The Spartans versus the Spuds

It's SJSU going up against Idaho tomorrow at noon. It's a Vandal team that went 9-7 in conference play, (tied for third place) 18-12 overall.

Coach Don Verlin's team is not an overpowering squad, more appropriately described as the epitome of the whole being better than the sum of the parts. That formula bodes well when all the elements are working together smoothly, such as the February 9 64-56 home win against Utah State. But then there was the November 22 75-33 road loss to Montana when all was off-kilter. The January 22 71-56 loss to Louisiana Tech probably falls somewhere in-between -- some parts in synch with others haywire.

Which group of Vandals will be on display Thursday is anyone's guess.

Plus, will Idaho be rested or stale? Again, who knows?

The two players who usually do the most damage are:

Guard Jeff Ledbetter, a second team All-WAC honoree is the team barometer. He buried 55 treys in WAC action, totaled 15.1 points per game, was tops in free throw percentage at 87% and third in steals. He's not necessarily a creator, benefiting more from coming off screens for open looks, a la what Utah State (Verlin's previous address) utilizes. Ledbetter needs to be on for the Vandals to succeed.

Center Kyle Barone averaged 13.2 points and six rebounds per game in WAC play, shooting an amazing 61% from the floor. He also possesses excellent hands so Idaho rarely commits turnovers on entry passes to him. He does need added weight and strength though.

Verlin's guys are obviously handling a number of on-court matters efficiently. They are shooting 47% overall (tops in the WAC) versus SJSU's 40%, 39% to 36% in treys.

The comparative filed goal percentage defense numbers are 41% for the Vandals to the Spartans' 45%. In defending the three-pointer, Idaho is holding opponents to 30% to SJSU's 35%.

San Jose State leads 37 to 32 in rebounding numbers.

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Can anything be gleaned from the previous two meetings between these teams?

SJSU wins in double overtime 92-89
February 3, 2011

What quickly became apparent is that neither team was going to run away from the other -- the Idaho and San Jose State squads were very evenly matched on the 30 degree night in Moscow. That was outside, thankfully not inside the Cowan Spectrum, for the literal-minded.

At the half, the score was 29-28. Adrian Oliver led SJSU with 12 points (5-9 shooting) and Justin Graham contributed nine.

At the 15:53 mark of the second 20 minutes, it was the Spartans ahead 33-32. SJSU upped the margin to two, 42-40, with 12:59 showing.

San Jose State was down by four at the 7:45 mark but an Oliver and1 three-point play cut it to one.

Eventually, a Jeff Ledbetter trey upped the Vandal margin to six, 55-49. Brandon Wiley put back in an offensive rebound to make it eight.

With 3:55 on the clock, Graham followed with his own and1 three-point effort to reduce the deficit to five.

Kyle Barone scored inside, was fouled and nailed the free throw, boosting the point differential back to eight.

Oliver then tickled the twine with a hook shot.

With 2:31 showing, Shawn Henderson sank two free throws to make it 62-54.

Barone's jumphook in the paint made it 10.

Graham followed with a jumper from the foul line.

After a steal by Wil Carter, Keith Shamburger was fouled in the act of shooting. He sank both, making it 64-58 at the 1:58 mark.

Wiley was fouled in the lane with 1:16 showing and made both -- score 66-58.

Carter grabbed a loose ball and scored with 58 seconds left.

Shamburger tipped the ball away from his opponent, Graham got it and hit Shamburger with a pass. The freshman backcourter scored, was fouled by Wiley and made the free throw. making it 66-63 at the 45 second mark.

Carter was then elbowed by Wiley who was called for an intentional foul. Carter was awarded a pair of free throws -- he missed the first and then the second. SJSU then was awarded possession with 23 seconds left.

Graham quickly nailed a top of the key trey with 18 second showing.

Idaho got the last shot attempt but it wasn't close, creating an overtime period.

Oliver was fouled and missed both free throws. Carter rebounded the second miss and scored on the putback.

Barone was fouled by Matt Ballard and made both.

Oliver entered the lane with the ball, lifted and scored. He also was fouled and he notched a three-point play. SJSU led 71-68.

But Jeff Ledbetter came down and sank his own trey attempt,. making it 71 all.

London Tatum was fouled on a driving layup attempt, sending him to the foul line. He missed the first but made the second.

Oliver put in a leftside trey but Matt Ballard was called for an intentional foul, sending Barone to the charity stripe. He made both and Idaho also retained possession of the ball.

Luiz Toledo buried a jumper to put Idaho ahead 76-74.

Henderson then buried a leftside three-pointer after stealing a pass.

Graham was fouled on a dribble-drive, sank both and cut the margin to 79-76.

1:40 shone on the clock.

Idaho missed a shot and Oliver rebounded.

With 37 seconds remaining, Carter put back a miss by Shamburger.

The Vandals led by one.

Tatum, a 61% free throw shooter, was fouled with 27 second sleft.

He made the first, then the second and Idaho was up three.

At the eight second mark, Keith Shamburger scored on a three-pointer, evening up the game.

Idaho called timeout with six seconds.

But Kyle Barone missed a turnaround jumper, sending the game into a second overtime.

Carter won the tip, Shamburger missed but Carter rebounded. Another trey attempt by Shamburger was good.

Ledbetter missed his own trey attempt but Idaho rebounded. Shamburger was called for a reach in foul on Luiz Toledo. The latter sank the first but missed the second.

Graham hit Shamburger with a pass and the frosh nailed another trey, making it 87-82.

Idaho missed a three-pointer but SJSU committed a turnover. It was 87-84 after Toledo hit another jumper.

A couple of missed shots later, Idaho got the ball. Ledbetter rebounded a miss and was fouled. He made both -- the score 87-86 with 1:42 showing.

Graham scored on a jumper, boosting the lead back to three.

But Ledbetter scored on a leftside trey, evening up the game.

Shamburger was fouled with 23 seconds left. He missed the first and sank the second.

SJSU led by one, 90-89.

Ledbetter then missed on a drive, Ballard rebounded and Carter scored on a dunk to finally close out the marathon.

Justin Graham paced the Spartans with 28 points. Adrian Oliver contributed 25, Keith Shamburger 20 and Wil Carter 17.

and

Here's our game report Walt McPherson Court from January 8, 2011:

Spartans fall to Idaho 75-67

It was 'Famous Potatoes' times two this week for San Jose State but neither game left a pleasant aftertaste as Idaho also topped the Spartans tonight 75-67.

SJSU led 35-27 after the initial 20 minutes, looking in a degree of command if not control, but the Vandals lived up to their forebearers namesake in the second half with a 48-32 rampage.

The last eight minutes of the matchup was an Idaho scoring blitz. Adrian Oliver led with 25 points. Justin Graham passed for nine assists while Brylle Kamen topped the Spartans in rebounding with 11, his second straight double figures outing. He played 29 minutes, making his first appearance as a starter. Calvin Douglas contributed 12 on 5-7 shooting from the floor, 2-4 on trey attempts.

Deremy Geiger led Don Verlin's squad with 17 points but four other Vandals finished in double figures: Luiz Toledo and Jeff Ledbetter with 13 apiece and Shawn Herson and Kyle Barone each totaling 11. Toledo led the board effort with nine rebounds. Idaho shot 50% for the game to SJSU's 37%. Each of the other statistical categories were either a wash or close to it.

+++++

The Vandal Starting Five

* Deremy Geiger 5-11 (on a 'long' day) -- 51/25 assist to turnover ratio, 3.2 assists-per-game, the most creative of the Vandals but is usually very on or off.

* Jeff Ledbetter 6-2 -- 15.1 ppg., 46% on three-pointers (55-119), 87% on free throws (42-48)

* Shawn Henderson 6-3 -- 43% (19-44) on treys

* Luiz Toledo 6-8 -- 10.0 ppg., shooting 58% (52-90), he's a banger inside

* Kyle Barone 6-10 -- -- 13.2 ppg., 64% shooting overall (69-107), 78% (47-60) free throws, six boards a contest, he's slim but long and needs to be kept out of any sort of shooting rhythm in the paint

Barone and Toledo may start upfront or Verlin may go with one or the other plus Brandon Wiley -- all dependent on his desire for certain matchups

Off The Bench

* Brandon Wiley 6-5 -- a glue guy, he isn't outstanding in any one thing but rebounds, blocks shots and scores inside on putbacks and the like

* Landon Tatum 5-11 -- top assist-to-turnover ratio in the WAC 56-21, 3.5 assists a game

* Stephen Madison 6-5 -- a burly freshman reserve, not shooting particularly well

+++++

The Vandal roster (alphabetized, by position)

Matt Borton G 6-5 180 Fr
Deremy Geiger G 5-11 170 Jr.
Shawn Henderson G 6-3 178 Sr.
Jeff Ledbetter G 6-2 195 Sr.
Shayne Sheridan G 6-0 170 Jr. (walk-on)
Landon Tatum G 5-11 196 Jr.

Brandon Wiley F 6-5 218 Sr.
Paul Jorg F 6-8 200 Fr. (walk-on)
Stephen Madison F 6-5 215 Fr.
Luiz Toledo F 6-8 225 Jr.

Kyle Barone C 6-10 220 So.
Joe Kammerer C 6-9 241 Fr. (redshirted last year)

San Jose State beats Hawaii 75-74

Everybody likes something free. Can we all agree on that? Well, all those connected with Hawaii basketball would beg to differ. The Rainbow Warriors put on a pitiful display with its free throw attempts -- 18 for 30 for the game -- and it resulted in paying the price of losing a tourney game.

Hawaii led 59-54 with 9:40 remaining. But at 7:57, it was just 61-60. UH was maintaining a small lead but unable to pull away while the Spartans came close but couldn't tie.

Then SJSU did, followed by a pair of Keith Shamburger free throws putting SJSU up by two. Adrian Oliver followed with his own duet of foul shots.

Bill Amis countered with a solo free throw, making it 69-66, followed by a Vander Joaquim jump hook.

On a pass from Adrian Oliver, Wil Carter banked in a reverse layup to boost the point differential back to three.

Justin Graham then nailed a jumper but subsequently committed his fifth foul. Amis put down a free throw and another, making it 73-70.

An Ostroswki steal resulted in Zane Johnson scoring on a layup, cutting the Spartan lead to one with 1:04 showing.

Keith Shamburger missed on a jumper and a long rebound had Johnson fouling Calvin Douglas. CD missed and Hawaii came down with Bill Amis being fouled and 21 second remaining.

He made the first, followed by the second and Hawaii led by one 74-73.

Oliver scored on a jumper with seven seconds left. SJSU led 75-74.

Ostroowski missed on a jumper and Amis tipped it back in but an the eventual ruling by the referees waved it off, resulting in the San Jose State victory.

Oliver totaled 29 points (plus seven boards), Carter 15 and Shamburger 12. Amis concluded with 23 points plus six boards. Joston Thomas had 16 and Zane Johnson 14. The 5-foot-9 Ostrowski paced the Rainbow Warriors with eight assists and eight rebounds.

Throughout all this, Matt Ballard picked up his fourth with 16:58 showing. Joe Henson got his fourth at 14:09 and then fouled out at the 11:52 mark. UH had an enormous advantage in the paint but simply couldn't succeed enough at the foul line.

At the half, it was 42-37 in favor of Hawaii. The Spartans started out en fuego and enjoyed a 6-0 lead, holding the advantage until the Rainbow Warriors tied it at 20. UH took its first lead 23-22 with 7:05 remaining.

The numbers after the initial 20 minutes:

* Amis 14 points, Thomas 11 points and five boards, Ostrowski five assists, 61% from the floor, 6-14 at the foul line, 13 assists. three fouls for both Johnson and Trevor Wiseman

* Oliver 16 points, Graham seven points, four rebounds, three assists, 37% shooting, 11 second chance points off five offensive rebounds, three fouls for both Ballard and Henson.

*** A note to Commissioner Benson: please reverse the setup and have the men play the night games and the women the day games. The background noise was akin to a pickup game in our backyard.

A 'hometown' feature on Justin and Adrian

Shooting Stars: Oliver, Graham aim to net WAC title for SJ State
Ron Agostini
Modesto Bee
March 9, 2011

Guess the odds of two basketball players raised a few minutes apart in the Central Valley manning the same backcourt of an NCAA Division I program.

A billion-to-1? Trillion-to-1? More like pick-any-number-to-1.

Adrian Oliver and Justin Graham, the twin longshots at San Jose State, can't believe it themselves. Somehow and someway, the basketball universe funneled them onto the same campus close to home, and it worked...

Go here for the remainder.

A treat from Darren Coelho

Darren Coelho has gone into the proverbial phone booth and returned as Wendell Berry in his annual ode to Spartan basketball and the WAC tournament:

THIS WAC-KY TIME OF YEAR

So the Tournament is here
This WAC-ky time of year
When our hoop teams meet
For a March Roundball treat

We’re here in Vegas
No one had to beg us
Hoops is the game
Tippin’ it for fame

No win and we’re out
We won’t leave any doubt
Survive and advance
& We’re in the Big Dance

Play our best now
It doesn’t matter how
Zone or Man-to-Man
Just do all that we can

Sammy is here with cheer
& our great fans are near
We’re all going to pray
To play another day

Against Ags or Dogs
Assist men or hogs
Or the other Dogs and Ags
Showing Tight-D and sags

The Spartans are here
It’s OUR time of year
Blue and Gold in their seat
Over hardwood 94 feet

It’s now a whole new season
To keep playing is the reason
Use the square if we dare
Just board it if not there

Will it be Broncos or Pack?
With their full-court attack
How about Warriors or Vandals?
Minus bad call scandals

It comes down to this
Shots to swish and to kiss
Lay-ups, dunks, or threes
Just one more game please!

Let’s Go Gold and Blue!
It’s now up to You
We’re all here to cheer
This WAC-ky time of year.

Darren Coelho
Assistant Athletic Director, Ticket Operations
San Jose State University
Adapted February 28, 2011, from Original Version March 9, 2009

Mark Emmons with a feature on Justin Graham

The Mercury News' Mark Emmons has a lengthy feature up today on Justin Graham -- head here.

It's SJSU Wednesday at noon versus Hawaii

So did anyone expect host Fresno State to bop Hawaii 85-70 since UH was riding a five game winning streak and the Bulldogs had lost four consecutive conference contests? Can we get a show of hands? Yes, it's been that kind of season. We loved the opening line from Daniel Lyght's game report that night: "Fresno State's men's basketball players took the floor with a blaze under their butts Saturday night."

It was the second game for Hawaii since leaving the islands and they will not return home until their involvement in the WAC tourney concludes. Maybe some fatigue plus continual unfamiliar surroundings evolving into distraction will set in.

Now it's San Jose State matching (Wednesday, noon, Las Vegas) up with Hawaii for the third time this season opening up the WAC post-season action. Here are our game reports from the earlier contests between these two teams:

March 3, 2011

Spartans fall 77-71

Back and forth. Forth and back. The SJSU - Hawaii matchup was a veritable teeter-totter as neither team could sink the dagger and pull away from the other. One would go up followed by the other regaining ground and taking the lead. Eventually, a critical call took place, changing ball possession and offering UH a pair of free throws and that ultimately determined the outcome.

The final 77-71. Adrian Oliver led the way for San Jose State with 18 points. Justin Graham scored 15 and Keith Shamburger 14. At the forefront of the Hawaii offensive attack was Zane Johnson with 26 points and Bill Amis contributed 18.

Here's how it played out:

A Johnson trey cut the San Jose State lead to one.

Following that, Shamburger missed on a pair of free throws with 2:37 remaining.

Then at the shot clock buzzer, Amis caught net with a 17-foot fadeaway.

At the 1:46 mark and Hawaii ahead by one, UH freshman backcourter Bobby Miles was struck by an elbow went down. The referees checked the video to determine the consequences, if any. It was judged an intentional foul based on the rules established prior to this season.

In a no-brainer, Coach Gib Arnold inserted Bo Barnes for Miles. The sharpshooting frosh sank both free throws, putting the Rainbow Warriors up by three. UH also retained possession. The scoreboard: 71-68

Amis then fouled Wil Carter who sank the first but missed the second, with just over a minute left.

Johnson subsequently buried a long trey to make it 74-69 with 35 ticks showing on the clock.

Oliver was fouled and was good on both his attempts at the line. The scoreboard: 74-71

Amis proved to be a thorn again with a layup that put the Rainbow Warriors up by five.

Subsequently, Shamburger missed a trey attempt which Oliver rebounded but he missed the followup. Barnes rebounded and was fouled.

He was good on the first but erred on the second. Hawaii led by six and the remaining seconds didn't matter.

At the half, it was San Jose State with a one point lead at 37-36. Graham had 12 points and Amis 11 at that point.

and

January 22, 2011

Spartans fall to Hawaii 67-61

The Spartans wore blue and felt that way after giving Hawaii a run on the road before falling 67-61. Elvis was obviously not in the building. Otherwise, it would have been blue Hawaii.

With 11:25 remaining, the score was 47-42, with SJSU down by five.

Later, Justin Graham's jumper at the 6:33 mark cut the deficit to 53-52.

But UH then went on a mini-run, boosting the margin to 61-54 with 4:50 showing.

At that point, Adrian Oliver made one of two free throws but UH's Joston Thomas countered with a pair at the foul line. Hiram Thompson connected on 1 of 2 at the charity line to make it 64-55. An Oliver runner cut the lead to seven.

Bill "Famous" Amis then got free for a dunk and the contest was over minus additional trips to the foul line.

It was inconsistent free-throw shooting hindered SJSU.

Amis totaled 20 points and nine boards. Fellow frontcourter Joston Thomas put up a 14/14 double-double.

Justin Graham led the Spartans with 20 points. He also notched six rebounds and four assists with nary a turnover. Keith Shamburger totaled 12 points with Oliver and Wil Carter contributing 10 apiece. Matt Ballard led in rebounding, corralling 10 boards. SJSU shot 31% overall.

At the half, it was 31-24.

Adrian Oliver returned to the starting lineup tonight. He picked up a pair of somewhat early fouls, thereby missing some of his usual playing time early on. Rebounding totals were fairly even, it seemed like UH big Vander Joaquim was having a block-athon.and the teams went back and forth. Late in the initial 20 minutes, a 9-0 run pushed Hawaii to a 10-point lead until Graham's trey cut it to seven.

The Rainbow Warrior Starting Five (numbers are for WAC games)

* 6-foot-10 sophomore Vander Joaquim -- 11.9 points and 9.1 rebounds per contest, 28 blocked shots, his numbers are improving as the season progresses

* 6-foot-9 senior Bill Amis -- averaging 14.5 points and 7.9 rebounds a game with 31 shotblocks in 14 games

* 6-foot-7 freshman Trevor Wiseman -- label him the Energizer Bunny as he averages just 3.3 points and 3.5 rebounds a game but brings a franticness to the court

* 6-foot-6 junior Zane Johnson -- 15.9 ppg., THE long distance marksman on the team, shooting 41% on trey attempts, 120 of his 182 shots have been three-pointers

* 5-foot-9 junior Jeremiah Ostrowski -- 51/27 assist-to-turnover ratio, can pop from three but is more of a dribble-driver penetrator, had 10 assists with zero turnovers the last time these two teams met

*** Again, 6-foot-3 senior Hiram Thompson, the normal starter at the point, is sidelined with an arm injury

Off The Bench

* 6-foot-7 sophomore Joston Thomas -- 7.7 ppg and 5.3 rpg., is very athletic and best inside but sometimes tries to do too much and goes outside his skills zone

6-foot-1 freshman Bobby Miles -- he's now the backup at the point despite his freshman status

* 7-foot-0 senior Doug Kurtz -- the back-up in the middle, he can score inside

* 6-foot-4 freshman Bo Barnes -- 5.6 ppg., 66 of his 77 shots have been from long distance

Forward Bill Amis was named a member of the All-WAC second team with wing/guard Zane Johnson landing on the Honorable Mention list.

In the most recent game (and loss) to Fresno State, the Bulldogs out-boarded UH 43-30. Will that play out again? SJSU out-rebou7nded UH 38-33 on March 3 but it was 38 apiece on January 22.

As a team, the Rainbow Warriors are shooting 44% in WAC play to 41% for opposing teams.

If Zane Johnson doesn't shoot well from outside, then UH suffers because his teammates, Bo Barnes excepted, don't possess that kind of range.

The UH Roster

Bo Barnes G 6-4 190 Fr.
Bobby Miles G 6-1 190 Fr.
Zane Johnson G 6-6 210 Jr.
Bobby MIles, G, 6-1 190 Fr.
Pi`i Minns G 6-4 180 So. (walk-on)
Jeremiah Ostrowski G 5-9 175 Jr. (walk-on)
Hiram Thompson G 6-3 175 Sr.

Bill Amis F 6-9 235 Sr.
Dominick Brumfield F 6-8 215 So.
Joston Thomas F 6-7 235 So.
Trevor Wiseman F 6-7 210 Fr.

Vander Joaquim C 6-10 245 So. (Angola)
Douglas Kurtz C 7-0 265 Sr. (Brazil)
Davis Rozitis C 7-0 230 So. (Latvia) (redshirting)

San Jose State falls 66-51

It was 44 degrees at game time in Boise, with showers prevailing.The temperature obviously was much more comfortable inside Taco Bell Arena, at least for BSU. But it was also raining inside, with Bronco shot attempts and makes, and Coach Leon Rice's team was comfortable with that 'precipitation' from the get-go and prevailed 66-51.

For the game Boise State shot 46% (11 treys) to 29% for SJSU.

Adrian Oliver led the Spartans with 30 points.

Worth noting even if it a case of coincidentalism: BSU is 8-0 this season in games when senior forward Paul Noonan makes three 3-point shots. Now it's 9-zip as Noonan reached his trey trifecta, plus one.

At the half, it was 32-26 in favor of the Broncos. Oliver had 15 at that point, becoming one with the foul line throughout the initial 20 minutes. For the evening, he went 12-14.

*** Also worthy of mention due to the remarkable point differential is that Utah State defeated host Louisiana Tech tonight 72-30. Wow.

San Jose State at Boise State on Saturday night

SJSU is in Boise on Saturday evening for the final game of the regular season for both teams. Will it be another endurance contest like the last get-together? Four overtimes. 102-101. Remember that? The orange basketball and friends rim and backboard were thisclose to demanding extra pay while the players were beyond huffing and puffing and probably into moaning and groaning (at least the next morning). Justin Graham, who rumor has it as replacing Robert Downey Jr. in the next edition of "Iron Man III," played all 60 minutes.

It's worth noting that the 18-11, 9-6 Broncos are on a four-game conference win streak, six straight counting non-league contests.

Boise State enjoyed its Senior Night earlier this week in a game against Cal State Bakersfield. The reason? Coach Leon Rice recalled that, while being an assistant at Gonzaga, center Ronny Turiaf went scoreless after the pre-game senior-honoring ceremony. Apparently, superstition is going to rule the day, make that the night. But look for something to take place anyway since the Broncos have seven seniors and, more than likely, all the parents could not make it for the earlier, during the week, event.

Here's our game report from the January 6 matchup of these two squads:

Spartans fall 102-101 in four overtime

Based on Robert Arnold's first half offensive output (14 points) and a very solid entire game by point La'Shard Anderson, it looked like Boise State had put the game away. But that was before a streak of poor foul line shooting by the Broncos and a 22-7 Spartan scoring run pushed the matchup into overtime. Then, the game remained tied, forcing a second OT. A last-second San Jose State trey produced a third overtime. Then, a too late BSU shot went in but was disqualified, creating a fourth extra period.

In that fourth five minutes, Boise missed its first shot attempt and SJSU rebounded but also misfired. BSU again was inaccurate but the Spartans committed a turnover. Fatigue was beyond setting in. Finally, La'Shard Anderson scored on a step back jumper. Calvin Douglas countered with an and/1 three-point play, edging the Spartan ahead by one.

Justin Graham missed on a trey attempt but Robert Arnold did likewise. SJSU missed next and Anderson was subsequently fouled. He went to the foul line with his team behind by two, 101-100. Anderson sank the first to tie the game and nailed the second to put the Broncos up by one. The Spartans played to win it with the last possession but BSU nabbed a steal and ran out the clock, winning 102-101.

Anderson scored first in overtime #3, making it 92-90. San Jose State then missed but so did the Broncos. Douglas was fouled and tied up the score. Subsequently, Tre Nichols was fouled on a shot and hit one of two free throws.

Graham was fouled and put in both free throws

Anderson then sank a three-pointer.

Graham drew another foul, hit the first but missed the second -- the score 96-95.

Paul Noonan hit a runner, pushing Boise up by three but Douglas countered with a trey to tie the game.

Anderson then nailed a three-pointer right around the buzzer but did it count? Meaning, was it attempted before the shot clock expired? There was a .9 differential between the shot and game clock.

No.

Come the second five minutes, SJSU missed a shot after winning the jump and Boise then did the same.

Aalim Moor nailed a 10-foot jumper (he didn't play until the second overtime) and Anderson followed with a basket, making it 82 apiece. BSU got a steal and Anderson was fouled on a dribble-drive shot. He was good on both, pushing the Broncos up by two at the 2:19 mark.

Douglas then drained a trey, pushing the Spartans back ahead, 85-84.

On the clock was 1:44.

Nichols hit a 10-foot baseline jumper to make it 86-85 Broncos.

After a missed shot by Anderson, he got his own rebound and then was fouled with 28 seconds remaining. He was good on the first and the second, putting the Broncos up by three.

Graham then blew by everyone and scored on a layup with 21 seconds remaining, making it 88-87.

Noonan was fouled with 12 seconds left.

The senior drained the first and then the second. BSU led by three, 90-87.

With just a second remaining, Douglas fired up a trey out of the corner and it found net, tieing the game.

In the first overtime, Brylle Kamen scored inside to give SJSU a long-sought, hard fought lead. Wil Carter then made one of two free throws.

Nichols countered with a trey to tie.

Graham nailed an in-the-paint jumper to make the lead two. After a steal, Kamen went to the foul line with 56 seconds remaining. He missed the first but made the second to make it 80-77.

Boise's Anderson was then fouled with 36 seconds left. He nailed both to cut the Spartan lead to one.

26.9 seconds remained.

But Westly Perryman stole an inbounds pass and was fouled on a drive to the basket. He put in the first, missed the second and the game was tied.

Kamen missed down low, leaving the score 80-80. and another five minutes

It was 45-39 at the 15:44 mark but the Broncos stretched it to 50-39 with 14 minutes remaining.

Then Boise State went up 55-40 on an 18-8 after halftime Bronco run based on 7-14 shooting -- while the Spartans went 3-14.

Graham's pair of free throws cut the deficit to 59-51 but BSU countered with two from the charity stripe. Carter then nailed two from the foul line but the Broncos Nichols countered with a driving layup. Carter returned to the charity stripe, missed the first and made the second to cut the lead to nine. Noonan's set of free throws pushed it back to 11 with six minutes remaining.

A short Anderson jumper made the lead 13 but Douglas countered with a trey to reduce it to 10 at 67-57.

Nichols hit a second driving jumper making the lead 12.

With 3:59 showing, Daequon Montreal settled in for two free throws. He missed the first and nailed the second, making it 70-57.

Adrian Oliver scored on a layup but was called for an offensive foul -- his fifth -- putting him out of the game. Carter promptly scored on a rebound putback, was fouled, and put in the free throw, making the point difference just eight.

3:59 showed on the clock.

Boise's Noonan missed a jumper and Graham was fouled. He made the first, missed the second and the deficit was seven.

Anderson made a nifty dribble-drive but charged on the play, negating the basket.

Keith Shamburger missed on a long jumper as did Nichols. Then Graham misfired from three-point range.

Anderson was fouled and made one of two from the charity stripe, making it 71-63.

Graham missed on a drive but tipped in his own shot.

Montreal was fouled with 1:05 remaining, missed his first attempt but made the second.

Trailing 72-65 and 0:58 on the clock, Calvin Douglas barely missed his shot attempt but was fouled. He was accurate on both putting the Spartans down by just five, 72-67.

Ryan Watkins then missed both his free throws and Graham nailed a driving layup, making it 72-69.

Anderson was fouled, missed his initial attempt but nailed the second.

With 29 seconds left, Carter nailed a three out of the corner. The score: 73-72

Noonan was fouled, he missed badly on his first but nailed the second, making it 74-72..

27 seconds remained.

On a clearout, Graham nailed an 18-footer to tie the game with 2.9 seconds showing.

It was 37-31 in Boise's favor at the half -- the Broncos shot 54% to 39% for SJSU. Adrian Oliver missed time in the initial 20 minutes after picking up his second foul with 15:54 remaining. The Spartans jumped out to a 6-0 lead on three-pointers by Oliver and Graham but Leon Rice's squad then scored nine straight points. It was 23 all but then BSU began edging ahead.


Leon Rice's Starting Five

Count on Anderson, Arnold and Montreal as sure-fire starters against the Spartans. The other two spots will depend on what the BSU coaching staff deems the best matchups.

* La'Shard Anderson 6-1 170 senior -- he's gaining some recognition for MVP status and was just named the WAC Player of the Week, he is next to impossible to stop on the dribble drive, is scoring 16.7 points while passing for 4.5 assists a game, he must play well for the Broncos to win and he certainly has been doing so

* Jeff Eliorraga 6-2 180 freshman -- he started the last five games despite his frosh and walk-on status, Rice like his steadiness and hustle

* Robert Arnold 6-6 176 senior -- has the ability to go en fuego but is shooting just 37% and 30% respectively in WAC action, averaging 10.7 points and 4.1 rebounds a game, is very athletic, will he be the matchup for AO?

* Darquon Montreal 6-8 230 senior -- very athletic, he's averaging 11.5 points and a team-leading 4.9 rebounds a contest, an inside the paint player

* Ryan Watkins 6-8 247 freshman -- he doesn't play that many minutes but has 5.4 points and 4.0 rebounds a game averages, is an inside scorer

Off The Bench

* Paul Noonan 6-7 210 senior -- the best catch-and-shoot distance shooter on the team, 77 of 111 shot attempts have been treys, averaging 10.2 ppg.

* Westly Perryman 6-1 180 junior -- he's not shooting all that well this season

* Zack Moritz 6-10 239 senior -- shooting 50%, more than half his rebounds have been offensive

* Sean Imadiyi 6-7 215 senior -- athletic but with limited skills and shooting range

* Thomas Bropleh 6-5 203 freshman -- not a big minutes guy but he has been earning more and more PT, shooting 45% overall and 43% from long distance

* Tre Nichols 5-11, 168 junior -- a backup at the point,

The BSU WAC schedule

Dec 29 Louisiana Tech 71 - 60 (W)
Dec 31 New Mexico State 81 - 78 (W)
Jan 06 @ San Jose State 102 - 101 (W) 4OT
Jan 08 @ Hawai'i 79 - 55 (W)
Jan 13 Utah State 59 - 68 (L)
Jan 15 Nevada 67 - 69 (L)
Jan 22 @ Idaho 70 - 67 (W)
Jan 27 @ New Mexico State 87 - 96 (L)
Jan 29 @ Louisiana Tech 60 - 70 (L)
Feb 03 Hawai'i 66 - 73 (L)
Feb 05 @ Utah State 49 - 77 (L)
Feb 10 Fresno State 75 - 61 (W)
Feb 12 Idaho 69 - 63 (W)
Feb 19 @ UC Santa Barbara 78 - 76 (W) OT
Feb 24 @ Fresno State 70 - 56 (W)
Feb 26 @ Nevada 72 - 66 (W)
Mar 02 Cal State Bakersfield (W) 95-59

The Bronco roster (alphabetized & by position)

La'Shard Anderson G 6-1 170 Sr.
Jeff Elorriaga G 6-2 180 Fr. (walk-on)
G.A. Hill G 5-9 150 Fr. (walk-on)
Tre Nichols G 5-11 168 Jr.
Westly Perryman G 6-1 180 Jr.
Justin Salzwedel G 6-2 182 Sr. (walk-on)
Drew Wiley G 6-7 215 Jr. (is redshirting)

Robert Arnold F 6-6 176 Sr.
Thomas Bropleh F 6-5 203 Fr.
Sam Hicks F 6-9 248 Fr.
Sean Imadiyi F 6-7 215 Sr.
Daequon Montreal F 6-8 230 Sr.
Paul Noonan F 6-7 210 Sr.
Isaac Oeltjen F 7-0 224 Fr. (walk-on)
Ryan Watkins F 6-8 247 Fr.

Zach Moritz C 6-10 239 Sr.

Spartans fall 77-71

Back and forth. Forth and back. The SJSU - Hawaii matchup was a veritable teeter-totter as neither team could sink the dagger and pull away from the other. One would go up followed by the other regaining ground and taking the lead. Eventually, a critical call took place, changing ball possession and offering UH a pair of free throws and that ultimately determined the outcome.

The final 77-71. Adrian Oliver led the way for San Jose State with 18 points. Justin Graham scored15 and Kieth Shamburger 14. At the forefront of the Hawaii offensive attack was Zane Johnson with 26 points and Bill Amis contributed 18.

Here's how it played out:

A Johnson trey cut the San Jose State lead to one.

Following that, Shamburger missed on a pair of free throws with 2:37 remaining.

Then at the shot clock buzzer, Amis caught net with a 17-foot fadeaway.

At the 1:46 mark and Hawaii ahead by one, UH freshman backcourter Bobby Miles was struck by an elbow went down. The referees checked the video to determine the consequences, if any. It was judged an intentional foul based on the rules established prior to this season.

In a no-brainer, Coach Gib Arnold inserted Bo Barnes for Miles. The sharpshooting frosh sank both free throws, putting the Rainbow Warriors up by three. UH also retained possession. The scoreboard: 71-68

Amis then fouled Wil Carter who sank the first but missed the second, with just over a minute left.

Johnson subsequently buried a long trey to make it 74-69 with 35 ticks showing on the clock.

Oliver was fouled and was good on both his attempts at the line. The scoreboard: 74-71

Amis proved to be a thorn again with a layup that put the Rainbow Warriors up by five.

Subsequently, Shamburger missed a trey attempt which Oliver rebounded but he missed the followup. Barnes rebounded and was fouled.

He was good on the first but erred on the second. Hawaii led by six and the remaining seconds didn't matter.

At the half, it was San Jose State with a one point lead at 37-36. Graham had 12 points and Amis 11 at that point.

Aalim Moor and Wil Carter taking it to the moon

Aalim Moor and Wil Carter appear more than a little fired up here while Sammy Spartan looks like he's witnessing a Cape Canaveral takeoff. The pre-game introduction athleticism on display puts Buzz "to infinity ... and beyond!) Lightyear to shame while this evident fiery spirit is just what is needed to get the team ready and focused.

Okay, it's Hawaii on Thursday and then a road game Saturday up in Boise.

Guys, keep bringing this passion and intensity.