Off a massive weekend on the Islands for the Idaho Vandals, they returned home to host Utah Valley. The Vandals would unfortunately not extend their win streak as Utah Valley came into the ICCU arena and defeated the Vandals 66-59.
The game began with both teams firing on all cylinders and after almost half the quarter, the teams were tied at 12. The Wolverines ended the quarter outscoring the Vandals 14-7 and taking a 26-19 lead into the second quarter.
Both teams were hot in the first quarter, but that streak ended for Idaho as it got cold in the second quarter. The Wolverines stretched their lead to 40-28, putting pressure on the Vandals.
The Vandals responded, getting it down to 40-33, but the Wolverines ended the half on a 3-0 run to take a 43-33 lead into the break. The Wolverines came out scorching the net and continued that in the second quarter.
The Wolverines finished the half 18/27 from the field, 4/7 from beyond the arc and 3/4 from the free-throw line. After a hot first quarter, the Vandals fell off in the second quarter, leading to a big deficit.
The Vandals finished the half 10/21 from the field, 3/7 from three and an impressive 10/13 from the free-throw line.
The second half was much more of a defensive battle, and in the third quarter, the Vandals inched closer but still trailed 56-47 heading into the fourth quarter.
The Vandals outscored the Wolverines 14-13 in the third quarter and were much better defensively. In the fourth quarter, the Vandals once again got close but could not get over the hump and the Wolverines closed out the Vandals 66-59 to reach 3-2 on the season.
The Wolverines were impressive all game, shooting 27/51 from the field, 5/12 from three-point range and 7/11 from the free-throw line. In the first quarter, the Vandals struggled to score the ball.
The Vandals finished the game 19/46 from the field, 4/14 from beyond the arc and 17/23 from the free throw line. The Wolverines were led by a two-headed monster that combined for 29 points.
Junior guard Ally Criddle led all scorers with 15 points, going 6/8 from the field, 2/4 from three and 1/2 from the free-throw line.
The Vandals were led by graduate forward Hope Butera, who secured her first double-double of the season.
“She does a really good job defensively and offensively. She is still figuring things out and is starting to come along,” Head Coach Carrie Eighmey said.
Butera had 14 points and grabbed 14 rebounds for the Vandals. Graduate guard Amalie Langer helped Butera and the Vandals with 12 points of her own. However, the two big performances weren’t enough to get a win.
“I think the biggest thing offensively is to stay aggressive, Eighmey said. “Utah Valley mixed up their defenses, and for whatever reason, it made our players passive.”
The Vandals will travel to Logan, Utah, to face Utah State on Wednesday before heading back home Friday to host Texas A&M Commerce, hoping to rebound from their tough loss.
Jayden Barfuss can be reached at [email protected] or on X @jaydenBarfuss10