Boxscore

BOISE, Idaho -- Boise State hit 27 of 32 free throws to hold off the University of Evansville Monday night in the quarterfinals of  the College Basketball Invitational presented by Zebra Pen, 75-69, at Taco Bell Arena.

The Broncos move on to the semifinals Wednesday night.  The loss ended Evansville's season at 16-16.  It was the second .500 or better season for the Aces in the last three years.  It was also the final game for three Evansville seniors--Pieter van Tongeren, Clint Hopf and Kavon Lacey.

"I thought our guys gave a great effort tonight, and all season," said coach Marty Simmons.  "We're going to miss those three seniors in the locker room and on the playing floor. 

"It's going to be a huge off-season for us.  Our returning guys need to take this experience and build on it, and get better.  This was a great experience for us to play in a tournament like this, and it can be the first step toward making us a better team next year."

The Aces kept their CBI semifinal hopes alive until the final seconds, fueled by the 17 points of sophomore Ned Cox and 16 of junior Kenneth Harris.  Denver Holmes added 13 and Colt Ryan 10.

Down by seven at halftime, 30-23, Evansville clawed back and took the lead briefly at 50-48 with 9:00 remaining on Harris's first three-pointer of the night.  The 6'5" forward tied the game again at 52-52 90 seconds later.  But the 22-12 Broncos led the rest of the way, extending their lead to seven at 63-56 with 2:18 remaining. Cox cut the deficit to three at 65-62 with 1:28 to go, but Boise State hit six of seven free throws down the stretch to hang on to the lead.  Freshman forward Ryan Watkins was key for the Broncos.  Averaging less than six points per game, he finished with 18 points and eight rebounds.

"We finished better in the second half; we had a good effort against a very good team," Simmons said.  "But Boise State is a very physical team, and they hit their shots.  I told our guys in the locker room that I was very proud of them tonight, and all season for that matter."

Evansville reached the quarterfinals thanks to a seven-point win over Hofstra last week in the first round for the Aces' first post-season victory in 22 years.