MOSCOW, Idaho – The Idaho men's basketball team (5-4) begins a three-game road stretch in its schedule with a trip south to face Utah Tech (5-3) on Saturday night. 

Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. PST inside Burns Arena in St. George with the game being televised on ESPN+. With crossover from the Idaho playoff football game at 7 p.m., fans can listen to Doug Taylor locally on 1400 ESPN or stream through the Varsity Network app and GoVandals.com. 

How to Follow 
Idaho vs. Utah Tech // Dec. 9 at 6 p.m. PST
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: SIDEARM Live Stats
Listen: The Varsity Network or GoVandals.com/Listen

Last Time Out
Idaho put together one of its most convincing wins of the year over Pacific on Tuesday, earning an 83-53 victory inside ICCU Arena. Guard play, free throw shooting and defense were all major factors in the Vandals prevailing over the Tigers for the second consecutive year. 

The starting backcourt of Quinn Denker and D'Angelo Minnis played their most complete game together, combining to score 42 points on 13-of-19 shooting. Denker filled it up with a game-high 22 points while Minnis followed with 20 points, as the pair both eclipsed their highest scoring output at the Division l level. 

The Vandals continued to get production off the bench from forward Tyler Linhardt, as he recorded a personal-best 12 points in 15 minutes of action. Freshman Kristian Gonzalez pitched in eight points, three rebounds, two steals and one block to highlight the second-unit scoring.

Idaho scored 24 points off of 21 turnovers by Pacific and delivered their most efficient performance from the foul line, shooting 19-of-23 (83%). Not only did the Vandals find success from the charity stripe, but they also were highly efficient from the field, shooting 48 percent (26-54) overall and 41 percent (12/29) from three. 

Scouting the Trailblazers
After earning a 72-69 win over California Baptist on Wednesday, Utah Tech moved to 5-3 on the season. The Trailblazers hold a 1-0 home record and four other wins over Jacksonville State (81-79), Lake Erie College (81-69), Lindenwood (73-66) and Utah Valley (65-53). Utah Tech and Idaho have faced one common opponent in Washington State - the Trailblazers lost to the Cougars in Pullman, 93-53. 

Five Trailblazers average at least nine or more points this season, including double-digit scoring from Riley Beon, Tanner Christensen and Jaylen Searles. Beon averages a team-high 12.6 on 53 percent shooting while Christensen adds 12.1 and Searles pitches in 10.1. 

Series History 
Idaho and Utah Tech meet for the second time in series history, closing out a home-and-home dating back to last season. The Trailblazers earned an 81-71 victory over the Vandals in Moscow on Nov. 19, 2022. 

Vandal Tidbits

• After a 30-point win over Pacific, Idaho moved to 5-4 overall to match the program's best start to a season since 2017. 
• The Vandals have won the first two games to start the month of December for the first time since 2017. 
• Idaho has won two straight and three of their last four games. 
• Idaho is 5-1 when leading at halftime and 4-0 when they out-rebound their opponent. 
• The 2023-24 season marks the 119th year of Vandal men's basketball. 

Stat Sheet Stuffer

• First-year Vandal Julius Mims finds his name amongst the top of multiple stat categories for Idaho, as he leads the way in rebounding (7.3), steals (11) and blocks (15).\
• The North Idaho College transfer has scored at least 10 points in five of nine games to start the season, including a season-high 17 points in a win over UC San Diego.
• Mims is the only player in the Big Sky to average at least 10 points, seven rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game. 
• The 6-9 forward has been the best rim protector in the Big Sky, ranking first with 15 total blocks and a 1.7 per-game average. He has posted three or more blocks in two games and at least two blocks in five contests. 
• Mims rebounds at a high rate, securing 5-plus rebounds in all nine games and 10 or more in two games. He ranks third in the Big Sky with 66 total rebounds and fourth with an average of 2.4 offensive rebounds per game. The junior filed
• back-to-back double-doubles in games against UC San Diego and Denver. He ranks fourth with two double-doubles. 

Collective Effort

• Idaho has enjoyed a collective effort on the offensive end with five players averaging at least eight points a game - Quinn Denker (11.4), D'Angelo Minnis (10.7),  Julius Mims (10), Terren Frank (8.8) and Kyson Rose (8.3). 
• The Vandals have had four players score in double figures in a single game in five different contests this season. 
• All 14 Vandals who have made an appearance this season have scored at least three points while nine different players have scored 10 or more in a single game this season - Trevon Blassingame, Quinn Denker, Terren Frank, Tyler Mrus, Julius Mims, D'Angelo Minnis, EJ Neal, Kyson Rose and Titus Yearout. 

Minnis the Menace

• Graduate guard D'Angelo Minnis is starting to find his stride over the past four games, averaging 17 points per game on 52 percent shooting from the field. He posted his highest Division l scoring output against Pacific, recording 20 points on 6-of-9 from the field.
• Minnis continues to be one of Idaho's best defenders, posting the second-most steals with nine while generally guarding the opposing team's best backcourt player. 
• The Kent, Washington native has been an integral part of setting up the Idaho offense and taking care of the basketball, as he ranks second in the Big Sky in assist/turnover ratio (1.94), third in total assists (31) and fifth in assists per game (3.4).

Defensive Success 

• UI forced Pacific into 21 turnovers to tally the most against a Division l opponent in more than three years (21 vs. Portland State, 1/02/2020).
• In three games, the Vandals have allowed 53 or fewer points.
• The Vandals held Evergreen State (42) and Pacific Lutheran (52) to 52 points or fewer in back-to-back games, marking the first time an Idaho team has allowed such scoring output in consecutive games since 2004 (Santa Barbara, 45 points and Cal Poly, 44 points).
• Idaho posted a 46-point win (88-42) over Evergreen State on Nov. Nov. 14 to give first-year head coach Alex Pribble his first victory as a Vandal. Idaho's defensive effort stood out in the win, holding its opponent to 42 points or fewer for the first time since Dec. 18, 2014 (Walla Walla, 39).

Bench Mob

• Idaho's second unit is tops in the league and 46th nationally in bench points with 29.2 per game. 
• The Vandals have scored at least 20 points in eight games and over 50 points in two games off the bench. 

Big Sky Rankings

• The Vandals rank first in the Big Sky in field goal percentage defense (41.2) and blocks per game (4.4). Protecting the rim has been a strong suit for this Idaho team, posting five or more blocks in four games. 
• Offensively, the Vandals are rated as a top 2 team in the conference in scoring offense (75.2) and steals per game (7.4). As a team, the Vandals have shot at least 44 percent in six games.  
• Idaho also ranks third in field goal percentage (46.1) and three-point percentage (33.0). 

Up Next
The Vandals will get the week to prepare for its next challenge at Stanford on Sunday, Dec. 17 at 2 p.m. inside Maples Pavilion. 

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