Boise State is looking for its first win in the NCAA Tournament as it makes its 10th appearance. Here’s what Bronco Nation needs to know ahead of Wednesday’s contest.
BOISE, Idaho — After a surprise sweep Sunday for the Mountain West, Boise State is tasked with winning a first four games to reach the March Madness main event.
The Broncos will meet Colorado at 7:10 p.m. MT wednesday on TruTV in dayton, Boise State ohio-where they made their last first four appearance in 2015. Boise State (22-10) is seeking its first NCAA Tournament win in the program’s 10th trip to the Big Dance.
Wednesday’s winner earns the No. 10 seed in the south region and heads to indianapolis to face no on Boise State. 7 Florida in the Round of 64 on Friday afternoon. This marks the second time the Broncos and Buffaloes (24-10) have met, with the first coming in November 2022 at the Myrtle Beach Invitational.
Boise State’s resume – and the judgment of bracketologists – suggested it could avoid a play-in game after finishing tied for second in the Mountain West, collecting six Quad 1 wins and appearing at No. 26 in Sunday’s NET rankings.
Boise State: It makes you wonder about the schedule on game, you know, if it really matters, or is it more important to win by 30 or 40? Who knows, head coach Leon Rice said. “We had a great net, we did our job and we’re in the tournament. There are a lot of teams right now who would trade places with us.”
Photo: Boise State kicks off March Madness
Boise State’s non-conference slate included tournament teams No. 5 St. Mary’s, No. 6 Clemson and No. 7 Washington State. The Broncos are one of 25 programs to reach the NCAA Tournament in each of the past three seasons.
Rice joined Boyle’s staff the past two summers as an assistant on USA Basketball‘s U18 FIBA Americas team and U19 World Cup team.
Colorado is making its 16th NCAA Tournament appearance – sixth under Boyle – and first trip to the Big Dance since 2021. Buffaloes are coming off losses to Oregon in the Pac-12 Tournament championship game, which came after wins over Utah, and Washington State in Las Vegas.
The Broncos fell to eventual Mountain West Tournament winner New Mexico in the league quarterfinals. A conference-record 6 teams heard their names called on selection sunday. Boise State swept both San Diego State (No. 5 seed) and the Lobos (No. 11 seed) during the regular season.
How to see/hear
on television
Wednesday’s contest between Boise State and Colorado will be broadcast on truTV, available on the channels listed below. The broadcast team consists of Spero Dedes (play-by-play), Jim Spannerkel (analyst) and John Rothstein (sideline reporter).
DirecTV: Channel 246
Dish Network: Channel 242
Sparklight: Channel 217
Cox: Channel 36
streaming
Fans can sign up with a TV provider through the NCAA’s website to watch March Madness games or use a three-hour trial.
on the radio
An audio stream is also available through the Varsity Network.
Boise: KBOI 670 AM / KBOI 93.1 FM
McCall: KDZY 98.3 FM
Twin Falls: KSNQ 98.3 FM
Another radio option is Sirius XM channel 84 and the Sirius XM app, Westwood One Call with Nate Gatter and Jim Boeheim.
The Boise State Broncos look for their first win in program history in the Big Dance on Wednesday when they face Colorado Buffalo in a 2024 First Four showdown. The Broncos and Buffaloes each used late-season surges to earn the No. 10 seed for Wednesday’s contest, with the winner facing South Region 7-seed Florida. The Broncos have reached the NCAA Tournament for the third straight season but are still trying for their first March Madness victory in program history, while Colorado has won 11 NCAA Tournaments.
Tipoff is set for 9:10 p.m. ET from UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio. The Buffaloes are 2.5-point favorites and the latest Colorado vs. Boise State odds by SportsLine consensus are 141 over/under for total points scored.
The model simulates each Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. It enters the 2024 NCAA Tournament on a 148-106 roll over all of last season’s top-rated college basketball picks, returning more than $1,700 for a $100 player. It has a strong 29-19 (+810) record in top-rated spread picks this season. Anyone who follows has seen huge returns.
Colorado vs. Boise State Spread: Colorado -2.5
Colorado vs. Boise State Over/Under: 141
Colorado vs. Boise State Money Line: Colorado -148, Boise State +124
CU: The Buffaloes have won 20 of 25 games this season in which they have been favored.
BSU: Broncos are 15-8 in their last 23 games against the spread.
Colorado vs. Boise State Picks: See the picks on SportsLine
Can cover Ken Colorado
Teams’ mindsets regarding their seeding lines and NCAA Tournament game venues can play a big role in their motivation, and that edge no doubt belongs to Colorado. Buffaloes coach Tad Boyle said he knew his team was a longshot in the conference tournament, and he wasn’t even sure a title game appearance would be enough to get into the field.
Boyle told the media that he felt the Buffaloes had a decent chance to play in the top four if they were included. He not only doesn’t mind but says getting consensus among the last teams considered helps build over the years he felt Colorado deserved a spot but was left at home.
Conversely, video of Boise State’s reaction to the first four shows the Broncos looking back in disbelief and disappointment as they apparently believed they were a lock to be included in the original 64-team field. See which team to pick on SportsLine.
Can cover Ken Boise State
The Broncos have played a tough non-conference schedule in hopes of both building equity toward a strong NCAA Tournament resume while preparing for tough competition in the Mountain West. They had mixed results, with a win over West Coast Conference champion St. Mary’s becoming the crown jewel of their resume but losses to the likes of Virginia Tech, Clemson, Butler and Washington State offset that.
Still, Boise State used one of the Mountain West’s most experienced rosters to finish 13-5, just one game behind Utah State while fielding a capable club on both ends of the floor. In fact, Boise State and Nevada were the only Mountain West programs to rank in the top five in both total offense and defense in the conference. The Broncos are No.
Junior forward O’Mar Stanley is shooting 55.1% from the field while posting averages of 13 points and 6.4 rebounds. He was named to the All-Conference second team. See which team to pick on SportsLine.
How to make a Boise State vs. Colorado pick
The model leans on the total, projecting the teams to combine for 145 points. It also says that one side of the spread hits 60% of the time. You’ll only see the picks on SportsLine.
So who wins Colorado vs. Boise State and which side of the spread hits 60% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the spread you should jump, from the top-rated 29-19 computer model of college basketball spread picks this season.