BOISE—The Idaho Vandals trip to the state's capital ended in disappointment Tuesday night inside the CenturyLink Arena. The Vandal faithful showed up in masses to support the Tribe from the North in its annual neutral site game against rival Boise State. Mike Scott shot 64 percent from the field on his way to a career-high 31 points as the Vandals fell 86-75.
“We did some good things and we did some bad things,” head coach Don Verlin said. “Offensively in the second half I thought we did very well. We shot the ball from the perimeter well. Mike Scott stepped up and played the best game of his career. We just were not tough enough to get it done tonight.”
The Vandals made things exciting midway through the second half. Consecutive three's from Perrion Callandret and Scott narrowed BSU's lead to 47-44, after being down by as much as 14 points in the half. The Broncos missed a pair of free throws, and Bira Seck got an underneath layup on the next possession, cutting the BSU lead to one with 11:36 to play. The majority of the final 10 minutes were played back and forth. A Rob Heyer three with 8:11 to play put Boise State back up by seven. The Vandals cut the lead down to five off a Seck layin with 6:17 to play. Over the ensuing 4:26 the Broncos outscored Idaho 18-11 to gain an insurmountable 14 point lead at 80-66 with 1:51 left on the clock.
Boise State (4-1) relied on Derrick Marks and his 31 points the entire night. He led all scorers in the first half with 14 points. The Broncos shot 48.1 percent in the first half and 60 percent from three. Idaho on the other had was 34.6 percent from the field and 44.4 percent from long range.
“[Marks] is a good player,” Verlin added. “He's probably an NBA guy. He drives to the basket and we do not have a great guy to guard him. He's just a darn good player.”
Idaho (2-2) led three times in the first half after allowing a 7-2 start for the Broncos. Seck got the offense started for the Vandals. He scored the team's first four points, finishing with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Tuesday marked his second double-double in the first four games of the young season. Connor Hill added 14 points and four rebounds for the Vandals. Scott hit a career-high six three-pointers for a chunk of his 31 points. He also dished out five assists, tying his season-high.
The size of BSU was the cause of Idaho's frustrations. The Broncos outscored Idaho 36-18 in the paint. They also recorded 25 defensive rebounds, limiting the Vandals to nine offensive boards and six second-chance points.
“This game is fun,” Verlin stated. “We enjoy coming down here, but we would like to get one at home for the northern Vandals. It is disappointing for our home fans that they do not get to see one of the biggest games of the year. We always look forward to coming down here and we look forward to this rivalry and the competition.”
The Vandals return home on Saturday to face Northern Kentucky in Memorial Gym. First tip is set for 7 p.m. PT.
