In the heart of Viking Pavilion, the Rose City hummed with energy under the dazzling lights that flooded the court as the Idaho Vandals searched for their shining moment.
Holding a slim two-point lead over the Portland State Vikings on Feb. 6, Idaho had the ball and a chance to seal the win. Graduate guard Olivia Nelson passed the ball to junior Anja Bukvic, who had the ball in her hands in a moment that players dream of.
Bukvic pump-faked a defender and let the ball go. Time seemed to slow as the ball sliced through the air, the weight of the moment hanging in the balance. The ball splashed through the net and gave Bukvic a team-high 17 points on the night.
Idaho closed out the Vikings and got a gritty 66-62 road victory, lifting them to 16-6 (8-3) on the season and completing a season sweep of the Vikings.
The Vandals, coming off a disappointing loss to the Idaho State Bengals, needed to rebound. They hit the road trying to pick up a couple of season sweeps. From the start of the game, the Vandals and Vikings went back and forth, landing jabs but never being able to pull away. Idaho got a little separation and held a 20-14 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter picked up just where the first left off, with both teams battling before Idaho got its largest lead of the game. With Idaho up 24-20, Bukvic nailed a three-pointer.
On the other end, Bukvic got the rebound on the Viking’s missed jumper. She pushed the ball up the floor and found freshman guard Ella Uriarte on the wing.
Uriarte flipped the ball to streaking redshirt freshman guard Ana Beatriz Passos Alves da Silva for a layup, which caused Portland State to call a timeout.
Portland State responded with a 10-1 run, including two three-pointers by freshman guard Kyleigh Brown, which tied the game at 30. Sophomore guard Hope Hassmann made two late free throws, taking Idaho into the locker room up 32-30.
Both teams came out of the locker room ready to go, and the back-and-forth action continued. Idaho outscored the Vikings 16-11 and stretched their lead to 48-41 to end the third quarter.
Idaho got the lead back up to nine early in the fourth, and Portland State got as close as two, but the Vandals—behind experienced play and clutch free throws—escaped the Vikings and completed their second-straight sweep of the season.
Idaho was led by Bukvic, who was the go-to player for most of the game. She finished with 17 points, five rebounds and four assists. Graduate forwards Rosie Schweizer and Jennifer Aadland were also huge for the Vandals on their path to victory.
Schweizer had another double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Aadland had 11 points, four rebounds and three assists.
Brown led the Vikings with 17 points off the bench and was lethal from beyond the arc, going 3/6 on the game and providing a much-needed spark for the Vikings.
With quiet nights from the Vandals’ two leading scorers, Nelson and Hassmann, the Vandals needed more players to step up.
Nelson finished with nine points, ending her ten-game double-digit scoring streak. Hassmann had seven points held to just 3/9 shooting.
The Vandals’ other players stepped up and showed the depth that Idaho has. That depth will have to show up if they want to make a run at the Big Sky tournament.
Idaho’s depth and tired legs will be tested when they travel to Sacramento, California to face the 10-13 (3-7) Sacramento State Hornets. The Vandals and Hornets will tip off on Feb. 8 at 1 p.m. with the Vandals looking to get a second consecutive season sweep of the Hornets.
Jayden Barfuss can be reached at arg-sports@uidaho.edu.