The Vandals headed down to Pocatello Thursday night to take on the number two- ranked Bengals. Senior guard/post Tiana Johnson, a 39.6 percent three-point shooter, hit a three to start the game, but there wasn’t much scoring to follow. There were six lead changes and three ties early, but the Bengals went on a 12-5 run to end the first. The three from Johnson at the start was the largest lead Idaho would have all game.
The Bengals were able to dominate in the paint in the second. Twenty of their 25 points came off of layups and two-point jumpers. Idaho was able to bring it within one with four minutes left, but then Idaho State went on another run. It started with an Idaho turnover and then the Bengals outscored the Vandals 13-2 to take a 12-point lead into the locker room.
Idaho State came back out ready to hold their lead. Within the first 40 seconds they scored twice and barely let Idaho touch the ball. After almost two minutes of play, Idaho put their first points up off a layup from Johnson. Both teams continued to score, but the Vandals were unable to get a stop on defense. The Bengals continued to claw their way into the paint, scoring 18 of their 29 inside. Despite the Vandals’ 21 points, they still ended the quarter down 76-56.
Going into the final quarter, the Vandals needed a miracle. The Bengals continued to go inside while the Vandals struggled to score. Idaho State was able to score 12 points inside the arc, Idaho scored 12 in the entire quarter. The Bengals had over 20 points in each quarter, being the first team to put up 100 against the Vandals this season. This 103-point in-conference game was this season for the Big Sky. The Vandals dropped to eighth in the Big Sky and the Bengals moved to first.
After reaching 1,000 career points on Monday, junior guard/post Beyonce Bea added another 17 along with seven rebounds. Johnson put up 10 points and pulled down seven rebounds. Off the bench, graduate student guard Louise Forsyth led the team in points with 18 and tacked on four rebounds. The Vandals will return home on Feb. 19 to take on Eastern Washington at 2 p.m. and will stay home for the following four games.
James Taurman-Aldrich can be reached at [email protected]