Idaho fall to Idaho State 79-70 in Battle of the Domes, as season’s struggles continue
MOSCOW, Idaho — Idaho State’s anemic record might have suggested this game was a chance for Idaho to pick up its third Big Sky Conference win.
But after the Vandals’ 79-70 loss in Moscow on Thursday, head coach Zac Claus glumly acknowledged, “we are in no position to call anything a probable win. We’ve got to play great, and we didn’t do it for 40 minutes tonight.”
The Vandals (5-18, 2-11) got a glimpse of how things could be in the ICCU Arena with an invested crowd led by a large and energetic student section, but the Bengals (5-17, 3-10) pulled away in the final 15 minutes.
After trailing 21-4 in the first seven minutes, the Vandals methodically, maturely and with contributions from all over the bench climbed back into contention. By halftime they trailed just 37-34.
Idaho’s new football coach Jason Eck and his staff took turns firing up the crowd during intermission, with Eck pointedly addressing remarks like “there’s no place I’d rather be than coaching the University of Idaho” to the students behind the south basket.
There was a sense of connectedness in the building; everyone awash in anticipation of success. It called to mind the old days of the 1980s for the Vandals when the football and basketball teams were Big Sky Conference powers.
Idaho kept the magic going early in the second half. In the second half, Trevante Anderson gathered himself, leaped and towered over ISU’s Liam Sorensen to block his shot, and the Vandals’ Mikey Dixon picked up the ball and finished the play with a long 3-pointer to shrink ISU’s lead to 42-41. A half-minute later, Anderson wove through three defenders to reach the rim and keep Idaho within a point, 44-43.
From there, though, ISU, led by the game’s high scorer Tarik Cool with 30 points, pulled away to a comfortable lead that oscillated between 8 and 10 points for the remainder of the second half.
Claus summed up matters thus: “there was a lack of toughness in the first 10 minutes and selfish play in the second half, not closing out.”
“Whenever we share the ball, we score points. When we try to do too much off the dribble, we’re easier to guard.”
A former Vandal had something to do with those first 10 minutes. Jared Rodriguez, who played at Idaho as a freshman in 2018-19 and was the team’s leading rebounder then, averaging 6.5 to go along with 11.2 points per game, connected three times from behind the arc against his old team and added a tap in for 11 of his 16 points.
“He made shots,” Claus said. But Rodriguez’ return to Moscow didn’t carry any more meaning than that for the Vandals, according to the coach. “He was just another guy in a jersey.”
Dixon led Idaho with 22 points. He was 2-6 from beyond the arc, and he Euro-stepped his way through the Bengals’ defense to another five baskets. Dixon also buried all six of his free throws and grabbed four rebounds.
Anderson followed with 19 points and four rebounds. In addition, he gave weight to the Vandals’ defense with his block and two steals. Tanner
Christensen scored 12 points for Idaho and led the team with 8 rebounds. He also picked up three early fouls and ultimately finished with four. When fouls sent Christensen to the bench, seldom-used Michael Hanshaw came on, and in 10 minutes he gave Idaho four points, a rebound, and he broke the Bengals’ scoring momentum on a couple of occasions when he drew two charges from ISU.
The Vandals take on one of the Big Sky’s top teams Saturday. Weber State is coming off a loss at Eastern Washington Thursday, 75-67. But the Wildcats are 18-7 overall, and 11-3 in the conference.