BOISE (Interstat) — Boise State used a balanced offense and a turnover-driven defense to beat visiting Oakland 111-79 in a men’s NCAA Division I basketball game Wednesday at Taco Bell Arena. The Broncos improved to 3-0 while the Golden Grizzlies dropped to 0-5. Attendance was 8,150. Boise State’s team nickname is the Broncos, and Oakland’s nickname is the Golden Grizzlies.

Boise State led 52-42 at halftime and pulled away after the break, outscoring Oakland 59-37 in the second half. The Broncos finished with 111 points on 79 possessions, an offensive rating of 139.9. Oakland had 79 points on 77 possessions and an offensive rating of 103.2. Boise State shot 38 of 67 from the floor, 14 of 37 from three-point range and 21 of 26 from the free throw line. Oakland shot 27 of 56 from the floor, 9 of 27 from three-point range and 16 of 18 from the free throw line.

Boise State held edges in points in the paint 46-32, points off turnovers 36-9 and fastbreak points 20-5. The Broncos had six offensive rebounds, eight assists and six blocks. Oakland had nine offensive rebounds and two assists. Oakland committed 21 turnovers and 22 fouls. Boise State committed six turnovers and 20 fouls. Oakland’s 21 turnovers helped Boise State generate 36 points off turnovers, while the Golden Grizzlies scored nine points off Boise State’s six turnovers.

Aginaldo Neto led Boise State with 25 points, two rebounds and five assists in 30 minutes. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound guard from Luanda, Angola, previously attended Bella Vista Prep and had scored 25 points against Butler and 10 against West Coast Baptist in his previous two games. Damari Wheeler-Thomas added 23 points, one rebound and six assists in 36 minutes. Dovydas Butka had 16 points, seven rebounds, two assists and one block in 32 minutes. Spencer Ahrens added 11 points, five rebounds, three assists and two blocks in 29 minutes. Jerquarius Stanback had nine points, two rebounds, two assists and two blocks in nine minutes. Julian Bowie also scored nine points with three rebounds and two assists in 16 minutes.

Nassim Mashhour of Oakland scored 28 points with two rebounds and four assists in 34 minutes. The 6-foot-4, 190-pound guard previously attended Dearborn High School. Chris Fields added 17 points, nine rebounds and one assist in 25 minutes. The 6-foot-8, 240-pound forward previously attended Petersburg High School. Camden Thompson scored 10 points with nine rebounds and two assists in 31 minutes. RJ Taylor had nine points, one rebound and five assists in 27 minutes. Warren Marshall, Belal El Shakery and Ryder Bradley also contributed early for the Golden Grizzlies.

Oakland stayed close early. Warren Marshall opened the scoring with a 3-pointer, and RJ Taylor’s 3 gave the Golden Grizzlies an 8-7 lead. Damari Wheeler-Thomas answered with consecutive 3-pointers for Boise State, and the Broncos moved ahead 24-19 after Neto made two free throws. Boise State pushed its lead to 36-27 on Jikany Deang’s layup, but Oakland cut the gap to 36-35 on Mashhour’s 3-pointer. Mashhour made another 3-pointer later in the half, and Camden Thompson’s two free throws pulled Oakland within 45-42. Boise State closed the first half with seven straight points on an Ahrens free throw, another Ahrens free throw, Wheeler-Thomas’s 3-pointer and Butka’s jump shot. The Broncos led 52-42 at the break.

The most important stretch came immediately after halftime. Oakland’s Warren Marshall made a layup to open the second half, but Boise State responded with a 19-6 surge. Dovydas Butka scored inside, Aginaldo Neto made free throws and a driving layup, Spencer Ahrens dunked twice, and Pearson Carmichael hit a 3-pointer to cap the run and give the Broncos a 71-50 lead with 15:36 remaining. Oakland never recovered. The Golden Grizzlies trimmed the deficit to 84-68 on Mashhour’s 3-pointer, but Boise State answered with a 3 from Neto and a layup by Neto before pulling away. Julian Bowie’s 3-pointer closed the scoring at 111-79.

Boise State’s defense turned Oakland’s mistakes into points throughout. The Broncos scored 36 points off 21 Oakland turnovers and added 20 fastbreak points. Boise State also controlled the paint, 46-32, and blocked six shots. Oakland finished with two assists against 21 turnovers. Boise State had eight assists and six turnovers. After Mashhour’s 3 made it 84-68, Neto answered with a 3-pointer and a driving layup. Jerquarius Stanback made free throws, and Julian Bowie hit a 3-pointer. Spencer Ahrens added a 3-pointer with 1:39 remaining. Damari Wheeler-Thomas made two free throws, and after Belal El Shakery’s dunk for Oakland, Bowie closed the scoring with a 3-pointer. The Broncos’ largest lead came late after they closed the game with an 18-2 run. Neto scored seven of Boise State’s final 18 points. Boise State also got a lift from its bench, with Stanback and Bowie combining for 18 points.

Oakland has lost each of its first five games, including road defeats at Alabama, UC Santa Barbara, Stanford and Michigan. Boise State has opened 3-0 with wins over Butler and West Coast Baptist. Boise State’s previous wins this season were a 100-81 victory over Butler and a 132-53 win over West Coast Baptist. Oakland previously lost to Alabama 109-68, UC Santa Barbara 90-67, Stanford 81-63 and Michigan 84-68. Oakland next hosts Northern Iowa, while Boise State next plays Nebraska in Sioux Falls, S.D. The Broncos’ win came in front of a home crowd at Taco Bell Arena. The game featured 42 combined fouls and 44 free throw attempts. Boise State’s largest lead was 32 points.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Boise State 85, Oakland 78. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Boise State with a 95.4 percent probability to win. Boise State had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -16.5. The total score of 190 went under the over/under line of 161.5. The projected total was 163. The projected margin was 17.