There is little doubt the Big Sky Conference has evolved into a guard-dominated league over the last decade.
The conference served as the collegiate origin of National Basketball Association All-Star Damian Lillard, who routinely dropped dimes on opponents during his time at Weber State.
A constant barrage of 3-pointers electrifies spectators and energizes a team on the court, something the Idaho men’s basketball program is no stranger to. The Vandals possess two of the best shooters in the conference — senior guard Perrion Callandret and junior guard Victor Sanders. The two guards combined for 118 treys and 781 points last season.
But the Vandals are receiving help in an unexpected and often overlooked area this year — the paint.
After a relatively quiet Division I debut against Carroll College, Brayon Blake made his presence known Friday night against Lewis-Clark State College with 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Although the Warriors drained nearly twice as many 3-pointers as the Vandals, Blake’s performance helped Idaho outscore Lewis-Clark 34-12 in the paint.
Blake provides the Vandals with a dominating presence in the post and another offensive weapon. Blake’s presence should deliver some peace of mind for Callandret and Sanders, who often shoulder the majority of the offensive workload.
Idaho head coach Don Verlin can use Blake to his advantage in formulating offensive strategies. If opposing teams focus on defending the perimeter, the Vandals can counter by feeding the ball down low to Blake.
Idaho already has two formidable posts in junior forward Arkadiy Mkrtychyan and senior forward Ty Egbert, so the addition of Blake will likely result in fewer minutes across the board. But the presence of a third player in the position allows the luxury of adopting a taller lineup and looking for potential mismatches in the paint.
Blake is still learning what his role will be with Idaho, his performance against Lewis-Clark provided a glimpse of the energy he brings to the hardwood.
Fitting Blake into an already talented lineup may be a tough decision for Verlin to face, but one thing is for certain — there is no shortage of ways for the Vandals to score.
Josh Grissom can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @GoshJrissom