RENO, Nev. – For the third time in the last four seasons the Idaho women's basketball team is headed to the NCAA Tournament. The Vandals punched their ticket to the dance with a convincing 67-55 win over Idaho State in the Big Sky Tournament Championship Game on Saturday at the Reno Events Center.

The Vandal defense came to play in the second half, allowing just 17 points over the first 18 minutes. Idaho was able to take advantage, outscoring ISU 20-8 in the third quarter and building its lead throughout the fourth. The Vandals held the Bengals to just 30.3 percent shooting from the field and 22.2 percent from range.

Mikayla Ferenz was incredible yet again, leading all scorers with 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting, earning Tournament MVP honors. Ali Forde posted her 21st career double-double, scoring 12 points to go with 13 rebounds, and earned All-Tournament team recognition. Karlee Wilson was big for the Vandals in the final minutes, keeping ISU at arms-length with 11 of her 14 points coming from free throws in the final minutes. Senior Christina Salvatore added 13 points.

Idaho (24-9) started the first quarter shooting 7-of-15 from the field, taking a 17-14. Idaho State stepped up defensively in the second quarter limiting Idaho's shooters to just 2-of-16 from the field. The Bengals opened the quarter on a 10-0 run to gain its largest lead of the game. Two 3-pointers from Salvatore helped cut the ISU lead to 26-23 at the half.

"Going into this game we knew it was going to be kind of a grind it out style," head coach Jon Newlee explained. "Our start was nice. We had a little lull in that second quarter. I think that is on me. We were doing some things offensively that was playing into their hands. We adjusted at the half and ran basically all of the set plays we have. We dug pretty deep into the old playbook today.

"Really the key to me was our defensive effort, really the entire game. I thought we just did a fantastic job of getting stops, getting to their shooters and rebounding the basketball. Which did not happen when we lost in Pocatello."

The Idaho State lead did not last long. Apiphany Woods opened the third quarter with a jumper to put ISU up by five, 28-23. Ferenz scored the next five points for the Vandals and Forde added a basket to give Idaho a 7-0 run and the 30-28 lead.

Idaho outscored Idaho State 20-8 in the third quarter, holding Idaho State to just 3-of-13 shooting in the period. Ferenz's third 3 of the afternoon gave Idaho an 11-point lead with 1:28 to play in the third.

"I knew we had to come out [fast] in the second half and not let them extend the lead," Newlee added. "We talked at the half about having 20 minutes left in our season. We were right at the spot we needed to be. Our team came out and took the game on their shoulders, saying 'We are not losing this basketball game.'"

The Bengals cut Idaho's advantage down to seven, 43-36, in the opening three minutes of the fourth quarter. Idaho's defense held ISU scoreless over the next three minutes, taking a 53-36 lead with 3:44 to play. Idaho's free-throw shooting iced contest. The Bengals hit from beyond the arc to narrow the gap late, but the game was already in the books.

Ferenz, a freshman, totaled 67 points to lead the tournament in scoring. Her 16 3-pointers set a new Big Sky Conference Tournament record. The Vandals as a team hit a tournament record 35 3-pointers over its three tournament games.  

The Vandals will learn their seeding and destination for the NCAA Tournament on Monday as the bracket gets announced. The selection show will air on ESPN at 4 p.m. PT.