The Idaho men’s basketball program reached new heights last season, showcasing the progression the program made over the years leading up to the 2017-2018 season.
The “senior six” led the Vandals to the second-best record in the Big Sky Conference, leaving many to believe a Big Sky Championship and a NCAA Tournament ap- pearance may be within reach.
But compounding hope all slipped away in a short 40-minutes.
The Vandals were upset in the opening round of the Big Sky Tournament. Many questions lingered as to how Idaho could respond after losing the talented seniors who got the team there.
More hardships occurred toward the beginning of this season for Idaho, with the loss of senior Nate Sherwood and junior transfer Marquell Fraser.
Fraser battled hip issues through the beginning of the season, ultimately leading to surgery. Sherwood has been out for the season due to undisclosed reasons.
The impact of the loss of the two upperclassmen was felt almost instantly.
Idaho Head Coach Don Verlin said the abrupt early season losses led to an adjustment of plans for the program.
“Before the season starts, you have a vision and obviously our vision and plan got turned upside down with the loss of Nate Sherwood. Another guy we were counting on was Marquell Fraser,” Verlin said.
Due to Sherwood’s absence, freshman forward Jared Rodriguez has stepped up this season as a leader and one of the main scorers for the team. The unexpected rise in rank even surprised Rodriguez himself.
“Coming into the season I thought I was going to be a sixth man or seven man,” Rodriguez said. “But then finding out that (Sherwood) can’t play anymore, I had to be the leader being the redshirt freshman.”
There will always be “what if” questions as to what this season would have been like with the two veterans. Many believe this season’s narrative may have been different had they been active on the court.
“Those two guys were a big part of what we do,” Verlin said. “When you take those two guys out of our lineup, you take 60 minutes off the floor, probably.”
This year’s active roster consists of six freshmen, four sophomores and junior Trevon Allen, who has found himself as the true leader of this team.
“(Allen) has had a lot of weight on his shoulders this year,” Verlin said. “He has played good. Maybe he hasn’t played his best basketball the last two or three games, but up until that point he’s played like the guy I thought he would.”
One of the leading freshmen on this year’s roster is guard Cameron Tyson, who has been a much needed scoring addition for the future of the program.
“Cameron Tyson has had a good year,” Verlin said. “You look back at the 11 years that I have been here and he’s by far having the best freshman year by anybody we’ve ever had.”
Tyson is currently tied for second place in the Big Sky for 3-pointers made. Tyson has made 30 3-pointers in the 10 conference games played this season.
The main struggles for Idaho have stemmed from the re- bounding issues throughout the course of the year.
“I think with time, we’ll get better at it,” Verlin said. “Sometimes rebounding is a habit, but it’s also the ability to go get it done.”
The Vandals rank last in the conference in rebounding margin, averaging nearly 32 rebounds per game.
The only consistent rebounder for Idaho has been Rodriguez, who sits in the top 10 in rebounding with nearly seven rebounds per game.
“As a freshman, I kind of pride myself on rebounding,” Rodriguez said. “For me to get other people open shots gives me a chance to go and get some offensive rebounds.”
Verlin said he believes struggles to play with intensity and a surplus of young players still learning are the main prob- lems this squad battles.
Idaho has lost 17 times so far this season at the halfway point. The most losses the Vandals have experienced under Verlin is 18.
“You can’t get tied down in your wins and losses,” Verlin said. “What you have to invest in is the process of getting better and the results will come.”
From a coaching perspective, Verlin said he believes this is one of his better teams at consistently trying to improve regardless of losses.
“In a way, it’s kind of fun,” Verlin said. “In college basketball it takes a while to grow up and we’re going through the growing pains.”
Freshman guard RayQuawndis Mitchell said staying united can help the team throughout the problematic season.
“We know that we can all play basketball and are good at what we do,” Mitchell said. “We just have to continue to stay together because we know it’s a marathon and not a race.”
While it may seem grim right now for Vandal men’s basketball, the future holds more shine for the up-and-coming team the next few years.
“This team is going to be good at some point,” Verlin said. “I don’t know when it is. It may be in a week, it may be next year, but there is enough talent in the room that eventually it will be like so many teams I’ve had here.”
Chris Deremer can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @Cderemer_VN