CHENEY, Wash. – It was a tough night in Cheney on Friday, as Idaho (13-12, 8-6 BSC) fell to Eastern Washington (18-9, 10-4 BSC), 67-77, to move into a three-way tie for fourth in the Big Sky standings.
 
THE GAME
 
The first half was a great show for everyone in attendance, but EWU took the narrow 32-29 lead into the break.  Despite EWU shooting better than 60 percent in the first half, the Vandals were able to keep things close by turning the Eagles over.  Idaho forced eight turnovers in the first half and allowed just one offensive rebound, a tremendous feat against one of the better offensive rebounding teams in the Big Sky.
 
EWU came out quickly in the second half, growing its lead to seven points early.  The Vandals would respond, cutting the deficit to just one with 16:30 to play, but the Eagles would respond.  EWU then went on an 11-0 run to balloon its lead to 12 with 12 minutes to go.  Idaho fought hard, playing with the lineup to find the press that worked the best.
 
The Vandals would get within five with about two minutes to play, but could not get any closer.  The Eagles weren't perfect at the line down the stretch, but they hit enough, eventually taking the 77-67 win.
 
Victor Sanders paced the Vandals with 24 points, his 10^th 20-point game in conference play this season.  Arkadiy Mkrtychyan had a solid game as well, scoring 14 points and grabbing seven boards, while Nate Sherwood added 11 points and five rebounds. 
 
THE NAME
 
Myles Franklin.  Franklin's impact won't be seen in the box score, but it was big.  The freshman played six minutes in the second half and knocked down his first career 3-pointer, but his impact on the Idaho press was immeasurable.  Franklin didn't get any official steals, but his work, along with Nick Blair and Brayon Blake, helped turn the Eagles over a number of times down the stretch, giving Idaho extra opportunities.
 
THE QUOTES
 
"They were tougher than we were," said head coach Don Verlin.  "They beat us at our own game tonight.  They defended a lot better than we did, they outrebounded us, and the bottom line is they outcompeted us.  Give those guys credit.
 
"I thought we did a really nice job on Jacob Wiley, but Sir Washington jumps out and gets 17 points and we lose Gibson a couple times on some key baskets.  I thought we did a good job on Wiley and Van Hofe, but we did not do a good job on Bliznyuk or in our overall defensive game."
 
THE NOTES

• Sanders moves into 14^th on the all-time scoring list with 1,076 points
• Idaho falls to a three-way tie with Montana and Montana State for fourth in the Big Sky standings at 8-6.

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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.