Connor Hill paces Idaho to 79-76 win over Chicago State

CHICAGO – Connor Hill paced Idaho with 27 points and hit two key free throws with seconds remaining to help Idaho edge Chicago State 79-76 on Thursday night.

Idaho (13-17, 6-9 Western Athletic Conference) broke out to a 44-30 halftime lead over the Cougars after making seven 3-pointers in the half.

The Vandals’ long-range effort cooled in the second half and costly turnovers allowed Chicago State (12-18, 7-8) to narrow the Idaho lead to 68-63. Later, Chicago’s Quinton Pippen hit a 3-pointer with 2:13 remaining and the Cougars trailed 72-71.

Idaho failed to make a field goal in the final 9:45, but Sekou Wiggs and Stephen Madison hit 9 of 13 free throws down the stretch to help preserve the win.

Madison scored 17 and grabbed nine rebounds for UI.

 Idaho (13-17)—Seck 1-1 0-0 2, Madison 5-13 6-9 17, Kammerer 3-4 0-0 6, Hill 9-11 2-2 27, M. Scott 2-8 2-2 7, Dean 0-4 0-0 0, Wiggs 3-7 10-13 16, Callandret 1-1 0-1 2, Mpawe 0-0 0-1 0, Egbert 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 25-50 20-28 79.

Chicago St. (12-18)—Denard 2-4 0-2 4, Pippen 4-12 6-6 16, Ross 10-13 4-6 25, Muhammad 0-0 0-0 0, Rosenberg 2-7 0-0 4, Gray 5-9 2-5 14, Griffin 1-4 2-4 4, Dimakos 2-3 1-2 6, Duhon 1-3 1-4 3. Totals 27-55 16-29 76.

Halftime—Idaho 44-30. 3-Point Goals—Idaho 9-18 (Hill 7-9, Madison 1-3, M. Scott 1-4, Dean 0-2), Chicago St. 6-19 (Gray 2-5, Pippen 2-8, Dimakos 1-2, Ross 1-4). Fouled Out—Seck. Rebounds—Idaho 36 (Madison 10), Chicago St. 28 (Ross 8). Assists—Idaho 18 (M. Scott 9), Chicago St. 14 (Duhon 4). Total Fouls—Idaho 25, Chicago St. 23. A—926.