BSU shoots for WAC title

By Tate Castleton The Arbiter

November 1, 2007

Boise, ID (CSTV U-WIRE) -- Boise State men's basketball opens the season at home, Nov. 2, with an exhibition game against Evergreen State College.

A new season brings new hope for BSU, who finished 19-12 overall last season and now enter the 2007-08 season ranked fifth in the Western Athletic Conference preseason polls.

"We are looking forward to a new year and a new start," BSU Head Coach Greg Graham said. "We've got a good, talented young core of players this season and we're anxious to see what they can do."

The Broncos are anchored by WAC preseason first team forward Reggie Larry, who average 14.2 points per game for BSU last season. The Broncos also welcome back sophomore guard Anthony Thomas and senior center Matt Nelson.

"These guys each bring experience with them and can help provide the leadership we need," Graham said. "They have been with this team long enough now to know what roles they play and how they can help us be successful."

BSU will face a challenging schedule this season, including home games on Nov. 13 against No. 10 Washington State and perennial Mountain West power BYU on Dec. 29.

"We look forward to our schedule and the challenges ahead of us," Larry said. "We know we need to be competitive and playing good teams like we have on our schedule will help."

The Broncos will be without four-year starting guard Coby Karl who recently made the Los Angeles Lakers' final team roster.

"We have some vacancies, but we've got guys who will step in and fill them," Graham said. "We like the challenge of seeing who is going to step up and help us out."

During the off-season BSU signed Pima College transfer Mark Sanchez as well as Yuba College transfer Aaron Garner, who recently made a splash at the team's Fan Fest held at Taco Bell Arena. Garner won the men's three-point contest and gave fans a glance at what they can expect this season.

"I think our new guys bring something new and exciting to the team," Graham said. "We are anxious to see how they will contribute to our productivity on both sides of the ball."

Garner and others are trying to help fill the void left by the departure of Karl and Eric Lane. Together, those two were responsible for 59.5 percent of the three-pointers made last season by the Broncos.

"I like to shoot the three and be a threat from outside," Garner said. "I'm ready to step in, fill those spots left by those guys and make an impact outside."

The Broncos can also expect to face big challenges within the WAC this season. Defending conference tournament champion New Mexico State should be a force to reckon with again, despite losing former Head Coach Reggie Theus to the NBA. Nevada, Utah State, Fresno State and even Hawaii are all expected to be contenders as well.

"We've got a good conference this season," Larry said. "We have to play at high level to compete with everybody. We hope we can do that and be successful."