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Shining in Crown, Boise State Proving it Belonged in Dance

> The Broncos face Butler in the Second Round today at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas
, 3 min read
Boise State's Alvaro Cardenas vs George Washington
Boise State delivered a 30-point victory over George Washington in the opening round of FOX’s postseason showdown | College Basketball Crown


  By Stephen Vilardo, SuperWest Sports

April 2, 2025


College Basketball Crown logoNo team outside of West Virginia had a better case to be in the NCAA field than the Boise State Broncos.

I was championing them a few weeks ago and in the opener of the College Basketball Crown tournament, they did not make my arguments look stupid.

Boise State delivered a 30-point victory over George Washington in the opening round of FOX’s postseason showdown.

(FOX established the Crown for their conference TV partners while ESPN has the NIT for their partners . . . Welcome to college sports in 2025).

Boise State got it done on Monday with defense creating offense as they tied a program record with 16 steals in the win while forcing 22 turnovers.

It was a turnover forced on 28.4% of GWU’s possessions.

It was a huge improvement over the rate of 16.2% BSU had during the regular season ranking just 218th nationally.

The Broncos’ victory over the Colonials was their sixth this season on a neutral court, their most such victories in a single season.

To extend that school record to seven wins at a neutral site, the Broncos will need to dispatch Butler today at the MGM Grand.

Boise State vs Butler

Wednesday, April 2
4:00 pm PT, FS1
MGM Grand, Las Vegas

The Bulldogs of the FOX-partnered Big East have struggled this season with turnovers, committing one on 15.9% of their possessions this season.

BU is the ninth-worst team in the nation this season in scoring chances compared to opponents. Butler has seen opponents average 5.7 more opportunities per game than they have, ranking 355th nationally.

On Monday Butler collected a two-point win over Utah in the opener of the Crown.

What set the tone for the Bulldogs in the win was three-point shooting as they connected on a season-high 13 of them in the contest.

That will be an area in which the Broncos will have to try to limit Butler.

Boise State is allowing opponents to score 31.1% of their points from beyond the arc while Butler has scored 34% of their points this season on distance FGs.

Boise State cannot allow the Bulldogs to get hot from deep.

Butler F Pierre Brooks made the game-winning layup vs Utah
Pierre Brooks made the game-winning layup vs Utah | Ian Maule/Getty Images

If the Blue-and-Orange can limit the threes, they will have a significant advantage on the boards. BSU is ninth in the nation with a total rebound rate of 55.5% while Butler is just north of 50% this season.

The big issue for Butler comes on the offensive end, where they rank 302nd nationally with an offensive rebound rate of just 23.5%.

Again, that is a big reason for their large deficit in scoring chances per game.

Coupled with forcing turnovers the Broncos could pull away in this one, provided they lock down on the three-pointers.

The magic number is 80 points for both teams this season. Butler is 10-0 when scoring at least 80 while Boise State has gone 14-0 when reaching the 80-point plateau.

It very well could be a race to that number.

Neither team will play very fast, but both are efficient offensively and make the most of the sets they get.  The team that is the most efficient will likely get the win in this one.

Stephen Vilardo
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