Boise State men’s basketball assistant coach retires, leaving two openings on Leon Rice’s staff

Tim Duryea spent eight seasons with Broncos

Tim Duryea. | Troy Babbitt-Imagn Images

Boise State men’s basketball assistant coach Tim Duryea is retiring, the program announced on Friday in a statement. 

Duryea, 61, joined head coach Leon Rice’s staff in 2018 and spent eight seasons with the Broncos. He functioned as the team’s offensive coordinator with fellow assistant Mike Burns handling the defense. 

“Tim Duryea was the consummate pro,” Rice said in a press release. “He added so much to our staff, starting with being an amazing coach and a great person. We were blessed to have him for eight years, and in that time, he made me so much better. I learned a great amount from him, and I know our staff did as well. We’re grateful for him.”

Before joining Rice’s staff, Duryea spent the previous 17 seasons at Utah State. He was an assistant under longtime head coach Stew Morrill from 2001-15 and held the associate head coach title from 2008-15.

When Morrill retired, Utah State promoted Duryea to head coach. He went 47-49 in three years at the helm with no postseason appearances and was fired in March 2018.

Duryea helped lead the Broncos to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances in 2022-24. 

Like many football offensive coordinators, Duryea regularly received criticism from Boise State fans when the offense sputtered. 

The Broncos ranked No. 65 in KenPom’s offensive rating last year, which was a significant tick down from the 2024-25 season (No. 39). 

Duryea is the second coach to leave Rice’s staff this offseason. Back in April, Lexus Williams left to go coach under Niko Medved at Minnesota. Medved, who went 143-85 in seven seasons at Colorado State, guided the Golden Gophers to a 15-18 record in his first year at the helm. 

Williams played for Boise State during the 2017-18 season, starting all 32 games and averaging 9.5 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists. Williams spent his first three college seasons at Valparaiso.

Max Rice, the son of coach Rice, is widely expected to be added to the staff. Max Rice appeared in 160 games for the Broncos from 2019-24 and was a two-time all-Mountain West selection. 

The Broncos, who are set to enter the Pac-12 in July, finished 20-12 overall last season with a 12-8 record in MWC play. Boise State declined a postseason bid. 

The new nine-team Pac-12 will feature current members Oregon State and Washington State, Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State of the MWC, Gonzaga of the West Coast Conference and Texas State of the Sun Belt.