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Boise State Basketball: Broncos Scheduled For A Challenge Out the Gate in Orlando MTE
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Broncos join multi-team event in Orlando and open the season with the Kansas Jayhawks.
Leon Rice has one of the more anticipated rosters in Boise State basketball history this season. With the return of leading scorer Derrick Alston Jr., and a talented core of incoming transfers, the Broncos are expected to compete for championships this season.
Coach Rice knows the national attention his squad is getting and knows that they must not only compete in the Mountain West for an automatic bid but also create a credible enough tourney resume (still waiting on a confirmation that the tourney will take place by the way) to receive an at-large big if necessary.
Boise State will do so as a part of what was known as the Wooden Legacy Classic before expected pandemic scheduling changes and will open the season against the Kansas Jayhawks on November 25th. That game will be followed by another matchup against either UCLA or Seton Hall the following day as part of the two-day tournament.
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This impromptu multi-team event was thrown together by ESPN after the collapse of the Bronco’s originally scheduled event, the Orlando Invitational. As Coach Rice has stated before, this team is ready to be challenged, with plans to do so prior to the change up. As that original event had them slated to face either Gonzaga or Michigan State along the way.
Though the Jayhawks should be an equally impressive opponent on any resume, finishing the abruptly halted 2019-2020 season ranked No. 1 in the final AP poll, while also being the favorites to win the NCAA tournament prior to it’s a cancellation.
Folks all around the country will be tuning in to watch Kansas begin the season, essentially right where they left off with yet another loaded and talented roster under Bill Self, in his eighteenth season in Lawrence. This will make for a nationally televised game for the Broncos, and also give them a chance to knock off what many presume will be a top-10 ranked Jayhawks squad when pre-season rankings are announced.
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Boise State has never beat a top-10 opponent and a victory on opening night in Orlando will only cement the legacy this team is already creating as one of the best Bronco teams ever assembled.
Either way, the field is loaded with top tier teams as a win against UCLA or Seton Hall would be impressive on their own. The Bruins finished 2nd in a very competitive Pac-12 last season and only look to progress with many key players back in Mick Cronin’s second year in charge. And Seton Hall like many teams back in March were looking to make some noise in March led by now graduated Myles Powell after finishing the season in a three-way tie atop the Big East with Creighton and Villanova.
As it stands, all participants in this event are contenders in their own conference. So the Broncos will walk in with a chance to make some noise nationally and prove that they are ready to establish some Mountain West dominance this year with two wins come November 25th.
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