No one told the Vandals securing a first round by would be easy.
The Idaho men’s basketball team discovered that Thursday when the team took on Weber State at the Cowan Spectrum.
The game was a defensive battle right from the start. Both the Wildcats and the Vandals struggled to score their opening points. Junior guard Perrion Callandret scored the first basket of the game, but the lead was short lived for the Vandals.
A personal foul on Victor Sanders gave the Wildcats two free throws. After the second shot, the Vandals committed a lane violation and Weber State took advantage of the call.
The foul trouble was a mixed with poor shooting from both programs.
Idaho made only 10 of 28 field goals in the first half, while Weber State converted 10 of 23.
Midway through the first half, Weber State snagged a 23-15 lead. The Idaho defense, which began the game with a strong showing, began to falter.
It wasn’t until Nate Sherwood sunk a shot from the elbow that Idaho began to feel life once again. Sophomore forward Arkadiy Mkrtychyan made a terrific play, driving past a trio of defenders for the basket and the foul.
Just several minutes later, Sanders delivered back-to-back 3-pointers to chip away at Weber State’s lead. Sophomore guard Chad Sherwood grabbing an offensive rebound on the following possession and scoring a tough basket.
The Vandals trailed the Wildcats 32-31 at halftime. Idaho led the rebound battle in the first half with 24 boards, a trend that would continue until the final buzzer.
The Vandals built off the momentum of the first half and came out of the locker room with hot shooting. Sanders delivered a behind-the-back pass that set Nashon George up for a commanding dunk that sent the crowd to its feet.
As the game progressed, Idaho’s shooting appeared to regress. Only through free throws were the Vandals able to maintain a lead over the Wildcats.
Jeremy Senglen provided a scoring streak for Weber State when the team needed it most Midway through the half, he recorded back-to-back steals, converting a layup and 3-pointers to pull the Wildcats within two.
The Vandals responded with more free throws and a 3-pointer by Sherwood from deep on the perimeter.
With one minute remaining in regulation, the teams were tied at 57 apiece.
Weber State attempted to score while running down the clock, but the Wildcats failed to make the basket. With only seconds remaining, Sanders called his own number.
“My team needed me to be the big player.” Sanders said. “The shot was there and I shot it.”
Sanders nailed a deep shot on the perimeter with just 40 seconds left in the game. The basket turned out to be the game winner, as Idaho exited the court with a 60-58 victory.
Idaho head coach Don Verlin spoke highly of his team’s effort to get at the ball.
“The difference in this game was rebounding. That was a man’s effort tonight on the glass.”
The win clinches a first-round bye in the Big Sky tournament for Idaho.
Brandon Hill can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @brandonmtnhill