National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
San Diego St. 65, Boise St. 62
When: 3:00 PM ET, Thursday, March 8, 2012
Where: Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nevada
Officials: # KC Ely, # Michael Irving, # Mike Littlewood
Attendance: N/A

San Diego State 65, Boise State 62:
Jamaal Franklin hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key at the buzzer, lifting San Diego State to a victory over the eighth-Broncos in the first round of the Mountain West Conference tournament.

Franklin had 10 of his 19 points in the second half for the top-seeded Aztecs (25-6), who advanced to the semifinals and will take on the winner of the TCU-Colorado State game.

Chase Tapley finished with a game-high 20 points and Xavier Thames added 14 for San Diego State, which nearly blew an 11-point lead over the game’s final 6:45.

The Aztecs took a 57-46 lead on a Tapley 3-pointer, and it seemed as if the game was beginning to slip away from the Broncos, who had made just one field goal over seven minutes.

But Boise State (13-17) used a 14-3 run late, capped by Thomas Bropleh’s layup with 27 seconds left, to tie the game at 62.

On its final possession, San Diego State struggled to get into its offense and was fumbling the ball around the perimeter in the game’s closing seconds. But eventually, it ended up in Franklin’s hands, and the sophomore guard heaved up a prayer that somehow went in.

Anthony Drmic finished with a team-high 19 points and Bropleh added 11 for Boise State, which closed the season on a five-game losing streak. Kenny Buckner and Derrick Marks each had 10.

Boise State led 32-30 at the half after shooting 51.9 percent from the field, including a scorching 57.1 percent from 3-point range.

But the Broncos came out flat in the second half, enabling the Aztecs to build their lead before the dramatic finish.

GAME NOTEBOOK: San Diego State improved to 17-8 all-time in the MWC tournament … The Aztecs’ 17 wins is the second most in conference history behind UNLV … San Diego State is 8-1 in its last nine games played at the Thomas & Mack Center … Boise State lost all three meetings with the Aztecs this season and fell to 0-4 in the all-time series.
Top Game Performances
 
Boise St.   San Diego St.
Anthony Drmic 19 Scoring Chase Tapley 20
Anthony Drmic 3 Assists Chase Tapley 4
Anthony Drmic 7 Rebounds Jamaal Franklin 5
Anthony Drmic 6 Free Throws Made Jamaal Franklin 5
Derrick Marks 3 Steals Chase Tapley 4
N/A Blocks N/A
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Boise St. 62 43.1 8-18 10-12 11 29 0 5 13
San Diego St. 65 51.1 9-16 8-13 11 20 0 7 11