MOSCOW, Idaho -- The Idaho men's basketball team sets up for its final two regular-season games of the season when they host Portland State and Northern Arizona. The Vandals will welcome the Vikings on Mar. 3 at 6 p.m. before facing the Lumberjacks on Mar. 5 at 2 p.m for Senior Night.

How To Follow

Idaho vs. Portland State // Mar. 3 at 6 p.m. 
Watch: ESPN+ 
Live Stats: SIDEARM Stats 
Listen: KRPL 1400 AM // The Varsity Network 
Tickets: GoVandals.com

Idaho vs. Northern Arizona // Mar. 5 at 2 p.m. 
Watch: ESPN+ 
Live Stats: SIDEARM Stats 
Listen: KRPL 1400 AM // The Varsity Network 
Tickets: GoVandals.com

The Vandals head into the final week of the regular season looking to gain back some momentum after losing two straight games on the road to Sacramento State and Northern Colorado. Idaho has played its best basketball this season at home with a 7-6 record and a current three-game home win streak.  

Last time out, the Vandals dropped their second matchup of the season to Northern Colorado, 98-94. Idaho shot 55.6 percent from the field and knocked down 13 shots from behind the arc at a 48 percent clip to keep the score within two possessions. The Bears offense was just as efficient, shooting 55.7 percent from the floor and only turning the ball over on four occasions.  

Northern Colorado led for a large part of the first half where they built a 53-40 advantage after 20 minutes of action. UNC shot 63.6 percent and hit nine threes on 15 attempts in the first period. Idaho was able to make it a single-digit deficit at multiple points in the second period before the Bears answered with time baskets. UI used a 14-6 run in the final minute to make it a four-point game (98-94), but Idaho's comeback came up short as time expired. 

Junior Trevante Anderson had arguably one of his best games in a Vandal uniform, delivering a career-high 32 points on 11-of-17 shooting from the floor. Anderson led the Vandals in all three major stat categories, as he also grabbed nine rebounds and dished out six assists.

Backcourt teammate Rashad Smith tied a career-high with 22 points on a 6-of-8 clip from three while forward Tanner Christensen shot 70 percent from the floor and pitched in 16 points.
 
A LOOK AT THE VANDALS: Idaho is 8-20 on the season and 5-13 in conference play. The Vandals have enjoyed playing on its home court, especially of late, winning three straight games and four of their last five at ICCU Arena. 
 
On the season, UI is averaging 73.7 points per game which is the sixth-best in the league. UI has scored at least 80 points on 10 occasions this season and held opponents to 70 points or fewer four times. As a team, UI is shooting 44.3 percent from the floor and 37.8 percent from three. The 3-point mark is the second-highest in the conference. 
  
Senior Mikey Dixon is averaging a team-high 16.8 points per game on 43.4 percent from the field and 87 percent from the foul line. The New Castle, Del. native holds the second-best free throw percentage in the conference and is ranked 13th in the nation with 147 makes at the line. Dixon also averages the third-best mark in home games amongst conference players at 19.5 ppg.  

Backcourt teammate Trevante Anderson is second on the team in ppg with 14.1 ppg. He is playing his best basketball of late, averaging 18 points over the last five contests. Not only has Anderson scored the ball at a high rate, but he has also set up his open teammates, averaging a team-best 3.8 assists a game.

Junior transfer Rashad Smith tied a career mark against Northern Colorado with a 22 point performance to increase his scoring average to 10.4 ppg. Over the last four games, Smith is shooting 66 percent from the floor and 79 percent from three. In four games (Jan. 29 - Feb. 12) before the hot streak, Smith was shooting 27 percent from the field. The combo guard has scored in double figures 15 times this year. Behind the 3-point line is where he has been on point, knocking down a team-best 45.8 which includes a personal-best six made threes versus the Bears on Feb. 26.

Three Vandals pull down at least four rebounds a game, including a team-high 6.2 from Tanner Christensen. Smith is second on the team with 5.2 rebounds while Anderson posts 4.9 per game.

SCOUTING THE VIKINGS: Portland State is 11-15 overall and .500 in conference with a 9-9 record. On the road, the Vikings are 4-8. PSU is one of the conferences' hottest teams of late, tied for the longest active win streak of three games while also winning seven of its last nine. Last week, Portland State picked up a pair of wins over Weber State (81-75) and Idaho State (73-69 OT) at home.    
  
PSU is scoring 73.2 ppg and allowing 72.4 ppg. The Vikings are one of the best teams in the Big Sky at creating second opportunities and turning teams over, as they rank first in offensive rebounds per game (10.7), steals per game (9.3), turnover margin (4.4) and turnovers forced (17). 

Five Viking players average double figures on the season, including 12.9 ppg from James Jean-Marie. Khalid Thomas follows in at 11.9 points per contest while Damion Squire averages 11.2. Ezekiel Alley and Michael Carter lll round out the list, as Alley pitches in 11.1 and Carter adds 10 per game. 

SERIES HISTORY VS PORTLAND STATE: The all-time series between the two programs is all tied at 17-17 with the first meeting coming in 1965. Idaho has won four out of the last seven meetings in conference play and will go for the season sweep after picking up an 84-79 win over the Vikings in Portland. 

SCOUTING THE LUMBERJACKS: Northern Arizona is 9-20 and 5-13 in conference action as they have lost its last five games. Overall, the Lumberjacks are 4-9 away from Flagstaff and 2-3 on the road over its last five games. NAU is currently tied with Idaho and Sacramento State for the eighth seed in the Big Sky standings. 
  
Northern Arizona is scoring 67.4 ppg and allowing 73.2 ppg. They rank top-3 in the conference in offensive rebounds per game (10.2), 3-point makes a game (8.7) and total rebounds per game (36.7).

Two Lumberjacks average double-digit scoring with guard Jalen Cone leading all scorers at 18.2 ppg. er. Fellow teammate Nik Mains adds 12 points per game and forward Carson Towt adds 8.2 points and grabs the second-most rebounds in the league with 8.5 per game. 

SERIES HISTORY VS NORTHERN ARIZONA: Idaho is 41-27 all-time against NAU. UI will look to snap a seven-game skid dating back to 2017-18. The Vandals most recently fell to the Lumberjacks 74-72, back on Jan. 17. 

SUCCESS FROM THREE: On the season, Idaho is second best in the conference and 23rd in the nation in team three-point percentage (37.8). The Vandals have shot 40 percent or better in 10 games this season, including a season-high 60 percent on 9-of-15 shooting against Montana (Feb. 17). That's the highest 3-point percentage with the minimum of 10 shot attempts a Vandal team has shot since January 2020 at Montana.

FREE THROW FREEBIES: Mikey Dixon leads the team when it comes to scoring from the foul line, placing second in the conference in free throw percentage (87%) and free throw makes (147). He also ranks 13th nationally in made free throws.

SENIOR NIGHT SUCCESS: The Vandals have won in the final home game of the regular-season 11 out of the last 12 years. In Saturday's game, Idaho will honor Nolan Bertain, Mikey Dixon and JeMeil King for Senior Night. 

NEXT UP: The Vandals will travel to Boise for the Big Sky Conference Tournament that gets underway from Idaho Central Arena on Wednesday, March 9.

2022 Big Sky Conference Men's Basketball Championship Schedule
 
Wednesday, March 9, 2022
Game 1 – No. 8 Seed vs. No. 9 Seed, 9:30 a.m.         
Game 2 – No. 7 Seed vs. No. 10 Seed, Noon
Game 3 – No. 6 Seed vs. No. 11 Seed, 2:30 p.m.
 
Thursday, March 10, 2022
Game 4 – No. 1 Seed vs. Game 1 Winner, Noon       
Game 5 – No. 4 Seed vs. No. 5 Seed, 2:30 p.m.
Game 6 – No. 2 Seed vs. Game 2 Winner, 5:30 p.m.
Game 7 – No. 3 Seed vs. Game 3 Winner, 8 p.m.
 
Friday, March 11, 2022
Game 8 – Game 4 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner (Semifinals), 5:30 p.m.
Game 9 – Game 6 Winner vs. Game 7 Winner (Semifinals), 8 p.m.
 
Saturday, March 12, 2022
Game 10 – Championship Game, 6 p.m.
 
All times listed are Mountain Standard

Tickets for the Big Sky Championship in Boise are on sale now. Click HERE to get yours today.

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