After a disappointing 0-2 start to conference play on the road, the Vandals were looking to redeem themselves on their home court. They took the Sacramento State Hornets to overtime before suffering a double-digit loss to Portland State.
Sac State
Sacramento State came in 8-6 overall with a 74-63 win over Portland State to open conference play. They came into this game on a two-game winning streak with a lot of momentum.
The game started as a back-and-forth battle, with no team getting over a seven-point lead. Idaho looked like they would take the lead into the locker room, but a foul by sophomore guard Yusuf Salih led to sophomore guard Quandry Adams hitting a buzzer-beating jump shot to send the Hornets into halftime with a 39-38 lead.
Both teams shot over 50% from the field in the first half. Sacramento State went 17/29 from the field, 3/6 from downtown and 2/3 from the free throw line. Idaho was just as good going 18/33 from the field. However, they were 1/6 from beyond the arc and 1/2 from the free throw line.
The first half had nine lead changes and six ties, which set up an even better second half. Junior Isaac Jones led the Vandals with 15 points and came in clutch on a lot of occasions.
The second half began, and it was identical to the first half. No team could pull far ahead, and both teams were shooting well. Sac State was able to go up 76-71 with 21 seconds to make it difficult for Idaho. Despite what seemed like impossible odds, the Vandals didn’t flinch. Freshman forward Nigel Burris made a layup to cut the lead to 76-73 with 11 seconds left.
As soon as the ball was inbounded, Salih fouled junior forward Cameron Wilbon. Wilbon went to the line and nailed the first, but the pressure got to him as he missed the second. Jones grabbed the rebound, the Vandals ran down the floor and Freshman guard Dominque Ford hit a tightly contested shot to cut it to 77-75. A turnover by Sac State on the inbounds pass gave the Vandals a chance for the tie. They took advantage as Jones set a screen and Ford hit a floater to send the game into overtime.
The Vandals pushed Sac State to their limit, but came up short with an 85-83 loss to extend their losing streak to 4 games. Isaac Jones had a career high 42 points and 12 rebounds playing all but five minutes. Moffitt added 19 points and seven assists, but they weren’t enough to complete the comeback.
Despite the loss, all 1,369 fans were left with a great game. They also made it a very tough atmosphere for the Hornets.
“We appreciate it. It’s awesome to have that juice and that energy,” head coach Zac Claus said. “We are excited for the students to get back next week and get them back in the building.”
PSU
After a heartbreaker at home against the Hornets, the Vandals looked to avenge their home court against the Portland State Vikings. Both teams were looking for their first conference win of the season.
The Vikings were neck-and-neck in the first half with the Vandals taking a 30-27 lead into the break. Unlike the game against Sac State, both teams shot poorly in the first half. Idaho was 10/26 from the field and 4/15 from three. The Vikings were 10/27 from the field and 3/7 from the three-point line.
The wheels fell off for the Vandals in the second half as the Vikings outscored the Vandals 47-28 in the second half. Portland State shot 13% better from the field as they cruised to a 74-58 victory on the road. The Vikings shot lights out in the second half going 16/23 from the field and 9/14 from three. The Vandals went 11/27 from the field and 2/11 from three-point range.
With the loss, the Vandals dropped to 6-11 (0-4) to push their losing streak to five. Idaho will look to get back on track with an upset over the first place Eastern Washington Eagles on Jan. at 3:30 p.m. in Cheney.
Jayden Barfuss can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @JaydenBarfuss10