Men’s Hoops Wrap Up Non-Conference Play in Southern California

Vandals travel to play Cal State Northridge and Long Beach State

MOSCOW, Idaho – The Idaho men's basketball team wraps up non-conference play, as the squad heads to Southern California for two games. The Vandals will first play against Cal State Northridge on Monday (7 p.m.) before facing Long Beach State on Wednesday (7 p.m.).

How to Follow
Idaho vs. CSUN // Dec. 19 at 7 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: SIDEARM Live Stats
Listen: The Varsity Network or GoVandals.com/Listen

Idaho vs. Long Beach State // Dec. 21 at 7 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Listen: The Varsity Network or GoVandals.com/Listen

Last Time Out
The Vandals (5-6) wrapped up their 2022 home schedule with a 125-51 win over Northwest Indian College. The outcome was two points shy of tying the program's all-time scoring record (127 vs. New Hope, 12/18/15) and the second time this season the Vandals beat an opponent by 74 total points (Walla Walla, 11/10). Idaho shot over 50 percent (51.1%) from the field for the sixth time over the last seven games. The Vandals also lit it up from behind the arc, going 19-of-38 (50%) from three - tied for the most three-point makes (19 vs. New Hope, 12/18/15) by an Idaho team in at least the last 20 years.

Six Vandals scored in double digits, including a team-high and career-high 31 points from Dominique Ford on 12-of-21 shooting and 7-of-13 from three. Ford's seven makes from three was the most by a Vandal since 2017 (7, Victor Sanders) while he also became the third Idaho player this season to score over 30 points in a game (Isaac Jones, Divant'e Moffitt).

Isaac Jones dropped 20 points while shooting 9-of-11 from the field in 11 minutes of action. Michael Hanshaw and Jack Hatten each recorded double-doubles in the effort. Hanshaw had a career-high 18 points and 12 boards while Hatten had a personal best of 10 points and 11 rebounds. Nigel Burris added 17 points and RJ Walker delivered 15 points and nine assists to round out the scoring for Idaho.

Scouting the Matadors
CSUN is 2-7 overall and 2-1 at home this season. The Matadors are coming off two straight losses to Fresno State (56-65) and Northern Colorado (63-70).

As a team, the Matadors rank first in the Big West in turnovers per game (10.3) and sit second in opponent field goal percentage (38.4) and opponent 3-point field goal percentage (30.7). CSUN's 10.3 turnovers per game are rated 15th best in the country.

Dionte Bostick leads the Matadors in scoring and ranks ninth in the Big West in points per game with 13.8, while teammate Atin Wright follows with 13.2. De'Sean Allen-Eikens puts up an average of 12.3 points per game to round out CSUN's scoring. Forward Onyi Eyisi cleans up the glass with a team-high 6.9 rebounds.

Series History
Idaho is 5-7 overall and 2-4 on the road against the Matadors. The two programs were conference foes for four seasons in the Big West from 2001-05 before Idaho moved to the Western Athletic Conference in 2006. The Vandals picked up a 96-89 win over CSUN in the last meeting in 2014.

Scouting the Beach
Long Beach State is 4-6 on the season with a 1-1 home record. The Beach look to bounce back after dropping their last three road games to Utah Valley (78-88), Sacramento State (74-76) and USC (78-88).

The Beach is led by senior guard Joel Murray, who is averaging a team-high 14.4 points and 4.2 assists per game. Backcourt teammate Marcus Tsohonis also adds double-figure scoring with 12.9 per game. Aboubacar and Lassina Traore are the top two rebounders in the Big West, respectively, as A. Traore pulls down 8.2 rebounds and L. Traore averages 8.

Series History
The Vandals are 7-13 overall against the Beach. Idaho will look to avenge a 95-89 overtime loss to LBSU from a season ago.

Efficient Offensive Bunch

The Vandals are making over half of their shots from the field (50.8%), ranking eighth in the nation and best in the Big Sky in field goal percentage.
The Silver and Gold have shot over 50 percent in seven games this season, including in six of the last seven contests.
Idaho's 37-point win over NIU (84-47) was the program's largest margin of victory over a Division l opponent since 2008 (UC Irvine, 101-47).
Idaho holds the Big Sky's top two spots in field goal percentage behind Isaac Jones' 71.7 percent and Divant'e Moffitt's 52.8 percent shooting. Jones' mark is ranked fifth nationally.

Scoring Spree

The Vandals have scored over 120 points and defeated its opponent by 74 points on two occasions this season (Walla Walla, Norwest Indian College). It's the first time in program history an Idaho team has posted two games with 120-plus points scored in a single season.
Idaho's offense is scoring an average of 80.5 points per game, ranking best in the Big Sky. They have recorded 80-plus points in four games.
Three players have totaled 30 or more points in a single game this season. Guard Dom Ford most recently had 31 points against NWIC, while fifth-year point guard Divant'e Moffitt tallied 31 versus UC Riverside and forward Isaac Jones had 31 points in a game against Pacific. Idaho is the only team in the league to have three different student-athletes have 30-plus points in a game this season.

Big Man On Campus

Forward/center Isaac Jones is one of two players (Oumar Ballo, Arizona) in the nation to average at least 18 ppg, 7 rpg and shoot 70 percent from the field.
The 6-9 transfer leads the conference in four statistical categories. He ranks first in points per game (18.3), field goal percentage (71.7), total blocks (12) and blocks per game (1.20).
In 10 appearances this season, Jones has scored in double figures in nine out of 10 games and posted 20-plus points in four contests, including a career-high 31 over Pacific. He has shot at least 67 percent from the field in eight games and over 83 percent in two contests.
His six-block performance against North Dakota was the most by an Idaho player since 2012 (Djim Bandoumel, 2/9/12) and tied for the fifth most in program history.
Jones leads the team on the glass, securing an average of seven rebounds per game - the sixth-highest in the Big Sky. His 19-point and 10-rebound performance against UND was the third double-double for Jones this season.

Three Point Success

Idaho is shooting the highest 3-point percentage in the Big Sky at 39.5. The Vandals have shot over 47 percent in six contests and recorded 10 or more makes from three in four games.
The Vandals had their highest output from outside in the win over Norwest Indian, going 19-of-38 (50%) from three - tied for the most three-point makes (19 vs. New Hope, 12/18/15) by an Idaho team in at least the last 20 years.
Dom Ford's seven made threes versus NWIC was the most by a Vandal since 2017 (7, Victor Sanders) and is tied for the third most in school history.
Yusef Salih's 20 three-pointers are the most on the squad, as he is making them fall 36% of the time. He has made two or more shots from behind the arc in seven games.
Freshman Nigel Burris has been one of the most consistent shooters from three, shooting 53 percent (17-of-32) on the season. His four 3-point makes against Pacific were the most by a true freshman since 2020 (Gabe Quinnett, 4 vs. Montana).

PG13

Point guard Divant'e Moffitt is leading the Vandals in the backcourt with an average of 17 points per game, which ranks sixth highest in the conference. He's scored 20 or more points in five games and posted at least 10 points in nine of 11 contests.
Moffitt continues to dish it out at a high rate, ranking second in the conference in total assists (59) and assists per game (5.4). In six games, he has recorded five or more assists while posting a career-high of 10 in a game against Walla Walla (11/10).

Burris Don't Play like a Freshman

Through 11 games, true freshman Nigel Burris is averaging 9.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and shooting 57 percent (40-of-70) from the field and 53 percent (17-of-32) from three.
The 6-7 forward from San Francisco, California is playing his best basketball of late, averaging 14.2 ppg, 6.2 rpg and shooting 65% from the field and 65% from three. In his first six games to start his collegiate career, Burris averaged 6 ppg, 3.8 rpg and shot 33% from the field.
Burris's 9.7 points per game is the highest average by a Big Sky freshman so far this season.

Locking It Down

Idaho held NIU to 47 points in an 84-47 win (12/2) at ICCU Arena - the fewest points allowed to a Dl foe in the Zac Claus era and lowest since 2016 (44 vs. Southern Utah).
The Vandals have held four opponents to under 38 percent shooting and below 53 points on the year. Idaho's scoring defense is tops in the Big Sky, holding teams to 66.5 ppg.

Up Next
Conference action begins after Christmas break when the Vandals head east to take on the Montana schools. Idaho will open with the 2022 defending Big Sky Tournament champions in the Montana State Bobcats on Dec. 29 (6 p.m. PT) before traveling to Missoula for a New Year's Eve matchup against Montana at 1 p.m. PT.

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