MOSCOW, Idaho -- The Idaho men's basketball team will continue a four-game road trip when they travel to face Weber State and Idaho State this week. The Vandals will first meet the Wildcats on Thursday, Jan. 13 at 6 p.m. Pacific Time before facing in-state rival Idaho State on Saturday, Jan. 15 at 5 p.m. PT. 

FOLLOW: Both games can be watched live on ESPN+ while fans can also listen over the airwaves with the Voice of the Vandals, Chris King, on the Vandal Radio Network and GoVandals.com/Listen.
 
LAST TIME OUT: The Vandals returned to conference play after a lengthy layoff, falling in a pair of conference games against Montana State and Eastern Washington. 

At EWU, Idaho battled back after trailing 85-75 with 3:51 left to play to make it a one-possession game (92-90), but the Eagles were able to make timely free throws to close out with a win, 96-93. Eastern Washington shot 68% from the field in the second half to help fend off Idaho's late surge. The Vandals shot 45.1 percent, knocked down 13 threes, and turned 13 takeaways into 27-second chance points.

Five Vandals scored in double digits in the game, including a team-high 25 points from senior guard Mikey Dixon. Dixon had another efficient night from the field, going 6-of-11 and 12 for 13 from the foul line. Rashad Smith was a bright spot for the Idaho offense as well, scoring a career-high 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting while forward Tanner Christensen added 14 points and a team best eight boards. 

SUCCESS FROM THREE: On the season, Idaho is best in the conference and No. 23 in the nation in team three-point percentage (38.4). The Vandals have shot 43 percent or better in five games, including a season-high 54 percent on 13-of-24 shooting against South Dakota State (12/8). Mikey Dixon has knocked down shots from behind the arc at a consistent rate this season, leading the team at 47.1 percent from three. 

FREE THROW FREEBIES: Mikey Dixon leads the team when it comes to scoring from the foul line, placing first in the conference and fifth nationally with 80 made free throws. Dixon also places second best in the Big Sky in FT percentage (87.9). Backcourt teammate Trevante Anderson has also been productive from the charity stripe, knocking down 50 shots which is good enough for seventh-best in the conference.
 
SCOUTING THE VANDALS: Idaho is 3-10 on the season and 0-3 in league play. The Vandals are 2-3 in their last five games and 0-4 on the road. 
 
Offensively, Idaho averages 74.5 points per game. They lead the Big Sky and rank 23rd nationally in 3-point percentage (38.4). The Vandals have been exceptional at making shots from the foul line, ranking fifth in the conference and 50th in the nation with 217. 
  
Four Vandals score above eight points per game and two players average in double figures which rank top-18 in conference scoring. Mikey Dixon ranks fifth with an average of 17.5 ppg while backcourt teammate Trevante Anderson is 18th in the league with 12.3 per contest. Anderson has also been the team's facilitator on the floor, averaging 4.2 assists per game which is third-best in the Big Sky. 

In three conference games, Dixon averages a league-best 25.3 ppg while shooting 55 percent from the field and 93 percent from the foul line. Rashad Smith has been a top-3 shooter in terms of efficiency from behind the arc in conference action, shooting 47 percent on 8-of-17 attempts.  

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS: Weber State is 10-5 overall and 4-3 at home. WSU has lost four of their last five games while most recently splitting a pair of conference games against Montana State (85-75) and Montana (72-74). 
  
Weber is scoring 75.4 ppg and allowing 69.3 ppg. The Wildcats rank first in total steals (119) and place second in a handful of stat categories including, field goal percentage (46.5), turnovers forced (15.4), turnover margin (3.4), and steals per game (7.9). 

Four Wildcats average double figures on the season, including a team-high 17.5 from Koby McEwen. Three-time Big Sky Player of the Week Dillon Jones averages 13.4 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. His 10.5 rebounds a game is ranked first in the conference. Forward JJ Overton adds 11.7 ppg while Seikou Sisoho Jawara pitches in 10.7 points per contest.

SERIES HISTORY: Idaho is 24-60 all-time against the Wildcats. The Vandals hosted the Weber State for two games in Moscow a season ago, falling 81-56 and 90-64.

SCOUTING THE BENGALS: Idaho State is 2-11 and 0-4 in conference play. They enter the week on a three-game losing streak. Last time out, the Bengals were handed two losses to Montana (78-54) and Montana State (60-40). 
  
ISU is scoring 59.2 ppg and allowing 68.8 ppg. They rank third in scoring defense, limiting teams to 60 points or less in three games this season. 

Idaho State has two scorers that average double-digits this season, with Robert Ford lll leading the way at 10.9 points per game. Guard Tarik Cool averages 10.3 points a game for ISU. 

SERIES HISTORY: Idaho leads the all-time series 65-49 against Idaho State, dating back to 1932-33. Last season, the Bengals got the better of the Vandals, earning a pair of victories in Pocatello by the score of 69-43 and 64-58.  

NEXT UP: Idaho will round out their road trip with a make-up game at Northern Arizona scheduled for Monday, Jan. 17 at 5 p.m. Pacific Time. Fans can watch the game live on ESPN+ and over the airwaves with the Voice of the Vandals, Chris King, on the Vandal Radio Network and GoVandals.com/Listen.