MOSCOW, Idaho – The Vandal women's basketball team looks to bounce back into conference play with two games at home this weekend. Idaho hosts Idaho State on Thursday, January 18th at 6 p.m. and Weber State on Saturday, January 20th at 5 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN+ and available to listen on AM 840 KMAX or GoVandals.com
ABOUT IDAHO: Eastern Washington snapped Idaho's five-game win streak last weekend in the ICCU Arena. The loss marked the Vandals' largest defeat of the season, 44-67. The Eagles were in control from early in the first quarter until the final whistle.
Turnovers and trouble with boards cost Idaho the game. Eastern shot lights out in the fourth quarter and created a bigger safety net for their win. Nonetheless, Idaho still had two athletes reach double-digits with Kennedy Johnson at 14 points and Asha Phillips at 10. Both teams had 14 turnovers to end the game. Eastern capitalized, scoring 16 points off Idaho turnovers while the Vandals only scored six points off the Eagles.
Johnson's eight free throws (8-8) against Eastern marked the highest free throw percentage in the Big Sky through the conference season. Idaho's offense ranks No. 5 in the Big Sky averaging 64.20 PPG. Defensively, Idaho ranks No. 1 in scoring defense allowing an average of 55.20 PPG.
ABOUT IDAHO STATE: The Bengals (6-9, 2-2 BSC) are coming off an undefeated weekend at home, hosting Portland State and Weber State. Idaho State defeated the Vikings 79-43 on Thursday followed by a 62-48 win over the Hornets on Sunday.
The Bengals had four players reach double digits in the win over the Vikings, led by Kacey Sprink with 15 points. The team shot 54% (34-63) from the field, 33.3% (4-12) from three, and 77.8% (7-9) from the free throw line. On Sunday, Nika Lokica led the Bengals with 16 points joined by two others in the double digits. Idaho State's shots did not fall as easily, as they shot 37.9% (22-58) from the field, 37.5% (6-16) from three, and 85.7% (12-14) from the free throw line.
Idaho State leads the conference with a field goal percentage defense of 37.1%. While Idaho State leads with an average of 13.20 offensive rebounds per game, the Vandals led with an average of 27.27 defensive rebounds per game. The matchup under the glass will be an interesting one, and most likely will have a large factor in the game.
ABOUT WEBER STATE: The Wildcats (5-12, 2-2 BSC) also defeated the Vikings (89-53) and the Hornets (81-61) this past week. Weber State will face Eastern Washington on Thursday in Cheney before they travel down to Moscow.
Jadyn Matthews dropped 30 points against Sacramento State shooting 10-19 from the field and 10-12 from the charity stripe and grabbed 11 rebounds. Four other players scored in the double digits. Matthews led the Wildcats once again with 17 points against Portland State.
Weber's Daryn Hickock ranks No. 10 in the conference in overall scoring at 204 points, while Idaho's Johnson is right below her with 173 points.
SERIES HISTORIES: The Vandals hold winning records over both squads. Idaho first clashed with the Bengals in 1979, featuring a 93-70 win for Idaho on the road. Last season, Idaho dominated Idaho State in both matchups 68-61 and 60-54 improving the record to 36-17.
Idaho has a 10-game win streak against the Wildcats dating back to 2019. All-time, the Vandals are 32-21 against Weber State. Last season, Idaho won both games, 66-52 and 77-52.
