1987–88 Boise State Broncos men's basketball team

1987–88 Boise State Broncos men's basketball
Big Sky regular season and tournament champions
NCAA tournament, First round
ConferenceBig Sky Conference
Record25–6 (13–3 Big Sky)
Head coach
Assistant coachRod Jensen (5th season)
Home arenaBSU Pavilion
Seasons
1987-88 Big Sky men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Boise State † 13 – 3   .813 24 – 6   .800
Idaho 11 – 5   .688 19 – 11   .633
Montana State 10 – 6   .625 19 – 11   .633
Idaho State 8 – 8   .500 15 – 13   .536
Nevada 8 – 8   .500 15 – 13   .536
Montana 7 – 9   .438 18 – 11   .621
Northern Arizona 7 – 9   .438 10 – 18   .357
Weber State 6 – 10   .375 9 – 21   .300
Eastern Washington 2 – 14   .125 6 – 21   .222
† Conference tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll[1]

The 1987–88 Boise State Broncos men's basketball team represented Boise State University during the 1987–88 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Broncos were led by fifth-year head coach Bobby Dye and played their home games on campus at the BSU Pavilion in Boise, Idaho.

They finished the regular season at 23–5 overall, with a 13–3 record in the Big Sky Conference, first in the standings. In the conference tournament in Bozeman, Montana, the top-seed Broncos received a bye into the semifinals and defeated Idaho State by 31 points.[2][3][4] They met the host, third-seeded Montana State, in the final and won by two points.[5][6] It was Boise State's first conference tourney title (and NCAA Tournament appearance) in twelve years.

Boise State received the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, and no other Big Sky members were invited to the tournament or the NIT. The Broncos were the fourteenth seed in the West region and gave third-seeded Michigan a scare in Salt Lake City, as the Wolverines' large lead eroded in the second half; Michigan prevailed by five points.[7][8]

The Broncos were led on the court by junior guard Chris Childs, who went on to a lengthy professional career, ending with nine years in the NBA.

Postseason results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Big Sky tournament
Fri, March 11
7:00 pm 		(1) vs. (4) Idaho State
Semifinal 		W 87–56  24–5
 Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (9,027)
Bozeman, Montana
Sat, March 12
7:30 pm 		(1) at (3) Montana State
Final 		W 63–61  25–5
 Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (9,027)
Bozeman, Montana
NCAA tournament
Thu, March 17*
7:07 pm 		(14 W) vs. (3 W) No. 10 Michigan
First round 		L 58–63  25–6
 Jon M. Huntsman Center (11,957)
Salt Lake City, Utah
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Mountain time.

References

  1. ^ sports-reference.com 1987-88 Big Sky Conference Season Summary
  2. ^ Boling, Dave (March 12, 1988). "MSU drops UI in 'Sky semis". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. B1.
  3. ^ Jacobson, Bryan (March 12, 1988). "Boise State mauls Bengals". Idahonian. (Moscow). p. 2D.
  4. ^ "Boise State smothers Idaho State in Big Sky". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. March 12, 1988. p. 8B.
  5. ^ Grummert, Dale (March 13, 1988). "Now wacky ending here, Boise State wins Big Sky". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 1C.
  6. ^ Jacobson, Bryan (March 14, 1988). "Broncos rule the Big Sky; get tough NCAA opener". Idahonian. (Moscow). p. 2B.
  7. ^ Kragthorpe, Kurt (March 18, 1988). "Michigan claims victory as Boise rally falls short". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. 2D.
  8. ^ "Michigan stops Boise State rally". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. March 18, 1988. p. 1B.