

The Blazers have seen four MW opponents in Wyoming (0-1, Nov. 16, 2024), Nevada (0-1, Nov. 7, 2022), New Mexico (0-1, Jan. 13, 2021) and Utah State (0-1, Dec. 1, 2022).

Utah Tech will see its final MW opponent of the season at Utah State on Saturday in Logan.

Last Time Out
The Trailblazers are coming off a hard-fought loss at Portland State on Saturday night falling, 71-68 to the Vikings.

Rallying from an 11-point halftime deficit to knot the game at 68 apiece in the final minutes of the second half, a pair of free throws by PSU with 1:24 to play put the Vikings up a pair.

Tennessee Rainwater missed a pair of free throw with six seconds remaining that would have tied the game as a last-second three-point attempt from Britton Berrett came up short.

Senior guard Beon Riley tallied his third straight double-double matching his career high with 22 points and added 12 rebounds

Redshirt senior guard Justin Bieker, a Portland native, registered a career-high 19 points in his return to his hometown, and added a career-best six rebounds, along with a pair of steals and an assist.

Where The Blazers Rank in the WAC/NCAA
Utah Tech leads the WAC in three point defense limiting opponents to 30.5 percent shooting from downtown. The Trailblazers are also second in three point attempts per game (22.8) & turnovers per game (10.7)

Individually, Riley leads the WAC in double-doubles (4) and is third in rebounds (68) and rebounds per game (8.5).

Noa Gonsalves sits atop the WAC in steals (16), is third in three-point field goals made (19) and fourth in minutes per game (33:12).

First in the Division I Era
Riley's three straight double-doubles are a first for a Trailblazer in the Division I era.

He also became the first Trailblazer to notch back-to-back double-doubles since Quincy Mathews did it at UC San Diego and vs. Cal Poly Pomona on Nov. 11 & Nov. 12, 2016.

Road Trip Wraps Up This Week
Tuesday's game is the seventh of an eight-game road swing as Utah Tech does not return to Burns Arena until facing Weber State on Dec. 13.     

The Trailblazers will be one of 18 Division I teams in 2024-25 who will go at least 30 days in between home games. Bethune-Cookman leads the country going 63 days (Nov. 16-Jan. 18) between home contests.

Riley & Hakim Byrd Earn All-Tournament Honors
Riley notched two double-doubles at the Stew Morrill Classic averaging 14.0 points per game & 8.7 rebounds per game.         

Byrd scored a Division I career high 23 points in the tournament opener against CSUN and averaged 12.3 points and three assists per game.

Stellar Defense
The 54 points the Trailblazers allowed on Nov. 26 against Denver were the fewest points an opponent has scored since Dec. 2, 2023 when UT held Utah Valley to 53 points in a 65-53 win in the 2023-24 home opener.

Big Win Over DU
UT's 14-point win over Denver is the largest margin of victory over a Division I team for the Trailblazers since a 17-point win at home over UTRGV on Feb. 1, 2024.

Gonsalves Closing in on Record
After playing in his 100th career game against CSUN on Nov. 24, Gonsalves sits atop the career three-point field goal attempts (437) and enters Tuesday only three three-pointers shy of breaking the record for career three pointers made (166 - Brandon Simister).

What's Next
Utah Tech wraps up their eight-game road swing on Saturday night at Utah State (7-0) at 7 p.m. at Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.