MOSCOW, Idaho—The friendly confines of the Cowan Spectrum gave little boost to the Vandal women's basketball team in their first conference-home game of the season. Sacramento State flooded the court with three's as they defeated Idaho, 107-89, on Thursday.
Four Vandals hit double-digits on the score sheet Thursday evening. Sophomore Brooke Reilly led all scorers, setting a new career-high with 27 points. She hit a career-best four three-pointers on the night also adding six rebounds. Stacey Barr netted her third consecutive 20-point performance. The senior finished with 21 points and a four assists. Ali Forde recorded her second double-double in as many games and third this season. She was successful under the basket from the opening tip, finishing with 17 points and 13 rebounds. Christina Salvatore recorded her first career double-double with 10 points and 10 boards.
“I got into the swing of things tonight,” Reilly commented. “I hit a few early shots to get into a groove. I just took what the defense gave me. I had a lot of open looks to start, then they guarded me and I began to drive.”
Sacramento State (6-10, 4-1) entered Thursday night leading the NCAA with 12.7 three-point field goals per game. The Hornets hit 10 three's alone in the first half. Sacramento State would finish with 18 three-pointers on the night, tied for fourth most in the NCAA this season.
“We knew what they were going to do,” head coach Jon Newlee said following the loss. “We knew they were going to try and create their chaos and trap and press us. They did not do anything we did not know they were going to do. We have never faced it before and to their credit they made a bunch of shots tonight.”
Idaho (7-8, 1-3) trailed 54-49 at the half, despite leading in almost every statistical category. The Vandals shot 55.9 percent in the opening 20 minutes of play. Idaho was sharp from the three-point line, hitting 6-of-10 (60.0 percent) shots. Sacramento State's aggressive full-court press caused issues for Idaho early in the half. The Vandals turned the ball over 13 times, leading to 18 Sacramento State points.
Both teams started slow in the second half. The Vandals missed their first eight shots, while Sacramento State started 1-for-10. Idaho was able to put together a quick 6-2 run to get to within one point at 56-55 with 15 minutes left to play. A Forde layup with 13:19 to go tied the game at 59. Brianna Burgos hit the third of her five three's with to give Sac. State back the three-point advantage with 12:55 to play. The shot sparked a 15-3 run for the Hornets, climbing to a 74-62 lead with 10 minutes remaining.
Barr and Reilly combined for the next seven points for the Vandals, but the Hornets had an answer for every possession. Adella Randle-El put the game out of reach for good with a three-pointer with 6:15 to play to put Idaho 16 points in the hole at 87-71. The Vandals would slim the lead the 10 three times in the final stretch, but were never able to get any closer.
“I think tonight was a good wakeup call for us,” Salvatore noted.
The Silver and Gold finished 43.7 percent shooting on the night and 34.5 percent from long distance. Sacramento State shot 40.0 percent and 40.9 percent from three. The Hornets outscored Idaho 38-36 in the paint and had 25 points off Vandal turnovers.
Idaho's 1-3 start to the conference season is its worst since 2012. The Vandals dropped their first five games in the Western Athletic Conference, finishing 6-8 in conference play that season.
The Vandals now turn their focus to Portland State on Saturday. The Vikings enter the matchup 1-4 in the Big Sky and 3-13 overall, following a 101-54 loss at Eastern Washington on Thursday.
Notes:
89 points marks the second-highest point total of the season for the Vandals…Idaho turned the ball over a season-high 21 times…107 points is the most scored against the Vandals since Nebraska put up 107 on Dec. 4, 1993…Idaho drops to 0-2 when wearing silver uniform combination…the Vandals have hit a three-point field goal in 214 consecutive contests.
