BOISE, Idaho – Marcus Shaver, Jr. went 6-6 from the free-throw line in the final minute-and-a-half to ice a 73-69 victory for Boise State men’s basketball over UNLV, Sunday night at ExtraMile Arena.
The Rebels (16-11, 5-10 MW) executed an alley-oop play that cut the Broncos’ lead to two points with 2:13 remaining in the game. Boise State (21-6, 11-3 MW) grew the lead back to six before a second-chance triple from the Rebels and Shave returned to the charity stripe with 18 seconds on the clock on the ensuing possession.
After Shaver sank the pair of free throws, UNLV responded with another 3-pointer at the other end to once again make it a one-possession game. Shaver was sent back to the line for a third time in the final, and the Bronco guard took advantage of the opportunity to put the game away for good.
UNLV led for the majority of the first half before the Boise State defense came alive, limiting the Rebels to just three field goals and forcing eight turnovers in the final 10 minutes of the period to take a 38-32 lead entering halftime. The Broncos never trailed in the second half, and held the lead for all but 43-seconds in the final 20 minutes.
Top Broncos
- Marcus Shaver, Jr. finished with a game-high 19 points on 8-of-8 shooting from the free throw line to go with five rebounds and four steals.
- Max Rice dropped 17 points and eight rebounds.
- Naje Smith posted 13 points, four rebounds and three blocks – his fifth game this season blocking at least three shots.
Quotables
- “This league has been great,” said head coach Leon Rice. “We embrace the competition and our guys have been fabulous in the fact that we have to play good to win these games. You don’t have to be perfect and make all your shots, but you have to be able to get stops when you need them, make free throws when you need them and do whatever it takes. These guys have been doing that and that’s a great quality to have.
- “Everybody in the locker room is hungry,” said Marcus Shaver, Jr. “We know that we’re so close to our goal and that we can’t take a day off. We just have to come in with the one-game-at-a-time mentality and just be ready to fight every game. Nothing is given in the Mountain West.”
- “I think they [UNLV] are one of the better Quad-3 teams in the nation,” said Max Rice. “We were a little worried about them. You saw the potential they have to make threes, and if you don’t help they’re going to drive into the lane. They’re super athletic – we knew that coming in – and they put up a great fight. It was a good Mountain West game tonight.”
Notables
- Marcus Shaver, Jr. knocked down a free throw in the first half to eclipse 1,000-career points during his time at Boise State.
- Shaver tied his career high with four steals – all in the first half.
- Boise State has won seven-straight games against UNLV, and have won eight of the last 10 meetings.
- Boise State has now won 12-straight games at ExtraMile Arena – matching the previous longest home win streak from Feb. 23, 2020 to Feb. 19, 2021.
- The Broncos have held opponents to fewer than 70 points in 21 games this season.
- Max Rice reached double figures in the first half for the 11th time this season.
Up Next
The Broncos continue to defend ExtraMile Arena as they invite New Mexico to town for a conference clash, Wednesday (Feb. 22). The game will be nationally televised on FS1, with tipoff scheduled for 8:30 p.m. MT.
