BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – The Idaho men's basketball team (2-8) battled back from down 11 to even the score at 58 all but a foul late decided the game at the free-throw line as the Vandals fell to Cal State Bakersfield (4-2), 59-58 on Saturday night.
"It's just too bad it came down to that," said head coach
Zac Claus. "We dug ourselves a hole early in this game. We just talked in the locker room about the missed opportunities throughout this game. We aren't talking about a one-possession game, we are talking about a one-point game. If we could have one possession back to set a better screen, to make a better pass, to block out better, to keep them off the glass like they were so successful in the first half. You love the fact that the guys kept competing - down double digits multiple times and dig down to get stops. It is just unfortunate to have it come down to a final play like that."
The whistle came as time expired after CSUB's Rod Barnes went up for the jumper and drew a foul from
Trevante Anderson. The officials would later put a half-second on the clock after further review. Barnes knocked down one of his two foul shots as the Vandals weren't able to get a shot off as time ran out.
Junior
Rashad Smith continued his production on the offensive end, matching a career-high 16 points on 5-of-12 shooting. Smith saw the majority of his points come in the opening of the second half as he dropped 11 straight points for the Vandals with three shots coming from behind the arc.
Mikey Dixon filed another double-digit effort with 13 points while
Philip Pepple Jr. came off the bench and tallied 10 points, six rebounds, and two blocks.
Idaho shot 30 percent on 9-of-30 shooting from the floor in the opening 20 minutes of action while the Roadrunners took advantage of nine first-half turnovers by the Vandals to carry a six-point lead into the half, 32-26.
CSUB would later lead in the second half 47-37 with 11:34 remaining before Idaho answered with a 5-0 run to cut the deficit to two possessions. Timely stops and rebounding helped Idaho pull within one possession after Anderson set up Pepple Jr for a layup, making the score 54-51.
After a two-point basket from CSUB to make the score 58-55 with 24 seconds remaining, Anderson would deliver his sixth assist of the night to Dixon on the wing who buried the game-tying three-pointer.
Idaho finished the game shooting 37.3 percent from the field and outrebounded the Roadrunners 36 to 34.
The Vandals will make their way back to Moscow for a home matchup against Southwestern Assemblies of God on Saturday at 2 p.m.
