With more success comes more challenges, and the Vandals will face one of their stiffest matchups in the quarterfinals of the Women’s National Invite Tournament.
Idaho will travel to take on Arizona as its postseason run continues. This postseason run is the longest for the Vandals since their 2017 run in the WBI. A win against the Wildcats would make this the longest postseason run in more than 15 years.
The Wildcats are led by sophomore guard Aari McDonald, who led the Pac-12 this year with 24.7 points per game on a 45.2 field goal percentage and was Arizona’s sole representative on the All-Pac-12 and All-Defensive teams.
Although inconsistent as a 3-point shooter, McDonald has been a consistent source of production for the Wildcats throughout their first two games against Idaho State and Pacific, averaging 17.5 points. She was especially impressive in the first round against Idaho State, with 20 points and a team- high 12 rebounds.
Despite having the top scorer in the conference, Arizona prefers a slower pace of play that resulted in only 68.4 average points per game this season. The Wildcats are an expressly average team within the Pac-12, but their biggest weaknesses lie in offensive rebounding and turnovers.
The Idaho bench celebrates Sunday during the second round WNIT game in Memorial Gym.
The Vandals emphasized crashing the offensive boards and getting second-chance points in the second half turnaround against Denver in the last round. Idaho grabbed 11 offensive rebounds to kickstart a 9-point comeback that would turn into a 22-point lead by the end of the game. Idaho also committed only nine turnovers while forcing 16 from the Pioneers, which could be an important trend to pursue if the Vandals want to advance further in the tournament.
Idaho struggled mightily in the paint for the first half against Denver and the Vandals could be in trouble if they get dominated in the post again. Arizona has a deep selection of forwards to support McDonald, starting with freshman Cate Reese. In the WNIT, Reese is averaging 18 points per game and is the most recent upstart for head coach Adia Barnes’ squad. Senior Dominique McBryde started for much of the season and senior Destiny Graham has come on in the final stretch of the season to provide leadership and steady minutes.
The path for the Vandals in this is as simple as it has been all season. Idaho Head Coach Jon Newlee’s squad has rarely been the most physically imposing, and this game will be no different. The Vandals should be able to separate themselves if they remain physical on the glass and get separation for the team’s many shooters.
Without the help of a raucous home crowd, it will be paramount to not fall behind, like Idaho did against Denver. It would be unreasonable to expect another 27-point turnaround in this game, so the Vandals will need to come out with a much more consistent approach on offense.
Idaho succeeded against Denver in spite of a down performance from junior forward Lizzy Klinker, but getting her involved will be key to opening up shots senior guards Mikayla Ferenz and Taylor Pierce need to rip their opponents’ hearts out.
Klinker had 21 points and nine rebounds in the loss to Portland State and 24 and 15 against Loyola Marymount, so keeping her out of foul trouble could pave the way for three possible avenues for an offensive outburst.
Ferenz and Pierce will have the final say in whether or not Idaho’s season ends in Tucson. The Splash Sisters have a combined 18 3-pointers in the last two games and Ferenz’s success in other areas (7-10 from inside the arc against Denver) forces opposing defenses to try to be everywhere at once. Freshman guard Gina Marxen has become Newlee’s ace in the hole as the season has wound down, occasionally adding firepower in the present (4-6 from three against Denver) and plenty of excitement for the future.
The Wildcats don’t have as many potentially hot hands as Idaho, but McDonald has the pure ability to flip any game she plays in. If Idaho can keep her and Arizona’s posts from dominating the paint, then there should be ample opportunities for the Vandals to survive and advance.
Idaho will play Arizona 6:30 p.m. Thursday in Tucson, Arizona.
Jonah Baker can be reached at [email protected]