Needing bounce-back win, Boise State travels to hostile Pit. Last year? It ‘was awful’

Boise State continues a daunting stretch in its Mountain West basketball schedule Wednesday at one of the most hostile environments in the country.

The Broncos are on the road to face No. 19 New Mexico (8:30 p.m., FS1) at The Pit — a 15,000-seat arena that comes close to filling up more often than not and has left more than one team feeling unwelcome over the years.

The Lobos (18-3, 6-2 Mountain West) are 11-0 at home this season, and the list of teams that have succumbed to the atmosphere in The Pit includes San Diego State, No. 17 Utah State and Nevada.

New Mexico is averaging 12,475 fans at home this season. More than 15,000 have packed the arena three times, including a season-high 15,437 who watched the Lobos beat then-No. 19 San Diego State 88-70 on Jan 13. The official seating capacity is listed as 15,041.

On Monday, Boise State coach Leon Rice called The Pit one of the top five venues in the country.

“It can really rain down on you, it’s so loud in there,” Rice said. “I don’t ever remember it not being loud. They make a shot and it kind of caves in on you. It’s a different kind of crowd, too.”

Before the NCAA Tournament made huge arenas and domes the host sites for later rounds, The Pit hosted the 1983 Final Four. N.C. State and Jim Valvano completed their underdog run to the title by upsetting Houston in the championship game.

Rice has his own complicated history with the arena. He had an altercation with members of the New Mexico baseball team at halftime of an 81-79 overtime loss in Albuquerque last January, which led him to call out the Lobos’ administration for poor game management.

“I’ve been coaching 35 years, and I’ve never had to deal with something like that,” he told KBOI radio after the game. “I thought it was really unprofessional by them, and their administration said that, but you don’t want (apologies), you want better game management. That was awful.”

The Broncos (14-6, 5-2 MW) are 3-8 all-time on the Lobos’ home court and 2-3 in their past five trips. Rice said he hopes playing in hostile environments at Clemson, The State Farm Field House in Orlando, Florida, Spokane Arena and Nevada’s Lawlor Events Center this season have prepared his team for the test.

Rice also knows his Broncos can’t afford many more setbacks if they want to stay in the race for one of the top seeds in the Mountain West Tournament and keep their NCAA Tournament resume looking good. Boise State is coming off a 90-84 overtime loss to Utah State on Saturday at home, and road games at Colorado State (Feb. 6) and Utah State (Feb. 10) are looming.

New Mexico is the third ranked team the Broncos have faced in less than a month. Utah State was No. 18 last week and Colorado State was ranked No. 17 before losing at ExtraMile Arena on Jan. 9.

“The more experience you get with that, the better you get at it,” Rice said of playing in big games in hostile environments. “We have some experience with it, and we’ve been a pretty good road team.”

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The Lobos are ‘clicking’

Rice said Monday that New Mexico doesn’t just have an impressive home-court advantage this year. The Lobos have a team that he said could be one of the best in the country.

Coach Richard Pitino’s squad has won five straight, including an 89-55 drubbing of Nevada on Sunday. The Lobos lead the Mountain West with 84.4 points a game and a +15.7-point scoring margin. They also lead the conference with 11.9 offensive rebounds a game and rank No. 2 with 27 defensive rebounds a night.

“They’ve got veteran guys that are playing with confidence and freedom, and they’ve all settled into a system that fits them,” Rice said. “They’re clicking as well as anyone in the country.”

New Mexico is anchored by a veteran group of guards. Jamal Mashburn Jr. and Jaelen House are both three-year starters. Mashburn is a two-time All-Mountain West pick who leads the Lobos with 15.6 points per game this season.

House was named Mountain West Player of the Week on Monday after he led the Lobos with 21 points, six assists and six steals in a win over Nevada and 18 points and four assists against San Jose State. He is the third player in conference history to have consecutive seasons with at least 500 points and 125 assists, and he’s the No. 2 scorer on the team (15.3 points). He also has 63 assists.

Sophomore point guard Donovan Dent is new to the starting lineup this year, but he averages 14.8 points a game and leads the team with 121 assists. Rice called him one of the best point guards in the conference.

“It just seems like they’ve got great chemistry,” Rice said of the trio. “I think people were anxious to see how those three can fit together, and it looks like they’re fitting like a glove.”

New Mexico’s big men, Broncos’ big players

New Mexico added some muscle in the paint this year. Six-foot-9 forward JT Toppin averages 13.0 points and 8.1 rebounds a night. He was just named Mountain West Freshman of the Week after averaging 9.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in a pair of wins last week. He has earned the honor seven times this season.

Nelly Joseph, a 6-10, 240-pound senior, transferred to New Mexico from Iona last April. He’s averaging 9.3 points and 7.7 rebounds a game.

Boise State’s O’Mar Stanley posted 20 points and nine rebounds before fouling out in the opening minute of overtime in the Broncos’ loss to Utah State. He’s going to need some help Wednesday night from veterans Chibuzo Agbo and Max Rice, who shot a combined 8-for-29 from the floor against the Aggies.

Rice has especially been struggling to get shots to fall. He’s been held to four field goals or fewer in six of the Broncos’ past seven games, including a 1-for-8 effort against San Diego State. Rice, a sixth-year senior, is shooting just 34% from the floor but 32% from 3-point range.

Leon Rice isn’t concerned with his son’s shooting drought, though.

“Ultimately, it’s on the guy shooting, because if you’re going to shoot, you have to get it done,” he said. “(Max) has been through stuff like this before and he’ll pull out of it.”