MOSCOW, Idaho – The Idaho men's basketball team used a stout defensive effort and key performances from
Julius Mims and
Kristian Gonzalez to upend Idaho State, 55-53 on Saturday afternoon at the ICCU Arena.
Kyson Rose and Gonzalez led the Vandals offensively with 11 points each. Rose added four rebounds and one steal while Gonalez tied a season-high in points with a 5 for 8 shooting performance.
Mims continued to show why he is one of the best all-around players in the Big Sky, totaling eight points, 14 rebounds, five steals, and two blocks. The five forced turnovers by Mims is a career-high and the most by a Vandal player against a Division 1 opponent since
Rashad Smith in 2023 (5, 3/04/23).
The backcourt of
Trevon Blassingame and
Quinn Denker also provided key contributions in the Vandal victory. Blassingame posted nine points on 3-of-6 shooting while Denker also recorded nine points and three assists.
From the jump, both teams were off to a slow start.
Kyson Rose put the first points on the board at the 17:24 mark while the Vandal defense kept the Bengals without a basket for the first three minutes and 30 seconds of action. Scoring opportunities continued to be squandered by solid defensive play on both ends.
Blassingame used back-to-back three-pointers to get the crowd's attention, starting a 7-0 run and giving Idaho a 24-21 lead. Six possessions later, the game sat tied at 25-25 with less than two minutes remaining in the half. That was until
Terren Frank and Denker closed out the period with a 3-pointer each to help give the Vandals a 32-30 lead at the break.
The Bengals opened the second half with four straight points before the Vandals went on an 11-3 run to build their largest lead of the game at 43-37 with 12:17 remaining. The Bengals would come back to tie it at 43-43 and start a scoring drought of over three minutes.
The last 10 minutes of action saw leads change five more times before the Vandals were able to close out the game on top. Gonzalez stepped up when the lights were the brightest, scoring seven of the Vandals' final 12 points while Mims recorded four points, two crucial steals and the game-sealing rebound.
The in-state battle saw 18 lead changes and 12 ties.
UP NEXT
The Vandals travel to face Northern Colorado and Northern Arizona next week. They take on the Bears on Thursday, February 22 at 5 p.m. PT and the Lumberjacks on Saturday the 24 at 1 p.m. PT.
POSTGAME WITH COACH PRIBBLE
POSTGAME WITH TREVON BLASSINGAME, KRISTIAN GONZALEZ AND JULIUS MIMS
