From the moment the Idaho men’s basketball team walked on to the court, something was different.
At first it was not a good kind of different. Everyone’s eyes went to junior guard Victor Sanders, who was not in uniform.
A tough game on senior night and one of the better players in program history was sidelined. I don’t think I was the only one who felt immediately pessimistic about the Vandals chances to pull the upset over top ranked Weber State.
Both teams went hard in the paint. It was a back and forth game that had the crowd on the edge for the full 40 minutes of regulation and beyond in the overtime period.
It was a game that was highlighted with constant changes in scores and performances.Yet, what stood out most on the senior day game was the performance from a standout freshman.
Freshman guard Trevon Allen had a big gap to fill with the absence of Sanders who was out with an injury from the previous game.
No matter what age or which player steps in, it was hard to imagine anyone living up to the performance of an average night from Sanders. Against all odds, Allen did just that.
In the opening half of the game he came out with 13 points, including 3-4 from the beyond the arc and a perfect 4-4 at the free throw line.Allen cooled off for part of the second half, but held on to his perfect record from the line.
It was in overtime that he came out and pulled through in a crucial moment. Allen held onto his perfect free throw record when he shot 6-6 to push Idaho forward and put away Weber State. He finished the night 14-14 from the line and scored six of Idaho’s nine overtime points.
It is more than safe to say he filled the gap left by an injured Sanders — he went beyond just filling the gap.
As a junior, Sanders has one season left and then Idaho will most likely be without its leading man.
Any fans who were nervous about the post-Sanders era have no reason to be nervous after tonight’s game. Yes, he is an incredible player who continued to improve his game and team. But Allen showed that Sanders is not irreplaceable — the freshman stepped up to fill shoes no one thought could be filled like that.
Yet Allen did, improving his career record from 11 points to 25 while tying his career record for minutes played.
One game and Allen showed he currently is, and has the potential to be, one of the best. Idaho fans have no reason to worry about the future of this program as long as Allen is part of it.
Meredith Spelbring can be reached at [email protected]