Boise State sweeps Utah State to remain in first place in the Mountain West

BOISE, Idaho — The Boise State Broncos defeated Utah State 81-77 on Friday night, the win completed a two-game sweep of the Aggies at Extra Mile Arena this week.

However, these wins didn't come easy and Boise State never had the lead until the 14:40 mark of the second half, but they were able to make enough plays down the stretch to get the victory.

Derrick Alston Jr. led the way with 23 points, but the Broncos had four players in double figures and Mladen Armus hit the two biggest shots of the game.

“They made great passes to get him the ball but he made terrific finishes over one of the best shot blockers in the country," said head coach Leon Rice. "They played so hard we played so hard, they punched we counter-punched that was an Extra Mile Classic right there.”

Utah State's Neemias Queta had another monster game scoring 30 points and grabbing 11 rebounds, in the two games combined Queta had 62 points and 21 boards.

But in the second half, Boise State shot 74 percent from the field as they shared the basketball and ran their offense like a well-oiled machine.

“That's a good observation because that's the talk we had at halftime," said Rice.

The win keeps Boise State in first place in the Mountain West Conference, but next week they have another tough challenge as they play a pair at San Diego State.

“We are hungry," said Abu Kigab. "I have had that game marked since last year, I'm very excited to play them.”

The game was also the second time fans were able to cheer on the Broncos inside the arena on Friday night there were 872 fans compared to 692 on Wednesday.