Vandals in first postseason since 1990
MOSCOW, Idaho – What most thought unfathomable back in November began crystallizing by mid-January. Don Verlin’s first season guiding the Idaho men’s basketball team was shaping up to be a meaningful one.
The news Verlin and the Vandals received Sunday only cemented that reality.
After a 19-year postseason drought, Idaho was one of 16 teams selected to take part in the inaugural CollegeInsider.com tournament. The Vandals will host Drake of the Missouri Valley Conference at 7:05 p.m. Wednesday at Memorial Gym.
“It’s a fabulous opportunity for the University of Idaho,” Verlin said. “We haven’t been in the postseason in 19 years here (and) to get in my first year really validates the season we had.”
The school paid $28,000 for the right to host the first-round game. Half the cost was covered by private fundraising and the other half by the UI president’s office, athletic director Rob Spear said.
Verlin said the fee was essentially to cover Drake’s travel expenses.
“This is a huge accomplishment for our men’s basketball program,” Spear said in a written statement. “(It) is a well-deserved honor based on the fantastic season for our team.”
If the Vandals (16-15) get past the Bulldogs (17-15), Verlin said they’ll have a chance to play in Moscow in the quarterfinal round March 23.
The tournament’s field consists mostly of schools in the eastern half of the country and is set up for geographically friendly matchups to keep travel costs low. The only other West Coast schools in the single-elimination event, Pacific and Portland, meet Wednesday.
For the Vandals, an invitation to the CIT means they get to extend the program’s finest season since 1998-99. They took third place in the Western Athletic Conference thanks to a season sweep of Boise State and a road win at second-place Nevada.
Those three victories, coupled with triumphs over NCAA tournament qualifiers North Dakota State and Cal State Northridge, helped raise Idaho’s stock.
“They really were looking for teams that got hot late in the year,” said Verlin, whose squad has won six of its past eight games.
Drake, located in Des Moines, Iowa, reached the NCAA tournament last year as a No. 5 seed only to lose a memorable overtime affair to Western Kentucky in the first round. This year’s team has wins over Iowa and Iowa State and is led by guard Josh Young, who averages 15.3 points per game.
The Bulldogs have lost three in a row and five of their past seven.
Verlin said he’s slightly concerned about how many people will show up for Wednesday’s contest since UI students will be gone on spring break. The game is taking place at cozy Memorial Gym because Idaho is prepping the Kibbie Dome for a renovation project.