Seven Mountain West games to watch this season

Boise State senior Anthony Drmic led the team in scoring each of the last three seasons. Fellow senior Derrick Marks finished second each year.

Mandatory Credit: Marco Garcia-USA TODAY Sports

Saturday, February 28: Boise State at San Diego State, Time TBD

Technically, ESPN will feature one of two Mountain West games on February 28: Boise State vs. San Diego State or New Mexico vs. Fresno State. Given that San Diego State is likely to be significantly better than New Mexico and Boise State is projected to be better than Fresno State, the game that will air will almost certainly be Boise State’s trip to San Diego.

By now, you’ve surely read enough about San Diego State. Instead, let’s talk about Boise State. The Broncos will rely heavily on seniors Derrick Marks and Anthony Drmic, who have been the team’s leaders in scoring each year since they stepped on campus in 2011. Marks and Drmic led the Broncos to the NCAA Tournament in 2012. This year, they will be joined by freshman Chandler Hutchison and Junior College big man Kevin Allen, both of whom are more highly touted than most of the recruits Boise State has pulled in during Leon Rice’s career.

The strength of conference foes UNLV and New Mexico may actually have a significant impact on Boise. If the Rebels freshmen live up to the hype and the Lobos are able to adequately replace the trio that led the team to so much success, the Mountain West might be able to support a larger number of NCAA Tournament teams. If the Rebels struggle again and the Lobos drop off, the 2015 NCAA Tournament might wind up being another that features just two schools from the Mountain West and Boise State will need to post a great conference record in order to make it to March Madness. Either way, a marquee conference matchup has the potential to be a major boost to Boise State’s résumé.