What happened to Fresno State’s upset bid at Boise State? ‘It’s the story of our year’

To say Fresno State shot itself in the foot would be trite, a cliche. To say it shot its way out of a basketball game is getting to be one, as well.

The Bulldogs had a lot working on Tuesday at Boise State with their pick-and-roll game early, getting into the lane off the dribble and getting the ball to center Eduardo Andre, who is becoming a tough matchup in the Mountain West Conference. At the defensive end, they forced 19 turnovers. But they also went an abysmal 2 of 25 (8%) at the 3-point line in what became a 63-53 loss to the Broncos (16-5, 6-2 in the MW) at Extra Mile Arena.

“I’m proud of the guys’ effort, but numerous games guys are wide-open and we can’t make shots or layups,” coach Justin Hutson said on his post-game radio show. “I don’t have much to say besides that.”

There have been some poor shooting performances across the country this season including an 0 of 18 from three by Mississippi State in a 69-63 loss at Auburn. But of the teams that made only two shots from the 3-point line, only one had more misses than the Bulldogs did at Boise State. That would be Bellarmine, which was 2 of 27 in a loss at Lipscomb, and Washington and High Point also have unsightly 2 of 25s on their resumes.

But Fresno State (7-12, 3-5) went into the game ranked last in the Mountain West and tied for 332nd in the nation in 3-point shooting at 29.8%. It has had games where it hit 13.3% (Air Force), 17.4% (Vanderbilt), 20% (Utah State), 21.4% (San Francisco). And, in none of those games did the Bulldogs attempt 25 threes.

Against the Broncos, though, they kept firing and missing as the game slipped away. Fresno State led 25-23 at halftime and after going 1 of 12 from the 3-point line in the first 20 minutes, the Bulldogs’ first four shots coming out of the break were threes and they were 0 of 4. They were 1 of 21 before Jordan Campbell hit one with 5:47 remaining to get Fresno State back within four at 44-40.

Jemarl Baker was 1 of 10 from the 3-point line, 2 of 13 in the game in scoring five points. Isaiah Hill, who led the Bulldogs with 14 points, was 0 of 5 from three. Anthony Holland was 0 of 3.

Many of those were good looks, not that it mattered. “Boise forced us into a few (bad shots), especially in the first half,” Hutson said. “But in the second half we got really good shots. It’s the story of our year right now. We come out and try hard, and we miss free throws and miss wide-open shots. I’m appreciative of our guys trying hard.”

And, they had Andre in the post where he hit 6 of 11 shots, scoring 13 points with 12 rebounds, his fourth game in a row with 10 or more points and his third with a double-double.

“I like the way Eduardo is playing,” Hutson said. “He keeps working on it, he’s going to be a good player.”

The Bulldogs were 20 of 31 inside the 3-point line (64.5%), and to illustrate the ease they were getting inside against a team that was leading the conference in scoring defense, 12 of their 22 baskets came on layups and 30 of their 40 points that were not scored at the foul line or at the 3-point line came in the paint.

BULLDOGS NOTES

Hill had seven assists, one off his caree- high set against Oral Roberts in 2020 when at Tulsa and later matched against Bakersfield in December. The point guard has 42 assists in his past eight games, 5.3 per game.

Baker has hit just 3 of 21 shots (14.3%) in two games since returning to the lineup after missing time with a knee injury, going 1 of 8 against UNLV and 2 of 13 at Boise State.

The most misses from the 3-point line without a make this season: Mississippi State 0 of 18 against Auburn; Arkansas-Pine Bluff 0 of 14 against Air Force; Norfolk State 0 of 13 against Morgan State; William & Mary 0 of 12 against College of Charleston; and Penn 0 of 12 against Princeton.

The 19 turnovers by Boise State were a season-high, but only four came in the second half.

Next for Fresno State

vs. Utah State, Saturday, 4 p.m., Save Mart Center (CW59)