Boise State has a global roster

DAYTON, Ohio - While La Salle's roster has a distinct Philadelphia flavor, Boise State has looked far beyond its Idaho roots to build a program.

When the Explorers and Broncos meet Wednesday night in the NCAA first-round game at Dayton, they will have taken considerably different paths to recruit their players.

La Salle's roster has four players from Philadelphia, while Boise State is a team that the United Nations could admire. Leading scorer Anthony Drmic is from Australia, one of two players with down-under roots. There are also players from Serbia and Latvia.

Drmic, a 6-foot-6 sharpshooter who averages 17.3 points, is by far the most significant of the foreign contributors.

Third-year Broncos coach Leon Rice, a former assistant at Gonzaga, has also not only gone overseas but scoured the country for talent. Starting point guard Derrick Marks, who averages 16.3 points, hails from Chicago.

The third-leading scorer, 6-2 guard Jeff Elorriaga, is from Portland, Ore. Ryan Watkins, a 6-9 junior who averages 8.4 points and a team-high 6.8 rebounds, is from Canyon County, Calif. Another Australian, Igo Hadziomeroic, a 6-4 sophomore, has started 25 games and averages 5.4 points. Mikey Thompson, a 6-3 freshman averaging 8.1 points, is from Las Vegas.

"We're in Boise, Idaho - we've got to go all over the place to find them," Rice said

One advantage that Boise State had over La Salle in building its basketball profile was a football program that has vaulted into the public's consciousness. Coach Chris Petersen is 84-8 in seven seasons guiding the Broncos.

Rice said that when he was at Gonzaga, he had other head coaching opportunities but aggressively pursued Boise State.

"The football program was a big reason I took the job at Boise State," Rice said.

He gave as an example recruiting Marks, the engine who runs this team. When the coaching staff went to Chicago to recruit Marks, he knew of Boise State because of the football program.

As for the team, much has been made of the fact that Boise State and La Salle are similar, with both frequently employing four-guard sets.

"I would say [La Salle] is a little more athletic than us. They like to get up and down the floor like us," said Drmic, who is shooting 38.7 percent from beyond the arc. "It will be interesting - two teams with similar styles."