“I’m really glad this team is the first team to get it done in this arena,” Head Coach Alex Pribble said about being the first men’s team to beat Idaho State in ICCU Arena. The Bengals didn’t make it easy, but in the end, the Vandals walked out with the 55-53 victory.
It had been 1,442 days since Idaho claimed a victory against its in-state rival.
“It was one of those things where the team that wants it more is going to go get it, and we wanted it,” the sophomore guard Trevon Blassingame said. “We’ve been pushed into adversity, and I was just going to make a play for my team. I saw Juice (Mims) was deep… so then I was like ‘I got to tip it out so they don’t get a shot.’”
Blassingame finished with nine points, including the first made three of the game. He also added four rebounds and a steal to his stat line.
Mims played a huge part in the Vandals’ victory as the junior forward racked up 14 rebounds, five steals and two blocks. He also added eight points, two of which came off a back-scratching dunk.
“That’s my game. I stick to it, and it works,” Mims said. He had missed an alley-oop dunk just one play before the crowd got sent into a frenzy.
While Blassingame and Mims had two huge games, the win was an all-around effort. Freshman guard Kris Gonzalez and junior forward Kyson Rose each added 11 points, tied for the most on the team.
“That’s how things played out, but the message is always team basketball,” Pribble said when asked about the game plan. “We’re at our best when we’re making each other better.”
On the other side, Idaho State was led by sophomore guard Maleek Arington, who played high school basketball alongside Blassingame at Auburn High School. Arington played all 40 minutes, putting up 19 points, nine rebounds and two steals.
Backing up Arington was graduate student center Brayden Parker. He had 12 points and four rebounds in 29 minutes.
While the Vandals feel great about finally beating the Bengals in ICCU Arena, there’s still a lot of games left before the Big Sky Tournament. Idaho’s next games will be back on the road as they face Northern Colorado on Thursday, Feb. 22 at 5 p.m. and Northern Arizona at 1 p.m. on Feb. 24.
James Taurman-Aldrich can be reached at [email protected] or on X @jamesaldrich25