In the glow of California’s spotlight, the Idaho Vandals turned the start of their California road trip into a highlight reel. With two minutes remaining in the third quarter, the Vandals had a chance to put the game out of reach. The Vandals were up 37-24 over University of California Riverside, and they used a 5-2 run to push the lead to 17 points, their largest of the game.
Behind big first and third quarters, the Vandals took down the Highlanders 56-42, giving the Vandals their third consecutive victory and improving to 3-2 on the season.
Head coach Arthur Moreira was pleased with the Vandal’s performance.
“It’s always good to get a road win; I was really happy with the way we battled today; we knew it was going to be a tough game,” Moreira said.
“I thought we did a phenomenal job on the glass again, 45 to 28 today; it was a big margin that was the key to win,” Moreira said.
The Highlanders came out swinging to start the game and jumped out to a 7-5 lead early, putting the Vandals under pressure. The Vandals responded with a 13-0 run to end the first quarter, led by graduate Rosie Schweizer’s 8 of her 21 points, giving the Vandals a first-quarter cushion.
The Vandals kept the momentum going, and after five straight points by graduate forward Jennifer Aadland, they pushed the lead to 23-14. The Highlanders did not go away, and they amped up their defense and intensity. They outscored the Vandals 12-11 in the quarter, but the Vandals took a 29-19 lead into the locker room.
Schweizer was the best player on the floor in the first half. She finished with 12 points and five rebounds, giving the Vandals a spark.
The Vandals and Highlanders battled in the third quarter. With 2 minutes left, the Highlanders cut the lead to 13 and gained some momentum.
The Vandals made some magic happen in the last two minutes, beginning off a miss by the Highlanders. Aadland grabbed the rebound and raced up the court. Aadland weaved through the lane and laid the ball up to give the Vandals back their 15-point lead.
The Highlanders answered back with a free throw, but junior guard Anja Bukvic and the Vandals got the last laugh. Bukvic nailed a three-pointer to give the Vandals a 42-25 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Bukvic followed that up with another three-pointer to start the fourth quarter, giving the Vandals a 45-25 lead, their largest of the game. The Highlanders kept fighting and got the lead down to 13, but the Vandals were too much for them and rolled to their third straight win and second straight road win.
Schweizer had her second 20-point game of the season, finishing with 21 points and eight rebounds. She was the Vandals’ answer all game. Aadland also had another great performance, finishing with nine points and 12 rebounds, three of those offensive rebounds. Graduate guard Olivia Nelson, who has struggled at times this season, had another strong game, posting seven points and six assists.
Schweizer and Aadland have been a bright spot for the Vandals in rebounding and scoring. Moreira has loved what he has seen from the two transfers.
“They’re awesome. We don’t take for granted having two players who have been in college a long time; that experience is really valuable,” Moreira said.
The Vandals will continue their road trip as they take on (3-2) Cal Poly, who defeated the Vandals 65-55 last season.
“That’s going to be a really hard game. Cal Poly is going to be a different story than the last two,” Moreira said. They’re very well coached. It’s going to be a physical battle. They came to ICCU last year and pretty much punked us. We have to be expecting a battle. I think these two games on the road have prepared us for that.”
The Vandals and Mustangs will tip-off from the Mott Athletics Center on Saturday, Nov 23, at 2 p.m., with the Vandals looking to keep their win streak going and get some revenge from the last meeting.
Jayden Barfuss can be reached at [email protected]