What head coach Leon Rice said ahead of Boise State’s rematch with San Diego State

The Boise State men’s basketball team holds an 11-1 record at ExtraMile Arena this season.

The one loss came in early January against San Diego State, a game in which the Aztecs (16-6, 9-4) out-rebounded Boise State (17-7, 9-4) by a 39-29 margin.

“They played a great game here. They out-toughed us, no doubt about it,” Broncos head coach Leon Rice said during Thursday’s media availability. Boise State will try to even the season series with the Aztecs at 8 p.m. Mountain time Saturday at Viejas Arena.

“We’ve had some epic battles with (San Diego State), and those battles certainly are fought everywhere, especially on the boards. Because they are always a great rebounding team, we’ve had great rebounding teams, and it’s two really good rebounding teams going at it.”

Both teams are on the NCAA Tournament bubble entering Saturday’s showdown. Boise State is up to No. 46 in the NCAA NET Rankings while San Diego State has slipped to No. 53.

Here are the highlights from Rice’s media availability:

On the rivalry with SDSU

“When I got into this league … we came from the WAC and in this league, they were the gold standard, no doubt about it. I remember my first few teams, I’m looking down at our bench, then I’m looking at theirs and I’m like ‘Man, I’ve got to have my team look a little bit more like them.’ It was something that we recruited. We’ve had a lot of great athletes come through here because of the way they played, their athleticism and the physicality it took.

“It made me a better coach, too, because I’d be complaining to the refs. … Those guys are physical for 40 minutes and they don’t get called for fouls. Well, they coached them really good. Going back to (Steve) Fisher and those guys and (Brian Dutcher), they know how to coach defense better than maybe anybody in the country. They coach a physical brand that works in the fact of how physical they are and how aggressive they are while not fouling every possession.”

On Boise State’s evolution since the SDSU loss

“It seems a lot different when I look at it, when I watch that tape. That’s the interesting thing about a 20-game conference schedule, you’re going back and watching some tapes and are like ‘Whoa, that seemed like a long time ago.’

“So yeah, there’s been a lot of changes for us, I know that. We’re just like everybody else. I think most good teams right now are still works in progress and finding ways to get better, and I think that’s where we’re at.”

On how SDSU held Tyson Degenhart to nine points in January

“They did a good job of doubling him and getting the ball out of his hands quite a bit. They were just really aggressive with him. He shot a lot of free throws, but when your best player only gets seven shots, that’s probably not enough.”

On Boise State’s improving defense

“I think it’s an accumulation of learning about our defense and what it takes. … You make a jump when all five guys are connected, whether it’s defense or offense. You can’t make a jump if one guy is off. When we were playing so many guys, it kind of lent itself to that.

“When we have five guys out there that are clicking together, it’s really helped our defense. And understanding it better.”

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