CHICAGO – The Vandal women's basketball team extended their win streak to five after defeating Chicago State, 80-52 in their last non-conference game of the season. Idaho is now 7-1 away from home, a program best since the 1985-86 season.
Idaho rounded out their four-game road trip with a 28-point victory over the Cougars. The win streak helped push Idaho to their highest NET ranking in program history of 125.
Jenna Kilty had a season-high 14 points, going 4-7 from three and 5-10 from the field. Seven other Vandals joined Kilty with points from behind the arc, a season-high for Idaho. Hope Butera and Kennedy Johnson recorded double-digit scores playing only around 20 minutes each. Michala Bork saw a season-high in minutes and scored seven points. Skylar Bea also tied her career-high with six points.
The Vandals took off early in the first quarter and gained the lead that they would eventually hold on to for the rest of the game. Idaho came out scoring five unanswered until Chicago State scored from the free throw line. Idaho kept the Cougars from scoring from the field up until four minutes left in the quarter. The Vandals ended the quarter 25-9, scoring more than they had in a half in their previous game at Denver.
Both teams came out cold in the second quarter, going scoreless over two minutes. Idaho scored 13 points, which was their lowest quarter output of the game. Butera, Bork, and Kilty all had three points apiece. Both squads shot under 40% from all areas of the court.
By the end of the first half, Idaho was up 38-19 over the Cougars. The Vandals shot 46.9% (15-32) from the field, 42.9% (6-14), and 2-5 from FT. The defense forced the Cougars into hard shots as they went 7-23 from the field and 0-4 from three. Butera and Johnson both led the Vandals with seven points and 11 rebounds combined. By this point, nine Vandals scored two points or more. Schmitt led the court with four assists.
In the third period, the starting lineup saw their final minutes of the game as the bench players came on to relieve them. Sarah Brans and Aspen Caldwell got significant minutes, playing over half of the period. Idaho scored 21 points in the quarter, shooting 44.4% (8-18) from the field, and 41.7% (5-12) from three. Asha Phillips led with five points, shooting 2-3 from FG. Kilty had her best quarter, scoring six points on 2-2 from three.
The game looked the same in the final quarter as Kilty, Ashlyn Wallace, Caldwell, and Bork played every minute. Wallace scored the majority of her total points going 2-3 from three. Skylar Bea led the squad with four rebounds and tied her career-high six points. Idaho ended the quarter going 7-17 from the field, 4-8 from three, and 3-4 from free throw. For the second time this season, Idaho defended the parameter and did not allow a single point from three-point range.
The subs made a great impact on the game today, scoring a season-high 45 points from the bench. Idaho recorded their seventh 40-plus rebound game, tallying 43 on the day. Every Vandal that stepped on the court, except for one recorded four or more points. Idaho improved to 9-5 for the first time since the 2020-21 season.
Idaho returns to Big Sky play next week as they face Eastern Washington at home. They will tip off at 1:00 p.m. followed by the men's game at 4:00 p.m.
