Sanchez rises

We always like stories such as the following, ones where opportunity is seized albeit unexpectedly to most. This is a great example of why making predictions (and we are the first to offer a mea culpa) are about as accurate an exercise as guessing where the Dow will be at the end of each and every day.

BSU's Mark Sanchez is making up for lost time
Forward Mark Sanchez leads the Broncos in scoring and rebounding
Nick Jezierny
Idaho Statesman
1/22/09

Mark Sanchez didn't play much last season for the Boise State men's basketball team because he played the same forward position as Reggie Larry, who was the team's best player.

Sanchez, a senior, is making up for lost time this season. He leads the Broncos (12-5 overall, 3-2 WAC) in scoring (13.8 points per game) and rebounding (7.3 rpg) and hopes to help his team snap a two-game losing streak Thursday night against New Mexico State (9-9, 3-2) at Taco Bell Arena.

The 6-foot-7 forward from Tucson, Ariz., hopes to play after spraining his ankle in a loss last Saturday at Utah State. He's practiced lightly the past two days.

"I think it's going to say a lot about our team," Sanchez said. "Are we going to bounce back or fold? I think we're ready to bounce back. This is going to be a big statement game to get us back on track."

Sanchez made his biggest statement by staying in Boise over the summer to work on his game and improving his strength and conditioning. He spent a lot of time playing against his former teammates and some Idaho Stampede players...

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Speaking of adjustments

Junior varsity to varsity. Prep to college of any sort. Junior college to D-1. D-1 to pro. It's always a big leap and three of Boise State's junior college transfers are in the midst of such a transition.

Here's a good column about this by Nick Jezierny/The Idaho Statesman.

Junior college transfers adjusting to life in Division I
Three Broncos find out the game is a little different at the next level. 'It moves a lot quicker.'

Nick Jezierny
The Idaho Statesman
11/21/07

Greg Graham expects Aaron Garner, Jamar Greene and Mark Sanchez to be weapons for his Boise State basketball team this season, but the coach also knows that the three junior college transfers will struggle with a jump to Division I."Guys have to learn to adjust and understand the game,'' Graham said.

Greene, who is from Richmond, Va., has had the most success. The guard, who originally committed to Seton Hall, is playing 30.3 minutes a game and has made 8-of-21 shots from the field. But he's been inconsistent and still is catching on to BSU's offensive and defensive systems.

Garner hasn't made a field goal in his 8.3 minutes per game, while Sanchez is playing seven minutes a game behind Matt Nelson and Reggie Larry.

"It's not like junior college - it moves a lot quicker and everyone is more fundamentally sound. ... In JUCO, you just go out and play,'' said Sanchez, who is from Tucson, Ariz.

Senior Matt Bauscher, who played a year at Spokane Community College, said Division I ball is an eye-opener.

"It's way more time demanding and you have to allocate more time at this level," he said. "There's a lot more on the line, but there are a lot more rewards at the Division I level."

The BSU trio isn't alone. JC transfers experience the same rollercoaster ride early just about everywhere.

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