POCATELLO, Idaho – A big run midway through the second half gave the Vandals a lead they would not give up, as Idaho (7-9, 2-3) cruised to a 77-62 win over Idaho State (3-14, 0-4) on Saturday night.
 
THE GAME
 
The game was close for most of the first half and into the early portions of the second.  Idaho would take a commanding lead midway through the second half behind a number of 3-pointers and finish the game off at the line.
 
Idaho would go up 57-44 on a Chad Sherwood 3-pointer with 6:19, but would hit just one more field goal the rest of the way.  The Bengals played the foul game for much of the closing minutes, putting Idaho on the line for 19 free throws in the final six minutes.  The Vandals were true, however, connecting on 18-of-19 attempts and cruising to the win.
 
Victor Sanders led the way for the 14^th time this year, finishing with 22 points.  He never really got going from the field, but hit 14-of-15 from the line, including a number in crunch time.  Chad Sherwood was tremendous as well, going for 13 points on 4-of-8 shooting.  Nate Sherwood added nine points.
 
As a team, Idaho shot 22-of-49 (44.9%) from the floor and 9-of-23 (39.1%) from beyond the arc.  The Vandals went 24-of-28 (85.7%) from the charity stripe.
 
The Idaho defense was strong all night, holding the Bengals to 34.6 percent (18-of-52) shooting from the field.  Idaho State also struggled from beyond the arc, going 11-of-32 (34.4 %).
 
THE NAME
 
Jake Straughan.  Straughan hasn't played much this season but came off the bench midway through the second half when the Vandals needed a spark.  Straughan would finish with just six points, but they came when the Vandals needed them the most.
 
The game changed midway through the second half.  Idaho had jumped out to an early lead in the half, but the Bengals responded to tie the game up at 40.  Head coach Don Verlin looked to the bench, calling on Straughan.  Arkadiy Mkrtychyan broke the tie with a layup, and Straughan ballooned the lead to five with a 3-ball.  After a Sanders 3-pointer, Straughan struck back again, netting his second from deep in the game.
 
THE QUOTES
 
"I thought we really sat down, locked up and guarded them," said Verlin.  "When you look at the stat sheet at the end of the game, that's what we didn't see on Thursday night.  I thought we had a number of guys step up and give us some really good defensive performances.  I thought Vic Sanders was excellent again tonight, but I thought BJ Blake and Arkadiy Mkrtychyan and our big guys did a nice job of nullifying their big guys which allowed us not to double and we did a good job of making them take contested shots.
 
"We led the league in field goal defense last year and now we're at the bottom.  That's what the focus was between these two games, we need to get back to being who we are and that's defending and rebounding.
 
"I thought we moved the ball pretty well once we settled into it.  The first four or five minutes was a little sketchy.  I think we turned it over four times before the first media timeout and we finished with nine, so great job there.  I thought we got it moving, I thought Jake Straughan hit some big 3's, as well as Chad Sherwood.  Once our ball started moving we got some wide open shots and we knocked them down."
 
"We needed this game, no question about it.  No one is feeling it more in the locker room than the players.  But we can't do anything about these last five games.  What we can do is take care of what we can take care of.  The next play and the next practice.  What I've been telling the guys is, in our standards we haven't played well at all and we're right there.  All we have to do is tighten it up a little bit, get a little more efficient.  We know we're in a little bit of a transition with Perrion not being in there and Vic at the point but that's starting to look a little better.  All we have to do is continue to fight and make sure we're playing our best basketball in March.  That's what it's all about."
 
THE NOTES
 

• Nate Sherwood and Chad Sherwood combined for 22 points.  Idaho is now 5-1 in games when they score better than 12 points combined.
• Sanders led the Vandals in scoring for the 14^th time in 16 games.

 
Fans can stay up-to-date on all things Idaho men's basketball by following the team on twitter, @VandalHoops.

For more information on Idaho Athletics, visit GoVandals.com.  Fans can also find Idaho on Twitter and Instagram, @Idaho_Vandals, or on Facebook by searching Idaho Vandals.