MOSCOW, Idaho – The Idaho men's basketball team (9-16, 3-9 BSC) looks to carry its recent momentum into a matchup against one the nation's hottest teams in Eastern Washington (18-7, 12-0 BSC) on Saturday afternoon at ICCU Arena.
How to Follow
Idaho vs. Eastern Washington // Feb. 11 at 3:30 p.m.
Watch:
ESPN+
Live Stats:
SIDEARM Live Stats
Listen:
The Varsity Network or
GoVandals.com/Listen
Tickets:
GoVandals.com/Tickets
Promotion: Tribal Nation Night/White Out
Last Time Out
The Vandals (9-16, 3-9 BSC) came out on top in the second overtime contest against Sacramento State this season, defeating the Hornets in The Nest, 82-76 to snap a four-game losing streak.
Divant'e Moffitt and
Isaac Jones continued to deliver on the offensive end for the Silver and Gold, as Moffitt posted a game-high 30 points and Jones added 25 more to lead the Vandal scoring attack. Jones scored 10 of his 25 in the overtime period. For the fourth time in five games,
Trey Smith came off the bench and scored in double figures with 11 points.
The Vandals shot 63.5 percent (33-of-52) from the field, 50 percent (6-of-12) from three and 83 percent (10-of-12) from the foul line. It was the highest field goal percentage by an Idaho team against a Division l opponent since 2009 (68.4% vs. CSUN).
About Idaho
Two-time Big Sky Player of the Week
Isaac Jones continues to find his name at the top of the list of multiple stat categories in the Big Sky, ranking first in field goal percentage (65.6), field goals made (181), blocks (28) and blocks per game (1.17). He maintains the third-highest points per-game average in Big Sky play at 20.8 and has been dominant over his last three games, averaging 27.3 points and 10.7 rebounds per game. He leads the team and ranks fifth in the league in rebounding with an average of 7.7.
Fifth-year guard
Divant'e Moffitt has also been one of the league's hottest scorers in conference play, averaging the second-highest mark at 20.83 points per game on 48 percent (92-of-190) shooting from the field. Not only has Moffitt been a top contributor scoring the basketball, but he's also been the Vandals' top passer, ranking second in the Big Sky and 18th nationally in total assists with 129. The fifth-year guard also rates second in assists per game (5.2) and fourth in field percentage (49.4) in the Big Sky.
Through 25 games, Jones and Moffitt enter Saturday's matchup listed as two of the top three scorers in the conference. Jones ranks second at 19.8 points per game while Moffitt sits third at 18.8 points a game. The two Spanaway, Washington natives have combined to lead the team in scoring in 21 of 25 games and posted 20 or more points in a combined 22 outings.
Idaho is one of the most efficient teams in the conference, shooting the second-highest field goal percentage in the Big Sky at 48.7 percent from the field. Idaho has shot over 50 percent in 12 games this season while recording a season-high 64 percent (33-52) shooting from the field against Sacramento State last Saturday. The Vandals are averaging the third most points per game in the conference at 75.9 points per game this season while allowing 72.7 ppg. Guarding without fouling and taking care of the basketball has been an emphasis for the Vandals, as they average the second-lowest amount of fouls per game in the Big Sky at 17.1 and the third-least amount of turnovers at 11.6.
True freshman
Nigel Burris is third on the team in scoring with 8.1 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 (70-of-139) from the field, 41 percent (28-of-69) from three and 85 percent (35-of-41) from the foul line. His five rebounds per game are the second most on the Vandals.
Second-year guard
Yusef Salih leads the team in three-point shooting, making 43 shots from behind the arc. He's made two or more threes in 12 games this season. The Gainesville, Virginia native is also getting it done on the defensive end, leading Idaho with 26 offensive fouls drawn. He has recorded at least one in 19 of Idaho's 25 games.
Scouting the Eagles
Eastern Washington is 18-7 overall and 12-0 in the conference. The Eagles hold the longest active win streak in the nation at 14 straight games. EWU most recently earned road wins over Sacramento State (82-63) and Portland State (98-88) last week.
The Eagles rank as one of the top teams in the conference in a handful of stat categories. They are first in the Big Sky in scoring offense (77), assists per game (15.4), field goal percentage (49.3), field goal percentage defense (41.8) and rebounds per game (36.3).
Three Eagles score in double-figures, including a team-high 15.2 points per game from Steele Venters. Angelo Allegri and Tyreese Davis also fill it up on the offensive end, with Allegri averaging 13.2 points and Davis totaling 10.6 per game.
Series History
Idaho and Eastern Washington meet for the second time this season and the 97th time in the two program's history. The Vandals are 3-2 at home over EWU in the last five games. Eastern earned a 95-74 home win over Idaho last month.
Up Next
The Vandals continue their three-game home stretch next week when they meet Northern Colorado and Northern Arizona for the second time this season. Idaho faces the Bears on Thursday night before going up against the Lumberjacks on Saturday.
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