Jim Meehan

1. Mindy Rice's ability to rise to the occasion has netted two-sport stardom at the University of Idaho Photo by Dan Pelle/The Spokesman-Review 2. As the season turns, Rice's hands are full. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review 3. Rice made an immediate impact in basketball. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review<

Mark Leslie didn't realize the throbbing pain in his shin until he was getting dressed in the locker room. Minutes earlier he had scored 10 of Idaho's last 11 points as the Vandals, the team that ignores logic, stopped Montana State 79-70 in Big Sky Conference men's basketball Saturday night at the Kibbie Dome.

Idaho men's basketball coach Joe Cravens saw a rerun on Friday night. He's getting mighty sick of the same ending.

Idaho men's basketball coach Joe Cravens saw a rerun on Friday night. He's getting mighty sick of the same ending.

NIC's Roy Kruiswyk (52) can't stop Eastern Utah's Kenneth Pratt. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review

It ended, appropriately, with two basketball players - one from North Idaho College and one from College of Eastern Utah - sprawled on the court in pursuit of a rebound. In a women's game saturated with physical play and floor burns, NIC rode Sid Schraufnagel's 20 rebounds and Michelle Greenwood's 15 points to a 59-45 Scenic West Athletic Conference win at Christianson Gym on Thursday night.

Had he had wanted to use them, new Idaho football coach Chris Tormey had plenty of built-in excuses available regarding the Vandals' unenviable recruiting position this year. Instead, he gestured at a board in his office listing the 16 newest Vandals and smiled.

Jerry Kramer, one of the University of Idaho's all-time football greats, didn't force his son, Matt, to follow in his footsteps. "But I've been influencing him all the way," said Jerry, who went on to star with the Green Bay Packers. "I told him, "Do what you want to do, but look, the door at Idaho is open." Matt, a 6-foot-4, 200-pound tight end/defensive end from Parma (Idaho) High School, said his dad's notso-subtle hints were a factor in his committing to UI, where his father was an All-American guard in 1957.

Lewiston High School boys basketball coach Dick Richel believes his Bengals have been overlooked this season. On Friday night, Lewiston sent a reminder to the Inland Empire League that it intends to be a factor in the upcoming regional tournament by upsetting Post Falls 55-50 at Trojan Gym.

Yarno

Boys' basketball Coeur d'Alene boys basketball coach Larry Bieber requested a favor of West Valley counterpart Joe Feist prior to Tuesday's game. "I asked Joe, 'Would you guys mind dressing in Lake City uniforms for us?"' mused Bieber, who was hoping his struggling Vikings would summon an effort to duplicate their stunning upset of Lake City earlier this month.

Eastern Washington kept threatening, but a look at Idaho's shot chart best explains the Vandals' 73-62 men's basketball win Saturday night. Guard Shawn Dirden made Idaho's longest shot of the second half - a 6-footer from the baseline.

Ricks College wrestling coach Bob Christensen said he watched a "fannykicking contest" on Friday night. "We were just on the wrong side," Christensen said after second-ranked North Idaho College handled the visiting Vikings 32-9 in a Region 18 match at Christianson Gym.

Women's basketball It used to be like this almost every year - North Idaho College and Utah Valley battling for Scenic West Athletic Conference women's basketball superiority. NIC turned back the clock Thursday night, but its game effort fell short in a 73-55 loss to the Wolverines at Christianson Gym.

Idaho solved its second-half blues on Tuesday night. OK, most of its second-half blues.

Idaho needs to join the Continental Basketball Association. In that league, teams get credit for winning quarters. In the Big Sky Conference, the Vandals keep winning the first half only to get permissive defensively in the second 20 minutes.

UI coach Joe Cravens would like to order up a road win. Photo by Shawn Jacobson/The Spokesman-Review

Former Washington State coach Kelvin Sampson, a buddy of Idaho coach Joe Cravens, used to say the key to basketball was simply "putting the brown thing (basketball) in the round thing (the hoop)." Idaho did that on Monday night.

The three finalists for Idaho's football coaching job interviewed on Sunday and a decision on the new head coach was expected today. The finalists were Washington assistant coaches Chris Tormey and Scott Linehan, and California assistant Tim Lappano. All three visited Moscow on Sunday. Lappano met with UI athletic director Pete Liske and the search committee early Sunday afternoon. Tormey and Linehan interviewed in the late afternoon. UI administrators were said to be finalizing whom would be hired at press time.

Idaho athletic director Pete Liske interviewed three more candidates as the Vandals' search for a football coach continued on Thursday. Washington assistant coach Scott Linehan confirmed he met with Liske. The others are believed to be Nevada assistant Bob Petrino and Arizona State assistant Dan Cozzetto. All previously were UI assistants. Washington assistant Chris Tormey met with Liske on Wednesday. Cal assistants Tim Lappano and Denny Schuler, and Art Valero, an assistant under just-departed UI coach John L. Smith, are expected to meet with Liske today or Saturday.

Add Denny Schuler to the list of potential candidates to fill Idaho's football coaching vacancy. Probably scratch Gregg Smith's name. Idaho athletic director Pete Liske on Wednesday was trying to make contact with Schuler, Cal's offensive coordinator who has worked for two seasons under former UI coach Keith Gilbertson.

John L. Smith said it was the best thing for Idaho and Utah State that he accepted the Aggies' football coaching job. Smith's appointment at Utah State was announced at a Tuesday afternoon press conference in Logan. He signed a five-year contract with a base salary of more than $100,000 annually.