By Bobby Abplanalp
Wyoming Sports.org
Boise State was under pressure Saturday and the results were predictable.
The Broncos, 2-2, turned the ball over 23 times, resulting in 31 Wyoming points in the 87-61 Cowboy win in the Arena-Auditorium. On the road, that usually spells doom, Boise State coach Greg Graham said.
“They got after us and pressured us and we lost our composure,” BSU head coach Greg Graham said. “We just had way too many turnovers. Probably our offense hurt us as much as our defense. We were 2 for 20 from the ‘three’ and had 23 turnovers. You don’t slow them down much when you’re doing that.”
Not only did the Broncos miss 18 3-pointers, they shot just 36 percent from the field against the ball-hawking Cowboys.
“I hope this is a wake-up call for us to start playing better,” Graham said. “It is a tough loss in a tough place to play. I think we are a better team than what we showed tonight.”
Bronco power forward Ike Okoye was welcomed back in the Arena-Auditorium, as he played for the Cowboys from 2004-06, before transferring to Boise State after the departure of former UW head coach Steve McClain.
“The air is still bad,” Okoye said. “They’re (Wyoming) real athletic, they dunked everything. I watched a lot of them on film. You guys have a real nice team.”
Okoye finished with eight points and seven rebounds, a drop-off from his 21 points and 12 rebounds he posted against the Pokes last season in Boise where the Broncos held on for a dramatic 86-85 win. When asked if this game is different because of his ties to both schools, Okoye said it’s just another game.
“I don’t really know any of the guys on the team, so it really isn’t a rivalry anymore,” he said. “When you guys came to our house, it was real because I knew Brandon (Ewing) and we talked a lot of smack back and forth, but this year it was really just another game.”
Boise State will stay on the road when they play the Eastern Washington Eagles Tuesday at 8 p.m., in Cheney, Wash.
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