Broncos Fall to NC State 60-54

The Boise State Broncos traveled to Raleigh, North Carolina for a post-Thanksgiving tilt with the North Carolina State Wolfpack. Unfortunately for the Broncos, the cross-country trip and the post-turkey hangover was too much to overcome as they fell 60-54. The loss drops them to 4-2 on the year.

NC State will inevitably be a pretty decent ACC team (they were picked to finish 9th in the preseason ACC poll), so a six-point loss isn't that bad. It does mean, however, Boise State will fail to grab a win from their two best non-conference opponents (Wisconsin being the other).

The offense is still a work in progress and it doesn't seem like the players are meshing all that well so far. Against NC State, Boise State only shot 28.6% from beyond the arc, which will almost always mean a loss for this team. Combined with Derrick Marks and Anthony Drmic combining for 17 points, it's pretty remarkable the Broncos didn't lose by more.

One reason the Broncos were able to cut it to a one-point deficit with 1:29 left was the play of James Webb III. Up until this game, Webb III had only played a grand total of 13 minutes in three games and failing to score over those appearances. Tonight, he played 14 minutes and might have been Boise State's most valuable player. He was perfect from the field, played good defense, and provided the much desired combination of length and athleticism this Broncos team has been lacking. If nothing else, he has earned many more minutes in the games to come.

The Broncos return to the court Dec. 6th @ Saint Mary's.