An eventful season for the Idaho men’s basketball team has hit the home stretch, as the Vandals are fighting for a spot in the top-four of the Big Sky Conference postseason tournament next month.
What appeared to be smooth sailing for Idaho in the beginning of the year has turned into stormy seas. This is not because the team lost to a resurgent Sacramento State program 68-65 on Saturday, but because the Vandals have been playing together without their top stars.
The Vandals will play the next three games at home, but the team will not be playing at the Cowan Spectrum. Idaho will play at the Memorial Gym Saturday for the first time since a 67-63 victory over CSU-Bakersfield Dec. 2. The team will be facing No. 3 ranked Eastern Washington.
Idaho’s last game against the Eagles proved to be the turning point of the season, as junior guard Perrion Callandret left the game with a foot injury that put the Vandal out of commission for nine games.
Callandret has played the last three games for Idaho, slowly but surely getting back into his regular form. But one must speculate if the Vandals are truly healthy.
Sophomore guard Victor Sanders was sidelined for seven games after slipping on ice during a road trip to Montana State. Sanders returned back to the starting lineup Saturday against Sacramento State.
As one of the rising forwards in the Big Sky, junior walk-on Ty Egbert experienced a lower ankle injury several weeks ago and his return is yet to be determined.
With all the injuries to the Vandal roster this season, it amazes me on how the team never quit and kept fighting to stay in the top four and earn a bye in the postseason tournament.
Even a string of disappointing losses has not dampened the team’s spirit, it actually made them a stronger program.
In a sport where opponents take advantage of every weakness, Idaho has done an excellent job in staying competitive without the team’s key players. But if the Vandals want to climb back in the top four in the conference standings, they have to be defensive against the Eagles.
Idaho coach Don Verlin said a disappointing second half was the downfall of the team against Sacramento State Saturday.
With the recent comments made by Verlin, the Vandals will be motivated to bounce back and finish their home stretch on a high note. Otherwise, the team could have to fight even harder to move forward into the conference tournament next month.
It won’t get any easier after Saturday’s matchup for the Vandals. The team will also face No. 1 Weber State and the current fourth seed Idaho State in a pair of games next week.
Idaho will likely need help from other conference matchups in the next two weeks to make the challenge easier for the team. But what makes this challenge intriguing is that it forces the Vandals to save their best for last.
With the Vandals becoming healthier, the team will be a threat in the postseason tournament and intimidate its competitors.
It won’t be easy the next two weeks when Idaho is facing three out of the top four conference opponents, but the team will put up a fight until the final buzzer.
Luis Torres can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @TheLTFiles