Idaho men roll past D-III Whitman; Vandal women fall at UC Davis

MOSCOW, Idaho – Idaho outmatched Whitman, blowing past the Division III program for a 94-49 win Friday night at ICCU Arena in the Vandals’ home opener.

Idaho (2-0) shot 55% from the field and 12 of 25 from 3-point range. The Vandals led by eight points at halftime, but opened the second period with a 14-2 run and wound up outscoring the Blues 57-20 in the second half.

Freshman forward Jackson Rasmussen led Idaho with 19 points and sophomore guard Kolton Mitchell, a Lake City High grad, added 17 points and six assists. Junior post Seth Joba contributed 10 points and 13 boards as the Vandals outrebounded Whitman 53-23.

Women

UC Davis 89, Idaho 76: The Vandals erased a 15-point deficit in the second quarter, storming back to tie the game late in the third, but a 13-0 UC Davis run to open the fourth proved the difference.

The Aggies separated for the win at University Credit Union Center.

Idaho (1-1), which had overcome a double-digit deficit in its season-opening win at Washington State, couldn’t complete another comeback against the hot-shooting Aggies (2-0), who went 14 of 30 from 3-point range.

Guard Ana Pinheiro led Idaho with 17 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, and guard Kyra Gardner added 16 points.

Guards Ryann Bennett tallied 21 points to pace a UC Davis team that was picked to finish third in the Big West Conference preseason poll.