Idaho cruises past sloppy-shooting Sac State in first round of Big Sky tourney

BOISE – The Idaho men’s basketball team took advantage of its opponent’s sloppy shooting and opened the Big Sky Conference Tournament with a resounding win.

The seventh-seeded Vandals routed No. 8 seed Sacramento State 68-45 on Saturday night in the first round of the tournament at Idaho Central Arena.

The Vandals (18-14) led 27-13 at the half – easily the fewest points Idaho has allowed in a half this season. The Hornets (10-21) shot 3 of 27 (11.1%) from the field in the first half and finished with their fewest points in a game this season.

It was a sluggish start for both teams – it took five minutes for the first point to be scored, and Idaho led 9-4 after 11 minutes. But the Vandals went on a 17-6 run over the next six minutes and led comfortably throughout the second half.

Freshman forward Jackson Rasmussen, playing in front of a hometown crowd, led Idaho with 19 points. Guard Kolton Mitchell added 17 points and eight rebounds, and guard Biko Johnson contributed 10 points and eight boards.

Idaho shot 35.4% from the field and 7 of 33 (21.2%) on 3s – not the most efficient numbers, but more than enough to clip the Hornets, who finished 14 of 55 (25.5%) from the floor and 3 of 17 (17.6%) from deep. The Vandals outrebounded Sac State 51-34.

The Vandals advance to face No. 2 seed Montana State (18-13) in the second round at 7 p.m. Sunday.