Only 32 miles separate Lewis-Clark State College and the University of Idaho, but the skill difference between the two men’s basketball programs was light years apart Friday night.
The Vandals claimed a commanding 88-53 victory in front of a crowd of over 600 at the Memorial Gym in the team’s final exhibition game.
“I think the supporting crowd really helped us get our energy coming out from the start,” sophomore guard Victor Sanders said. “The crowd helped us to maintain our focus and competitive edge and let us know that we needed to hold down our home court.”
The Warriors (3-1), previously ranked No. 13 in the NAIA preseason standings, could not muster the 3-point attack that had embodied their program in recent weeks. The normally sharp-shooting Warriors averaged 48.9 percent beyond the arc during their first three games, but only shot 20.8 percent from 3-point range against the Vandals.
“We did a lot better job getting to LCSC’s shooters,” Idaho coach Don Verlin said. “I felt like our hands were high and we rushed them a little bit and that our size on the perimeter really bothered them.”
The Vandals received a productive offensive night from Sanders, who posted 14 points and shot 5 of 7 from the field in the team’s Friday night victory.
Senior forward Nahshon George led the Vandals with a hot start in the first half, scoring eight of the Vandals’ first 11 points and shooting 86 percent on the night. Idaho also had a dominating performance in the paint from senior forward Paulin Mpawe, who collected 11 rebounds for the Vandals.
Idaho held the Warriors to just 24 points in the first half.
LCSC went on a 10-0 run late in the second half but Idaho responded with back-to-back 3-point baskets from Sanders and junior guard Perrion Callandret. Redshirt freshman guard Jake Straughan then followed with another 3-pointer to extend Idaho’s lead to 30 with six minutes left to play.
“We played with more energy and intensity and were a little quicker to the ball tonight,” Verlin said.
Despite Idaho losing its top two scorers from last year, the balanced offensive approach advocated by Verlin and the Vandals was evident in Friday’s matchup. Four Idaho players finished the game in double digits.
“It was a quality win for an exhibition game, no question about it,” Verlin said. “They’ve got a good program but we played really well tonight. I was real happy with everything.”
Idaho opens its regular season schedule with San Jose State at 7 p.m. Saturday in San Jose, California.
Josh Grissom can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @GoshJrissom