PORTLAND—Idaho tied a school-record, hitting 17 3-pointers, in its 94-65 win at Portland State on Saturday. It was an all-around effort for the Vandals with 12 players totaling points on the day.
Idaho (15-6, 7-2) used a season-high 32 assists to spread the ball around. The 32 assists marked the most since setting a school-record back with 36 back in 1986, also against Portland State. Karlee Wilson led the Silver and Gold with a career-high nine helpers.
The Vandals 3-point barrage was led by freshman Taylor Pierce and her four 3's. Pierce picked up her shooting in the second half, hitting 3-of-4 attempts from 3. She finished with a game-high 18 points. Christina Salvatore and Mikayla Ferenz each hit three treys on the day. Salvatore finished the contest with 11 points in her 29 minutes. Ferenz ended the day with nine points, in her first career-start.
“Portland State started playing in that zone and we got some really good looks,” head coach Jon Newlee explained. “We had seen that defense on film and thought we would be able to run a few things to give ups from favorable matchups.”
The Vandals really put a wraps on the game in the third quarter. Idaho shot 7-of-14 from 3-point range, scoring a game-best 27 points following the break. Pierce led the rush for Idaho with 11 points in the quarter, helping Idaho almost double up Portland State, 27-14, in the period.
Saturday marked the second time this season Idaho scored 20 or more points in each quarter. The Vandals did so previously against CSUN early on in the season. Idaho's 94 points were the fourth most this season.
Pierce put Idaho up by 37, 73-36, 20 seconds into the fourth quarter. Sophomore Bethany Krause hit Idaho's 17th 3 with 4:46 to play, giving the Vandals its largest lead of the game at 87-49.
Geraldine McCorkell led Idaho's offensive efforts in the first half with 13 points. She finished the afternoon 7-for-13 from the field with 16 points and six rebounds. Wilson hit two 3's in the first quarter. She finished with eight points and five rounds to go with her nine assists.
Idaho's bench outscored the Vikings, 48-35. Tayla Corrigan totaled a season-high eight points in her 14 minutes of relief. Agueda Trujillo finished with a season-best eight points. Krause, playing in her first game since December 2, recorded a season-high seven points.
Portland State (3-16, 1-7 BSC) was led by Cici West. She finished with 12 points and a game-high 18 rebounds.
The Vandals return home on Thursday, February 4, to take on Southern Utah.
For more information on Idaho Athletics, visit GoVandals.com. Fans can also follow Idaho women's basketball on Twitter, @VandalsWBB.
NOTES
Saturday marked the first time Idaho scored 90 or more points in back-to-back games since Jan. 16 & Jan 18, 2014….Idaho hit just one free throw on the day its lowest mark since hitting one against UConn in the 2013 NCAA Tournament…Idaho has now hit a 3-pointer in 248 games…the Vandals have hit 17 3's twice previously this season (CSUN, vs. Iowa State).
