What Leon Rice said after Boise State knocks off Utah State in Mountain West Conference play

The Boise State men’s basketball team pulled away down the stretch Wednesday night for an 82-65 Mountain West Conference victory over Utah State.

The Broncos, who led 37-31 at halftime, out-scored the Aggies 45-34 after the break to earn a regular-season split. Utah State (24-5, 14-4) secured an 81-79 victory in the first meeting between the teams.

“That was a game where you’re going to have to wear those guys down,” Boise State head coach Leon Rice said after the win. “Wear them down with your bodies, and we’ve got a lot of good bodies that can do that.”

It was Boise State’s (20-8, 12-5) second straight home victory against a team at the top of the MWC standings. Last Wednesday, the Broncos scored a massive 86-78 win over New Mexico (22-6, 14-3) at ExtraMile Arena.

Tyson Degenhart, the reigning MWC Player of the Week, led the way with 21 points while Andrew Meadow (17 points, five rebounds) and Alvaro Cardenas (16 points, seven rebounds, six assists) also shined.

Boise State, which has won three straight games entering Saturday’s road matchup with Fresno State (5-23, 1-16), is firmly on the NCAA Tournament bubble.

Mason Falslev paced Utah State with 19 points, three rebounds and three assists.

Here are the highlights from Rice’s postgame radio interview.

On Boise State’s improving defense

“When I watched the tape from when we played them down there, we did great things on offense, but we didn’t do a very good job defensively. I mean, (Utah State) did both. They got to drive and they got to shoot 3s.

“They are really, really good. They put a lot of pressure on the rim, they attack you really well and they get you spread out. And if they’re going by you and getting to the rim unabated, that opens up 3s for them and all the things start clicking. We’ve connected our defense where we’re in the gaps better, we understand it better.”

On Alvaro Cardenas setting up the offense

“He just knows when and where to get those guys the ball. These guys are pretty lucky to play with a point guard like Al, and they know it. And they’re doing a better job of getting open. When they get open, they know they’ll get the ball.”

On the near-capacity crowd at ExtraMile Arena

“Great job by our fans. … To all the kids that came out tonight on a school night at 8:30, I know that’s rough on families, but they saw a great performance by the Broncos and two good college basketball teams.”

MORE BOISE STATE NEWS & ANALYSIS

A thorough beatdown: 3 takeaways from Boise State’s convincing victory over Utah State

NET Rankings update: Boise State among four Mountain West teams inside top 50

Mountain West basketball betting odds: New Mexico favored to win regular-season title

SDSU athletic director says Pac-12 will have TV deal soon; Expansion comes next

NFL combine preview: Ahmed Hassanein, Ashton Jeanty represent Boise State in Indianapolis

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Continue to follow our Boise State coverage on social media by liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter.