BOZEMAN, Mont. ? The Idaho women's basketball team jumped out to a five-point  halftime lead, but went ice-cold in the second half and fell to the Montana State Bobcats on Saturday by a 64-52 score at Bozeman.

The Vandals put together a solid effort in the first half, as they shot .324 (11-34) from the field, out-rebounded the Bobcats 23-18, forced eight turnovers and blocked three shots en route to a 24-29 halftime cushion.

“We did a great job in the first half,” Idaho coach Jon Newlee said. “We played exactly how we wanted to play.

“They got off to a hot 3-point start in transition, but once we fixed that up, we played well, got our shots and controlled the glass and that's how we got ahead going in at halftime.”

That cushion dissolved almost immediately for Idaho in the second half, as the Vandals missed eight of their first nine shots to start the second period, while MSU made six of its first nine and put Idaho in a four-point hole at 37-33 with 14:32 to go. It would get no better for Idaho, as the team finished just eight-of-32 for the half, while Montana State stayed hot and went 17-of-31 for a .548 second-half clip.

Newlee said that the Vandals did a good job moving the ball around against the Montana State zone defense, but the shots just would not fall.

Sophomore Rachele Kloke put together the best scoring performance of her career with 18 points on seven-of-19 shooting. She tied her previous career high of 14 in the first half alone. Junior Derisa Taleni earned her first career double-double with a 16-point, 10-rebound effort, with an additional three steals, two blocks and two assists.

“I thought Rachele took some good shots in the first half,” Newlee said. “She did some good things for us in the first half and that was definitely the reason we took the lead going into halftime.”

Newlee also said he was very pleased with the play of guards Charlotte Otero and Alana Curtis, even though neither had an eye-popping stat line.

“I think Charlotte is becoming a big-time point guard,” Newlee said. “I really like the way she runs our team offensively and defensively, and really takes charge.

“Alana only had six points, but I think she played very well tonight, maybe one of the best games she's had for us.”

Idaho's leading scorer, sophomore Yinka Olorunnife, had a tough day on the offensive side, as she fot into foul trouble early and shot a season-low one-of-10 and finished with just two points, which broke a streak of seven consecutive games of double-digit scoring. She also finished the game with 10 rebounds, just above her Western Athletic Conference-leading average of 9.6 per game.

“I think (Olorunnife's foul trouble) definitely hurt us,” Newlee said. “I thought Amy (Eisses) came in and did a great job defensively and that was good, but we need Yinka on the floor and we need her to be productive.”

The 3-point line was trouble for Idaho, as the Vandals attempted 27 deep balls ? one off the team's season high ? but made only three for the game. MSU made its first three 3-pointers of the game, but was just four-of-17 from then on.

Jenny Heringer led the Bobcats on the day with 16 points and 11 rebounds. She is the first player this season to achieve a double-double against Idaho.

While it was a loss, Newlee said that there are still bright spots. He was happy with the way the team battled back from the deficit in the first half, as well as the rebounding and the team's season-low nine turnovers.

The ability to battle back from a deficit on the road is going to help us in the WAC,” Newlee said. “There are going to be trying times on the road and it's good for them to know that they have the ability to come back.”

With just one non-conference game remaining before the start of the WAC season, Newlee said that he's still looking for more offensive consistency, better defensive communication and more toughness from the young Vandal squad.

“It's time to put everything together,” Newlee said. “The studying is over and every game is going to be a final exam and we've got to pass them.”

Idaho will face Portland on the road on Sunday, Dec. 20 at 2 p.m. (PST) before opening WAC play on Jan. 3 with a home game against Boise State.