Idaho was unable to overcome another slow start as the Montana State Bobcats won 51-46 on Feb. 3, handing the Vandals their second consecutive loss.
“We dug ourselves a little bit of a hole in the first half of the past two games, and we now have to get that fixed,” Head Coach Carrie Eighmey said postgame.
The game began with a Bobcat three-pointer by senior guard Katelynn Limardo. From there, the Bobcats went on an 8-0 run before sophomore guard Asha Phillips got the Vandals on the board. The Bobcats outscored the Vandals 12-6 and took a 20-8 lead into the second quarter.
After a lousy start to the game, the Vandals settled down and began to come back. A quick little 5-2 run capped by a three-pointer by graduate guard Sarah Schmitt had the Vandals down 22-13. The Vandals battled, but the Bobcats took a comfortable 30-17 lead into the halftime break.
The Bobcats, after a sizzling first quarter, cooled off in the second quarter. They finished the half shooting 13-for-28 from the field, 2-for-4 from beyond the arc, and 2-for-2 from the line. The Vandals struggled to shoot the ball the entire first half.
Idaho finished the half shooting 6-for-20 from the field,1-for-5 from three, and 4-for-6 from the free-throw line. Like the Montana game, the Vandal’s intensity and aggressiveness perked up, and they began to get back in the game.
The Vandals began the half on a 5-0 run, cutting the game to 30-22. The two teams went back and forth, and with the Vandals down 15, they needed a big end to the quarter. A three-pointer by Schmitt and a buzzer-beating layup by junior forward Kennedy Johnson cut the lead to 10 and gave the Vandals some much-needed momentum heading into the fourth quarter.
The wave of momentum steered the Vandals to a 9-0 run, all scored by Phillips, forcing an MSU timeout.
After dominating in the first half, but slowing down in the second, Montana State was ready to put the game away. With 25 seconds left and the Vandals down 49-43, a costly turnover by the Vandals led to an easy layup by freshman Natalie Pitcon, which was the final blow for the Vandals.
The Vandals continued to fight until the end, but the Bobcats defeated them 51-46, handing Idaho its sixth conference loss and second in a row.
Eighmey spoke about another lousy start from her team, saying, “I think we’re not as aggressive on either end of the floor. It’s not consistently this way, but the last two games have definitely been a challenge for us.”
However, even with the loss, Phillips had another strong game for the Vandals.
Phillips led all scorers with a career-high 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds, which tied her career high. Phillips was not satisfied with her numbers when she spoke postgame.
“It was a good day for me, but we didn’t get the win. Our team has a lot of potential, and we’re a good team, we just haven’t put it together.”
Johnson also helped the Vandals with 11 points and seven rebounds to keep them in the game.
The Bobcats were led by fifth-year guard Madison Hall, who finished with 15 points. Pitcon and senior forward Taylor Janssen helped the Bobcats with nine points each.
The Vandals will look to get back to winning ways when they face Sacramento State on Monday, Feb. 5 after winning 88-51 the first time. Eighmey promises this game will be different.
“Sac is a different team than they were the first time we played them. They got their first conference win and have been playing better as of late, which will be our message to the team.”
The Vandals and Hornets will tip off Monday, Feb 5, at 6 p.m.
Jayden Barfuss can be reached at [email protected] or on X @JaydenBarfuss10