TEMPE, Ariz. ? The 3-pointers kept them in it, but fouls and unforced turnovers left them short as the Vandals fell 76-65 at Arizona State Saturday.
Idaho (3-8) hit 13 3-pointers in the contest, but was outscored by 12 points at the free throw line and committed nine unforced turnovers as Arizona State (9-2) won its fifth-straight game.
Overall, it was a positive step for Idaho as the team wrapped up its non-conference schedule against an opponent which is 7-0 at home this season, which includes a victory over No. 17 Xavier.
“We are not happy with our record, but our team is really starting to fight and compete,” Idaho coach George Pfeifer said. “If we would have been in this type of game in this type of environment a month ago we would have been blown away.”
Idaho was led by Mike Hall's 18 points on 4-of-8 shooting from behind the arc. After scoring just 17 points through the first eight games, Hall has exploded for 31 points in the last two contests. He also was 4-of-4 at the free throw line and finished with two assists, steals, and rebounds.
Terrence Simmons scored nine points in his first start of the season and was 3-of-3 from beyond the 3-point arc in the first half. He also led the team with five rebounds. Mike Kale and Jordan Brooks also added nine points each.
As a team, Idaho shot a better percentage than its opponents as it hit 21-of-42 (.500) shots and finished 13-of-23 (.565) from beyond the arc. The Vandals shot better from the free throw line at 10-of-14 (.714), but their 24 fouls contributed to 27 free throw attempts for the Sun Devils. Arizona State hit 22 of those 27 attempts.
Jeff Pendergraph was the thorn in Idaho's side as he scored a career-high 27 points on 7-of-9 shooting. He also hit 13-of-14 free throws and grabbed 10 rebounds.
“We got soft on the perimeter, which really put the pressure on the post players because they could move the basketball where they wanted it,” Pfeifer said. “We got some fouls called underneath and (Pendergraph) made almost as many free throws as we attempted.”
Idaho gained an early 5-2 lead before an 8-0 run from Arizona State put the Vandals behind 13-5 at the 12:40 mark. The Sun Devils stretched the lead to 11 points on two occasions, but the Vandals were able to hang around with their 3-point shooting. Nine of Idaho's 11 field goals in the first half were from beyond the arc and the Vandals trailed just 34-32 at halftime.
The 3-point bonanza continued into the second half as Idaho recorded a span of 27-of-28 points from beyond the 3-point line and missed just one attempt during the stretch. The ninth 3-pointer pulled Idaho within 39-38 with 17:57 remaining in the contest, but Arizona State used an 8-0 to pull ahead 47-38. A 6-0 run pulled the Vandals to within two points, but the Sun Devils were able to keep them at bay. Hall hit his fourth 3-pointer with 2:47 remaining to bring Idaho to within 67-63, but Arizona State answered with a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession. Kale brought Idaho within five with a lay in with two minutes remaining, but Arizona State hit all six of its free throws in the final two minutes for the 11-point victory.
“We gave up some transition baskets which we knew were going to be really key tonight,” Pfeifer said. “This is a team that zones to death and we were able to come back and get some big stops with our own zone defense. We put in a bunch of zone offenses for this game and we were a little tentative to use them in the beginning of the game. As the game started to move along we began to do some good things with it.”
Idaho begins Western Athletic Conference play at home vs. New Mexico State, Jan. 2.
