Boise State Broncos
Record: 25-8, 14-4 Mountain West
Head coach: Leon Rice (5th season)
Season summary: Despite losing one its leading scorers—Anthony Drmic—for the year in late December, Boise State claimed a share of the Mountain West regular-season conference title with a 14-4 record thanks to two crucial wins against conference power San Diego State. After suffering a four-game losing streak from late December into early January, the Broncos suffered two more losses, the first of which was to a weak Fresno State team that finished with 17 losses on the season. Boise State's most recent loss came in the Mountain West tournament semifinals last Friday against Wyoming.
Despite occasional slip-ups, Rice's squad had a breakout season balanced inside-outside offensive attack that average 70.6 points per game. The Broncos feature a prolific scoring guard in Derrick Marks (19.3 PPG, 44% 3PFG) and play-making forwards, James Webb III (11.3 PPG, 7.9 RPG) and Nick Duncan (9.7 PPG).
How they make a run: Marks lights up the scoreboard and Boise State gets timely plays from his supporting cast to pull off a Cinderella run.
How they falter: The Broncos' rebounding struggles continue and opposing teams switch on defense in order to shut down Marks, who often relies on the pick-and-rolls to get open looks.
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