Coming up: Today at Sacramento State, 7:05 p.m.; Saturday at Portland State, 7:05 p.m. Outlook: If Idaho is going to keep up in the conference race following its 89-86 loss to Eastern Washington on Saturday, the Vandals will have to win their first road game outside of the Palouse all season. Idaho’s lone road triumph came 8 miles away from home, beating Washington State 77-71. Getting senior point guard Mike Scott back on track should be crucial. Scott, who came in to last Saturday’s loss averaging only a turnover per contest, turned it over four times against the Eagles. Idaho hasn’t played Sacramento State since Nov. 24, 2009, a 77-65 win in Moscow. Idaho played at Portland State last season in a nonconference 76-75 win.

Coming up: Thursday at Portland State, 7:05 p.m.; Saturday at Sacramento State, 7:05 p.m. Outlook: The Eagles are alone atop the Big Sky Conference, which only enlarges the target on their backs. This week they visit two of the league’s tougher venues – at least for coach Jim Hayford, who is 0-6 in games at PSU and Sacramento State. Tonight, EWU faces a PSU team that has five players averaging double figures. Guard DaShaun Wiggins averages 15.7 points and is fourth in the Sky in 3-point shooting at 49.1 percent. The Vikings, who own a win over USC, also are good at taking care of the ball. They’re a plus 2.6 in turnover margin. On paper, the tougher game will come Saturday: Sacramento State is one of five teams that is one game behind EWU. In conference games only, the Hornets lead the league in shooting (51.8 percent) and assists (16.8). Eastern guard Tyler Harvey still leads the NCAA with a 23.4 scoring average.

I've never been to Omaha, but that's where I'll be in nine weeks if Joe Lunardi's latest bracket prediction is correct.

MOSCOW, Idaho – When the two highest scoring teams in the Big Sky Conference met at the Cowan Spectrum Saturday night, the head coaches of Idaho and Eastern Washington could only naturally think about one thing: Defense. The specific focus for EWU coach Jim Hayford was Idaho’s stellar senior point guard, Mike Scott. The Eagles forced Scott into four turnovers, roughly four times as many as he averaged coming into the game.

Colfax grad Brandon Gfeller set career highs by scoring 23 points and hitting seven 3-pointers to lead Montana over Idaho State 90-64 on Saturday in Pocatello, Idaho. Jordan Gregory added 20 for the Grizzlies (6-8, 3-1 Big Sky), which made a season-high 15 3-pointers on 27 attempts.

In a Big Sky thriller, Eastern Washington women’s basketball team lost a big lead but found a way to rally late in the game to defeat Idaho Saturday with a 71-65 victory in Cheney. The Eagles (10-4, 3-0 Big Sky) have won six in a row after dispatching rival Idaho, which falls to 7-7, 1-2 in conference.

Chris Hansen scored 26 points, including 12 of Idaho State’s final 16, and the Bengals beat the Bobcats 70-61 on Thursday night in Pocatello. Montana State led 56-54 when Hansen scored the first eight points in a game-ending 16-5 run.

Let’s call it a rivalry in the re-making. Some of the Eastern Washington and Idaho players weren’t yet born in 1996, when the Eagles and Vandals last played a Big Sky Conference basketball game against each other.

Coming up: Saturday vs. Eastern Washington, 7 p.m. Outlook: The Vandals have made a triumphant return to Big Sky Conference play thus far with a 2-0 start, notching home wins against Idaho State and Weber State over the weekend. The real test begins this weekend when the Big Sky lead is put on the line against the red-hot Eastern Washington Eagles. The Vandals’ struggling defense will have to contain EWU’s potent offense, which averages 79.8 points per game on 48.7 percent shooting. The Eagles and Vandals scrimmaged behind closed doors prior to last season, a scrimmage that Idaho won.

Coming up: Saturday at Idaho, 7 p.m. Outlook: The Eagles rang in the new year the way they finished the old, improving to 11-4 overall after sweeping Weber State and Idaho State last week at Reese Court. They now face three straight games on the road, where they went 3-7 in Big Sky Conference play last year. However, a successful nonconference run “gives us confidence no matter who we play” on the road, guard Parker Kelly said this week. Another challenge: injuries to three starters. Point guard Drew Brandon was stricken by back spasms against ISU, while forward Ognjen Miljkovic also has minor back pains and Kelly is dealing with minor groin and foot injuries. NCAA scoring leader Tyler Harvey sparks an offense that leads the conference in scoring (79.8 ppg), scoring margin (plus 9.3) and field goal percentage (48.7 percent). The Eagles also lead the league in blocked shots (5.9) and in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.2).

Based on comparative scores, EWU should beat Idaho this weekend by about 21 points. On the other hand ...

Despite opening the Big Sky Conference season with two wins last weekend, EWU remained 19th in the College Insider Mid-Major poll.

With national Letter of Intent Day barely a month away, here's an early look at a few high school stars who've made verbal commits to the Eagles