The Boise State men’s basketball team is enjoying some warmer weather over the next few days.
The Broncos are competing in the Cayman Islands Classic, which begins Sunday in George Town. Boise State (3-1) opens the three-day tournament with a 9 a.m. Mountain time game against Hampton (2-3).
The eight-team Cayman Island Classic features Boise State, Boston College, Duquesne, Hampton, High Point, Missouri State, Old Dominion and South Dakota State. Previous winners of the tournament, which began in 2017, include Utah State (2023), Kansas State (2022), Creighton (2018) and Cincinnati (2017).
Back in 2018, the Broncos went 1-2 at the Cayman Islands Classic with an opening-round loss to Creighton.
The Boise State/Hampton winner will play the winner of South Dakota State and Duquesne in the semifinals while the losers meet in the consolation bracket.
Boise State and Hampton have never faced off in men’s basketball.
The Broncos are led by senior forward Tyson Degenhart, the Preseason Mountain West Conference Player of the Year. Degenhart is averaging 17.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game this season.
Six different Broncos are averaging at least 8.8 points per game: Andrew Meadow (14), O’Mar Stanley (12.3), Javan Buchanan (10.8), Dylan Anderson (8.8), Alvaro Cardenas (8.8) and Degenhart.
Boise State has made the NCAA Tournament in each of the last three seasons under head coach Leon Rice.
Hampton has a first-year head coach in Ivan Thomas. The Pirates finished 9-24 overall a season ago.
Junior forward Kyrese Mullen is the Pirates’ lone returning starter. He is averaging 7.4 points and 9.6 rebounds per game.
Junior guard George Beale Jr., a transfer from Norfolk State, is Hampton’s leading scorer at 13.8 points per game. Fellow transfer Noah Farrakhan (West Virginia) is averaging 13 points, two rebounds and 2.2 assists.
The Broncos, Duquesne and South Dakota State all made the NCAA Tournament last season.
Boise State, the nation’s No. 35 overall team in the KenPom rankings, is the clear favorite to win the tournament. High Point (108 KenPom) and Boston College (132) are expected to be the Broncos’ toughest competition in the Caribbean.
Following the Cayman Islands Classic, Boise State returns home to play Utah Tech on Dec. 3. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Mountain time at ExtraMile Arena.
Who: Boise State takes on Hampton to open the Cayman Islands Classic
When: 9 a.m. Mountain time | Sunday, Nov. 23
Where: John Gray Gymnasium | George Town, Cayman Islands
TV: FloCollege
