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Feb. 15—MOSCOW — The King Spud trophy resides in Moscow for the first time since 1969.
Idaho dominated Big Sky and intrastate rival Idaho State 99-69 in a men's basketball contest Saturday at ICCU Arena in Moscow in front of a crowd of 2,326.
Not once in the game did the Bengals lead or even tie it. The Vandals scored 35 seconds into the game on a Jackson Rasmussen jumper and Idaho held the lead for the rest of regulation.
The 30-point victory was the Vandals' largest win in the rivalry since the 1989-90 season, when Idaho won 97-56 over Idaho State.
The teams brought back the famous King Spud trophy — hoisted high in the air by the Vandals after Saturday's win — for the rivalry series in 2022 after the trophy disappeared from the rivalry in 1979.
Idaho coach Alex Pribble said he was happy with the outcome and happy for the community that the King Spud trophy was back in Moscow.
"It's nice to see the results come," Pribble said. "It's nice to see the outcome be there. And to me, what it really makes me think of (is that) it's great for our community and our crowd to be able to be recognized like that and take home the trophy. And those rivalry games are big for a lot of the alumni that are sitting in the crowd right there. So, great moment for the program and for what we're trying to build."
Pribble also said that this is a large step forward for the team as it prepares to play in the Big Sky Conference Tournament in Boise in March.
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How it happened and Vandal standouts
The Vandals pressured the Bengals early. Within the first four minutes, they blitzed to a 13-2 lead.
Idaho led 60-30 at half.
The Vandals had no struggles when it came to scoring.
Rasmussen led Idaho with 21 points, shooting 9-of-16 from the field, and sank three 3-pointers.
Two of Rasmussen's 3-pointers were off behind-the-back passes from point guard Kolton Mitchell. One was when Mitchell was sprinting towards the ball, almost diving out of bounds and finding Rasmussen on the right wing to sink the 3 in the first half.
The second happened with Mitchell driving right toward the traffic in the middle of the lane. He looked trapped as he was driving and dished the ball out of a pile of players to Rasmussen on the left wing for another good trey late in the second half.
Mitchell totaled 18 points, dished out a game-high seven assists and tied for the team lead with seven rebounds. He shot an efficient 7-of-10 from the field and 4-of-6 from 3-point range.
Mitchell attended Idaho State in his freshman year, so Pribble said there is some extra emotion for him and that compared to last year — when ISU swept UI on the season — he channeled that emotion into performing his best.
Isaiah Brickner, who had been coming off the bench for the majority of the year, started on Saturday and it paid off for the Vandals.
Brickner scored 17 points, tied for the team-high with seven rebounds and dished out four assists. He shot 6-of-11 from the field and was 4-of-6 from the free-throw line.
"Now we're at the point where he's played so well and so consistently that he deserves this opportunity to start games," Pribble said of Brickner. "He's a guy that can really bring us some good energy right out of the gate and be aggressive on both ends of the court. ... He was great tonight."
Brody Rowbury was the final Vandal to get into double digits. He scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Rowbury, a Meridian, Idaho native, surpassed 1,000 career points with two free throws late in the game.
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"It feels amazing," Rowbury said of achieving the milestone in his home state. "I came here for a reason — to impact winning. I don't really care about the individual accomplishments; I just care about that we're taking the steps in the right direction. But, it's awesome to hit 1,000 points back home in Idaho."
The Vandals' 60-point first half was only the second time scoring 60 in a half with Pribble as head coach.
How Vandals found their edge
The 30-point win came after a three-game losing streak: two losses on the road to Montana State and Montana, and a loss at home against Weber State.
A big part of this win?
Yoga.
"Emotionally, we were just a little sad, and so we had to get reset," Pribble said. "We've got a great strength conditioning coach, and this might sound a little funny, but we actually did a little yoga session, a little breathing, a little visualization, and went to the practice court, and just kind of recharged.
"I thought that was really important. So they got themselves reset and recharged. That way, when we got on to Idaho State, they were kind of ready to go with a positive attitude and a positive perspective."
Pribble said that this win fuels the self-belief of the team. He said that Idaho feels much more confident going on the road to face the No. 1 team in the Big Sky, Portland State, on Thursday and Sacramento State on Saturday.
"I tell you what, now there's a level of confidence where we have another big challenge ahead of us," Pribble said. "So two big challenges, but now there's not going to be any nervousness. Our guys are going to really dive into the process and try to take advantage of this opportunity in front of them."
What's next?
There are three weeks until the Big Sky Conference Tournament starts on March 7.
Idaho has three away games and two home games over that span.
They will start with facing the top team in the Big Sky, Portland State, at 7 p.m. on Thursday in Portland. The game will be broadcast on ESPNU.
"It's great to be able to have King Spud and win by a good amount, and go home with a big smile on our face," Pribble said.
IDAHO STATE (10-17, 3-11)
Hollenbeck 4-7 0-0 9, Van De Griend 5-10 3-3 13, Birley 0-1 0-0 0, Guerra 1-8 0-0 3, Brewer 3-8 0-0 7, Kheil 4-10 0-0 11, Etchison 2-10 4-5 8, Sow 1-2 0-0 2, Otten 2-4 2-2 6, Bond 0-0 4-4 4, Patterson 1-2 0-0 3, Daberkow 0-2 2-2 2, Carpenter 0-1 1-2 1. Totals 23-65 16-18 69.
IDAHO (14-12, 6-7)
Rasmussen 9-16 0-1 21, Rowbury 3-6 4-5 10, Brickner 6-11 4-6 17, Johnson 3-5 0-0 7, Mitchell 7-10 0-0 18, Blassingame 3-5 0-1 7, Payne 2-4 2-2 7, Joba 1-1 0-0 3, Klapper 3-4 2-3 9, Sevilla 0-0 0-0 0, Steele 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 37-62 12-18 99.
Halftime — Idaho 60-30. 3-Point Goals — Idaho State 7-27 (Kheil 3-7, Hollenbeck 1-2, Patterson 1-2, Guerra 1-3, Brewer 1-4, Birley 0-1, Carpenter 0-1, Van De Griend 0-3, Etchison 0-4), Idaho 13-27 (Mitchell 4-6, Rasmussen 3-7, Joba 1-1, Klapper 1-1, Blassingame 1-2, Johnson 1-2, Payne 1-3, Brickner 1-4, Rowbury 0-1). Rebounds — Idaho State 25 (Van De Griend 5), Idaho 38 (Rowbury, Brickner, Mitchell 7). Assists — Idaho State 8 (Etchison 4), Idaho 17 (Mitchell 7). Total Fouls — Idaho State 16, Idaho 19. A — 2,326 (4,200).
Junt can be reached at 208-848-2258, [email protected] or on X @TrevorJunt.
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Idaho dominated Big Sky and intrastate rival Idaho State 99-69 in a men's basketball contest Saturday at ICCU Arena in Moscow in front of a crowd of 2,326.
Not once in the game did the Bengals lead or even tie it. The Vandals scored 35 seconds into the game on a Jackson Rasmussen jumper and Idaho held the lead for the rest of regulation.
The 30-point victory was the Vandals' largest win in the rivalry since the 1989-90 season, when Idaho won 97-56 over Idaho State.
The teams brought back the famous King Spud trophy — hoisted high in the air by the Vandals after Saturday's win — for the rivalry series in 2022 after the trophy disappeared from the rivalry in 1979.
Idaho coach Alex Pribble said he was happy with the outcome and happy for the community that the King Spud trophy was back in Moscow.
"It's nice to see the results come," Pribble said. "It's nice to see the outcome be there. And to me, what it really makes me think of (is that) it's great for our community and our crowd to be able to be recognized like that and take home the trophy. And those rivalry games are big for a lot of the alumni that are sitting in the crowd right there. So, great moment for the program and for what we're trying to build."
Pribble also said that this is a large step forward for the team as it prepares to play in the Big Sky Conference Tournament in Boise in March.
Advertisement
How it happened and Vandal standouts
The Vandals pressured the Bengals early. Within the first four minutes, they blitzed to a 13-2 lead.
Idaho led 60-30 at half.
The Vandals had no struggles when it came to scoring.
Rasmussen led Idaho with 21 points, shooting 9-of-16 from the field, and sank three 3-pointers.
Two of Rasmussen's 3-pointers were off behind-the-back passes from point guard Kolton Mitchell. One was when Mitchell was sprinting towards the ball, almost diving out of bounds and finding Rasmussen on the right wing to sink the 3 in the first half.
The second happened with Mitchell driving right toward the traffic in the middle of the lane. He looked trapped as he was driving and dished the ball out of a pile of players to Rasmussen on the left wing for another good trey late in the second half.
Mitchell totaled 18 points, dished out a game-high seven assists and tied for the team lead with seven rebounds. He shot an efficient 7-of-10 from the field and 4-of-6 from 3-point range.
Mitchell attended Idaho State in his freshman year, so Pribble said there is some extra emotion for him and that compared to last year — when ISU swept UI on the season — he channeled that emotion into performing his best.
Isaiah Brickner, who had been coming off the bench for the majority of the year, started on Saturday and it paid off for the Vandals.
Brickner scored 17 points, tied for the team-high with seven rebounds and dished out four assists. He shot 6-of-11 from the field and was 4-of-6 from the free-throw line.
"Now we're at the point where he's played so well and so consistently that he deserves this opportunity to start games," Pribble said of Brickner. "He's a guy that can really bring us some good energy right out of the gate and be aggressive on both ends of the court. ... He was great tonight."
Brody Rowbury was the final Vandal to get into double digits. He scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Rowbury, a Meridian, Idaho native, surpassed 1,000 career points with two free throws late in the game.
Daily headlines, straight to your inboxRead it online first and stay up-to-date, delivered daily at 7 AM
"It feels amazing," Rowbury said of achieving the milestone in his home state. "I came here for a reason — to impact winning. I don't really care about the individual accomplishments; I just care about that we're taking the steps in the right direction. But, it's awesome to hit 1,000 points back home in Idaho."
The Vandals' 60-point first half was only the second time scoring 60 in a half with Pribble as head coach.
How Vandals found their edge
The 30-point win came after a three-game losing streak: two losses on the road to Montana State and Montana, and a loss at home against Weber State.
A big part of this win?
Yoga.
"Emotionally, we were just a little sad, and so we had to get reset," Pribble said. "We've got a great strength conditioning coach, and this might sound a little funny, but we actually did a little yoga session, a little breathing, a little visualization, and went to the practice court, and just kind of recharged.
"I thought that was really important. So they got themselves reset and recharged. That way, when we got on to Idaho State, they were kind of ready to go with a positive attitude and a positive perspective."
Pribble said that this win fuels the self-belief of the team. He said that Idaho feels much more confident going on the road to face the No. 1 team in the Big Sky, Portland State, on Thursday and Sacramento State on Saturday.
"I tell you what, now there's a level of confidence where we have another big challenge ahead of us," Pribble said. "So two big challenges, but now there's not going to be any nervousness. Our guys are going to really dive into the process and try to take advantage of this opportunity in front of them."
What's next?
There are three weeks until the Big Sky Conference Tournament starts on March 7.
Idaho has three away games and two home games over that span.
They will start with facing the top team in the Big Sky, Portland State, at 7 p.m. on Thursday in Portland. The game will be broadcast on ESPNU.
"It's great to be able to have King Spud and win by a good amount, and go home with a big smile on our face," Pribble said.
IDAHO STATE (10-17, 3-11)
Hollenbeck 4-7 0-0 9, Van De Griend 5-10 3-3 13, Birley 0-1 0-0 0, Guerra 1-8 0-0 3, Brewer 3-8 0-0 7, Kheil 4-10 0-0 11, Etchison 2-10 4-5 8, Sow 1-2 0-0 2, Otten 2-4 2-2 6, Bond 0-0 4-4 4, Patterson 1-2 0-0 3, Daberkow 0-2 2-2 2, Carpenter 0-1 1-2 1. Totals 23-65 16-18 69.
IDAHO (14-12, 6-7)
Rasmussen 9-16 0-1 21, Rowbury 3-6 4-5 10, Brickner 6-11 4-6 17, Johnson 3-5 0-0 7, Mitchell 7-10 0-0 18, Blassingame 3-5 0-1 7, Payne 2-4 2-2 7, Joba 1-1 0-0 3, Klapper 3-4 2-3 9, Sevilla 0-0 0-0 0, Steele 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 37-62 12-18 99.
Halftime — Idaho 60-30. 3-Point Goals — Idaho State 7-27 (Kheil 3-7, Hollenbeck 1-2, Patterson 1-2, Guerra 1-3, Brewer 1-4, Birley 0-1, Carpenter 0-1, Van De Griend 0-3, Etchison 0-4), Idaho 13-27 (Mitchell 4-6, Rasmussen 3-7, Joba 1-1, Klapper 1-1, Blassingame 1-2, Johnson 1-2, Payne 1-3, Brickner 1-4, Rowbury 0-1). Rebounds — Idaho State 25 (Van De Griend 5), Idaho 38 (Rowbury, Brickner, Mitchell 7). Assists — Idaho State 8 (Etchison 4), Idaho 17 (Mitchell 7). Total Fouls — Idaho State 16, Idaho 19. A — 2,326 (4,200).
Junt can be reached at 208-848-2258, [email protected] or on X @TrevorJunt.
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