Wyoming vs. Boise State Mountain West Championship Semifinal Free Picks for March 11 (Archive)
The Mountain West has reached the semifinals of its conference tournament, and the seeding has held as the league’s top four teams will be playing for berths in the finals. In the first game of the night, top-seeded Boise State will take on No. 4 seed Wyoming.
The Cowboys advanced with a 59-56 win over UNLV. Boise State survived against No. 8 Nevada, 71-69. Wyoming is favorite at top-rated sportsbooks.
Wyoming Cowboys vs. Boise State Broncos
Friday, 11 March 2022, 09:30 PM EST at Thomas & Mack Center
The Mountain West has reached the semifinals of its conference tournament, and the seeding has held as the league’s top four teams will be playing for berths in the finals.
In the first game of the night, top-seeded Boise State will take on No. 4 seed Wyoming. The Cowboys advanced with a 59-56 win over UNLV to move to 25-7 on the year. Wyoming was 13-5 in the Mountain West regular season.
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Boise State survived against No. 8 Nevada, 71-69 to move to 25-7, 15-3. The two teams split their regular-season meetings, with each winning on its home floor. Boise State won 65-62 in late January, while Wyoming took the rematch, 72-65, nine days later.
The winner of the rubber game in the series will advance to face the winner of No. 2 Colorado State vs. No. 3 San Diego State on Saturday for the Mountain West championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
Both teams could use the automatic bid. Right now, Boise State is slotted as a No. 7 seed in the NCAA Tournament, according to ESPN bracketology, but could slip if they don’t pair their regular-season title with a tournament championship. Right now, Wyoming is projected to be one of the final four teams in with a trip to the play-in round in Dayton, but obviously, the Cowboys could slip to either side of the bubble in the next two days.
Getting Back on Track
Wyoming’s win on Thursday helped the Cowboys string together back-to-back wins for the first time since before Valentine’s Day. After winning six straight to move to 21-3, the Cowboys lost four of their next six.
Wyoming won the regular-season finale over Fresno State, in overtime, then survived UNLV by three. The quarterfinal game mimicked the turns their season has taken down the stretch. Things seemed fine as the Cowboys held a 13-point lead, but Wyoming spiraled and gave it all up, falling behind by four, late before finishing strong.
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The team was boosted by a large contingent of fans who made the trip to Las Vegas. Brendan Wenzel, who finished with 12 points, said it “felt like a home-court advantage.”
Wyoming has the No. 54 offense in the country, according to efficiency ratings, but the Cowboys depended on their defense for the win. “We know at the end of the day it’s our defense that gives us a chance to win a championship", said head coach Jeff Linder.
Holding on to Advance
Boise State also sweated out its quarterfinal win, which wasn’t in the bag until a potential game-winning three by Nevada rimmed out in the final seconds.
The Broncos fell behind by eight points in the first half and struggled with 16 turnovers on the night, but they were able to hold on and bounce back from a loss to Colorado State in the regular-season finale. Boise State has won six of the last seven, although things have been dramatic. The last five games have all been settled by 10 points or fewer.
Boise has the No. 23 most efficient defense and No. 70 offense. They’re led by Abu Kigab, who is the team’s top scorer at 14.6. He poured in 22 to top all Broncos scorers in Thursday’s game. Marcus Shaver Jr. is second on the team at 14.0 ppg and had 15 to help hold off Nevada.
The Pick
Wyoming’s defense could be the difference in this one. While both teams have strong offenses, the Cowboys may have the edge on the other end of the floor. Boise State shot just 6-of-24 from three in the last matchup against Wyoming, one of the two worst shooting nights since late November for the Broncos. Look for Wyoming to hold Boise State in check just enough to slip by.
NCAAB Pick: Wyoming +2.5 (-110) at BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review)
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