BOISE, Idaho — Marcus Shaver Jr. is accustomed to game-winning shots. In his career, he has made five game-tying or game-winning shots in the last 30 seconds of a match.
His fifth came Tuesday against San Jose State when the ball was inbounded to him with 22 seconds left in the game. He took dribbles at the top of the key, drove right with six seconds left, and performed a combination of dribble moves making the defender stumble. He pulled up for three and sunk it with 2.3 seconds left on the clock.
San Jose State called a time-out as Shaver Jr. celebrated with his arms up.
The time left wasn't enough for San Jose State to get a clean shot off and the Broncos went on to win for their first Mountain West win of the season.
Head coach Leon Rice had some high praise for the fifth-year guard.
“He takes it to another level. He’s maybe one of the most clutch players I’ve ever coached. When he snapped that off the way he did, man I knew it was good. The way that ball started spinning, I was like ‘that’s good.’”
Watching the game though, you might not have thought the game needed last-second heroics. Boise State led by 14 points early in the second half, but due to poor shooting numbers and seven turnovers, San Jose got back in the game, even leading around the tree minute mark.
The second-half surge was led by San Jose State's Omari Moore who had 18 points in the half including a ridiculous one-handed slam on Naje Smith.
"He's a great player. He's just developed, every year he's gotten better," said Rice about Moore. "Credit to San Jose State, man. That is a really good basketball team that we just beat. The proof is in the pudding. It's not like 'oh they're coming close,' no. In the last two weeks, they've beaten Santa Clara at Santa Clara, UNLV, and (a win) at Colorado State."
Although he got dunked on, Smith had a good second half to keep Boise State in the game. Smith, Tyson Degenhart, and Chubuzo Agbo combined for 21 points of the Broncos' 26 points in that half. Agbo led the team in scoring with 15.
Despite Smith's big half, he was quick to give the praise to who he saw as the night's hero.
“We have the ball with 20 seconds," Said Smith describing the game-winning shot. "We got Shaver in the game and we got a tie ball game where you can just be free and kind of hoop. That’s the best time, most fun time, to play with. If you miss you go into overtime if you make it you’re the hero, and we know who the hero of this story is."
The gauntlet of the Mountain West continues on Saturday afternoon as Utah State comes to Boise. The Aggies are 13-2 overall and 2-0 in the conference after a convincing win over Air Force Tuesday.
"We have a Mountain to climb," said Shaver Jr. "We just want to go 1-0 every day. We just got to keep this thing going."
