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Idaho Athletics
49
Whitman Whitm 0-1,0-0 NWC
94
Winner Idaho UI 2-0,0-0 Big Sky
Whitman Whitm
0-1,0-0 NWC
49
Final
94
Idaho UI
2-0,0-0 Big Sky
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Whitman Whitm 29 20 49
Idaho UI 37 57 94

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Idaho Dominates Whitman, Improves to 2-0 for First Time Since 2014

FINAL SCORE
Idaho Vandals - 94
Whitman Blues - 49

SEASON RECORDS
Idaho - 2-0
Whitman - 0-0

VANDAL LEADERS
PTS - Jackson Rasmussen (19)
AST- Kolton Mitchell (6)
REB- Seth Joba (13)
BLK- Jack Payne (1)
STL- Kolton Mitchell & Isaiah Brickner (2)

NOTABLES
  • With tonight's win, Idaho has started the season 2-0 for the first time since the 2014-15 season
  • Largest home opener crowd since at least 2006 (2,295)
  • First time with back-to-back games with six double-figure scorers in the last six seasons
  • Largest margin of victory since Pacific Lutheran (44 points) on November 17th, 2023
  • Seth Joba's double-double of 10 points and 13 rebounds, the first points and rebounds double-double by a Vandal since 2/27/25 (Jack Payne vs. Idaho State)
  • Kolton Mitchell shot a perfect 8-8 from the foul line, the most in a row in a single game in his Idaho career
  • Idaho has out-rebounded its opponent in back-to-back games for the seventh time in the Pribble era 
    • Idaho currently holds a rebound margin of 33, their largest through two games in the last 10 years 

MOSCOW, Idaho - In front of their largest home opener crowd in at least two decades, the Vandals defeated DIII Whitman 94-49 to open the season 2-0 for the first time since the 2014-15 season. 

HEAR FROM COACH
"Our superpower this year as a team is our togetherness," Head Coach Alex Pribble said postgame. "Our guys really care about each other. They're extremely cohesive on and off the court. And so, you know, we only went eight deep at Washington State, but everyone in our locker room knew that if we needed Isaiah, if we needed Miles, if we needed Ewan, and if we needed Aidan, those guys would step up and make plays for us. So you know, Tre (Trevon Blassingame) went down, Kris Gonzalez went down, so those guys weren't playing today. Other guys stepped up and we feel very confident that we're deep and guys can make plays when they need to."



HOW IT HAPPENED 
The Vandals came out strong on a 9-0 run, as Whitman struggled to get open looks, missing their first five attempts from beyond the arc. 

Vermont transfer Seth Joba had an immense first half, posting ten points and seven boards while coming off the bench. His triple at the 13:34 mark stretched the Idaho advantage to 11, as the Vandals were shooting 50% from the field.



After a hot start, the Black and Gold cooled on offense, going more than six minutes without a made field goal. Kolton Mitchell broke the drought, by walking into a wide-open layup that would spark an 11-7 Idaho run, as Idaho led 37-29 headed into the break. 



After only going 3-10 from beyond the arc in the first half, Jack Payne opened the scoring in the second period for the Vandals, knocking down a wide-open three. This triples trend would continue, as Miles Klapper kick-started the Vandal offense, finding his rhythm by making four threes, including one to stretch the lead beyond 25.



The Idaho offense continued to stay in rhythm, while defensively only allowing Whitman to convert 25% of its shots and by winning the battle on the boards 27-10 in the second half. 

https://x.com/VandalHoops/status/1987005779841577373?s=20

Idaho's depth continued to excel, contributing 39 points from the bench, the most since a win over Northwest on November 4th, 2024 (55). 

UP NEXT
Idaho opens its two-game road trip by traveling to San Diego on Wednesday, November 12, at the Jenny Craig Pavilion. Tip is set for 6 p.m., with the game being streamed on ESPN+, the Vandal Radio Network, and Varsity Network.

TICKETS
Idaho Athletics announced that all student tickets for football, basketball, volleyball, and soccer home events are free of charge. To claim your tickets, visit govandals.com/tickets 

FOLLOW THE VANDALS
To stay up to date with Vandal Hoops, follow the team on Instagram, X, and visit govandals.com
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