Courtesy of Braidon Nourse

LAS VEGAS – For moments in the fourth quarter, No. 8 Boise State’s free-throw shooting looked as if it might cost them in the first round of the 2025 Credit Union 1 Mountain West Basketball Championship. But Dani Bayes, 0-8 from the field on the night, hit some monumental ones to pull away from No. 9 Nevada in a 54-48 thriller.

With less than five minutes to go in a tight game, it became increasingly clear the separation would happen for whichever team could not only get a stop, but capitalize on an opportunity immediately on the other end.

The Broncos did just that when they forced a missed shot and Bayes got to the line. She finished with seven points, all free throws.

According to Broncos coach Gordy Presnell, Bayes apologized after a slip-up to finish the first half which led to a Nevada layup at the buzzer, and seemed better prepared to attack the second half.

“Dani is the definition of resilience,” Broncos forward Abby Muse said. “That performance (from the free-throw line) was not a surprise at all, so I’m really happy for her and happy for the team.”

Bayes’s shooting night wasn’t entirely a deviation from the mean — neither team shot better than 32 percent from the field or 24 percent from 3.

Particularly to start either half, the game was a grind.

“I think a big thing for us today was that we stayed together. We stayed the course and we knew what we had to do to execute the game plan,” Muse said. “When we had those slow moments, we were able to grind it out with our defense and then our offense was able to fall and our free throws luckily were able to fall.”

In the second quarter in particular, Muse had a lot to do with orchestrating rhythm. After picking up two quick fouls and sitting basically the entire first period, she checked back in to start the second, hit back-to-back shots and ultimately scored six of her eight points in the frame alone.

The effort propelled the Broncos to erase a sizable lead and ultimately snatch one before the half. In the fourth quarter, guard Tatum Thompson effectively did the same to make it close before Bayes sealed it from the stripe.

The win marked Presnell’s 21st in the Mountain West tournament all-time, which is tied with New Mexico’s Don Flanagan (1999-2011) for the most in conference history for a coach.

“You know, I didn’t make a shot, but I’m proud of that,” Presnell said. “I’m proud of who I get to represent at Boise State and I’m proud of the players I get to serve.

“I didn’t take a shot, I didn’t make a pass, but I’ll certainly take it.”

The win sets up a quarterfinal between the Broncos and three-time defending champion UNLV and tournament No. 1 seed on Monday.

–mw–