MOSCOW, Idaho – The Idaho men's basketball team returns home for two conference matchups this week, as the squad gets set to face Weber State and Idaho State. 

The Vandals go up against Weber State on Thursday at 6 p.m. before wrapping up its two-game home stretch on Saturday (2 p.m.) against in-state rival Idaho State.

How to Follow 
Idaho vs. Weber State // Jan. 26 at 6 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: SIDEARM Live Stats
Listen: The Varsity Network or GoVandals.com/Listen
Tickets: GoVandals.com/Tickets
Promotion: Student Organization Night

Idaho vs. Idaho State // Jan. 28 at 2 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: SIDEARM Live Stats
Listen: The Varsity Network or GoVandals.com/Listen
Tickets: GoVandals.com/Tickets
Promotion: Battle of the Domes 

Last Time Out
The Vandals (8-13, 2-6 BSC) are winners of two of their last three and look to continue their recent success after splitting a pair of road games at Northern Arizona and Northern Colorado.

Idaho earned its first win in Flagstaff in five years with a 88-83 effort over the Lumberjacks, behind a combined 55 points from Isaac Jones and Divant'e Moffitt, and its best team shooting percentage (57%) against a conference foe this season. Jones led all scorers with 30 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the field while Moffitt recorded another solid performance with 25 points, six assists, six rebounds and two steals. 
 
The Vandals' fourth game in eight days wound up in a 73-67 win in favor of Northern Colorado this past Saturday. Moffitt posted a team-high 26 points on 12-of-22 shooting from the field while Jones had 17 points, seven rebounds and four blocks. Trey Smith also came off the bench and scored a season-high 11 points on a 3-for-4 clip from three. 

About Idaho
Fifth-year guard Divant'e Moffitt has been one of the league's hottest scorers over the last four games, averaging 28 points on 54 percent (40-of-74) shooting from the field. In eight conference games, the Spanaway, Washington native is posting the second-highest point-per-game average at 21.5. Not only has Moffitt been a top contributor scoring the basketball, but he's also been the Vandals' floor general, ranking first in the Big Sky and 17th nationally in total assists with 107. He also ranks second in assists per game (5.1) and fourth in field percentage (48.8) in the Big Sky.

Junior forward Isaac Jones and Moffitt enter the week as two of the top three scorers in the conference. Jones ranks second at 19.1 points per game while Moffitt sits third at 18.6 points a game. The two Spanaway, Washington natives have combined to lead the team in scoring in 18 of 21 games and posted 20 or more points in a combined 17 outings.  
 
Idaho is one of the most efficient teams in the conference, shooting a Big Sky-best 48.2 percent from the field. Idaho has shot over 49 percent in 10 games this season while recording a conference season-high 57 percent shooting effort against Northern Arizona last week. The Vandals are averaging 75.9 points per game this season while allowing 71.7 ppg. Taking care of the basketball has been an emphasis for the Vandals, as they average the lowest amount of turnovers per game in the Big Sky at 11.4 and the third-best assist/turnover ratio at 1.10.
 
Two-time Big Sky Player of the Week Isaac Jones is the conference leader in four stat categories entering Thursday's matchup - field goal percentage (67.8), field goals made (145), blocks (24) and blocks per game (1.20). In conference action, the junior is averaging 19.4 points to rank third in the Big Sky. He leads the team and ranks fifth in the league in rebounding with an average of 7.4 per game.  

True freshman Nigel Burris is third on the team in scoring with nine points per game - the highest scoring average by a Big Sky freshman this season. The forward from San Francisco is knocking down shots at a high rate, shooting 50 percent (65-of-130) from the field, 40 percent (25-of-62) from three and 85 percent (33-of-39) from the foul line. His 5.5 rebounds per game are the second most on the Vandals. Burris has scored in double figures in 11 games this season.  

Second-year guard Yusef Salih leads the team in three-point shooting, making 40 shots from behind the arc and averaging just under two makes per game (1.90). He's made two or more threes in 12 games this season, including a career-high five makes against Long Beach State earlier in the year. The Gainesville, Virginia native is also getting it done on the defensive end, leading Idaho with 22 offensive fouls drawn. He has recorded at least one in 16 of Idaho's 21 games. 

Scouting the Wildcats
Weber State is 10-10 overall and ranked third in Big Sky standings with a 5-2 conference mark. The Wildcats are winners of three of their last four, while most recently picking up a pair of home wins over Portland State (84-68) and Sacramento State (50-48).

Weber ranks as one of the top teams in the conference in free-throw shooting and team defense. They are first in the Big Sky and sixth nationally in free throw percentage (79.2%) and also rank second in scoring defense (66.6 ppg). 

Forward Dillon Jones earned Big Sky Player of the week for the third time this season after averaging 17.5 points, 14.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 2.0 steals per game against PSU and Sac State. He is scoring a team-high 15.1 points per game while leading the country in defensive rebounds at 10.2 and ranking fifth in the nation in rebounds per game at 10.9 per game. 
Guard Steven Verplancken also helps lead the offensive attack for the Wildcats with 12.7 points per game. He is shooting 42.3 percent from three and rated eighth in the Big Sky in 3-pointers made per game at 2.1. 

Series History 
Idaho and Weber State meet for the 87th time in the two programs' history, with the Wildcats leading the all-time series 25-61. Last season, Idaho earned its first win over Weber State since 2018, beating the Wildcats 83-79 in Moscow.

Scouting the Bengals
Idaho State is 7-13 with a 4-3 conference record. The Bengals have struggled away from Pocatello, owning a 2-8 road mark. ISU has lost three of its last four, including a home loss to Portland State, 72-65 last Saturday.

The Bengals are scoring 68.7 points per game while allowing 69.7. Idaho State has been one of the best in the conference on the defensive end, holding opponents to a league-low 30.9 percent from behind the arc, third lowest field goal percentage at 43.6 percent shooting and third most steals per game at 6.2. 

Four Bengals score in double figures, including a team-high 12.6 points per game by Miguel Tomley. Brock Mackenzie follows at 12.4 ppg, while Jared Rodriguez and Brayden Parker each average 10.5. 

Series History  
The Vandals own a 65-51 overall record over Idaho State. The Vandals look to snap a 4-game losing streak against the Bengals on Saturday. 

Up Next
The Vandals go up against Portland State and Sacramento State for the second time this season. Idaho will face the Vikings on Feb. 2 before wrapping up the week against the Hornets on Feb. 4.

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