Idaho Vandals Tame Cougars

The battle on the Palouse turned into more of a quick knock out as the Idaho Vandals beat Washington State 91-64 in the 113th renewal of the longest running men's basketball rivalry west of the Mississippi.

Idaho jumped out to a quick 22-6 lead just over five minutes into the contest behind hot shooting from Brayon Blake and Perrion Callandret.  The Cougars would chip away at the lead, cutting it to as little as six in the half, but the Vandals picked up the intensity from there to take a 49-30 lead into the break.

 Things were much of the same in the second half.  WSU was able to trim the deficit to 14 twice, but Idaho got up by 20 with 15 minutes to play and never looked back.  In the end, the Vandals finished off the Cougars, 91-64, for the third largest Vandal victory in series history.

 The Idaho defense was strong yet again, holding the Cougars to 41 percent shooting (25-61) from the floor and 26.9 percent (7-26) from beyond the arc.  Idaho, on the other hand, was tremendous offensively, connecting on 25-of-72 shots (48.6%) and 14-of-25 3’s (56.0%).  The Vandals dominated on the glass, 43-31.

 Blake led the way on the offensive side with 26 points, and added a game-high eight boards.  Victor Sanders went for 19 points in the win, while Callandret had a balanced night with 16 points, five boards and five assists.

Idaho now 6-2 plays at Cal State Bakersfield Saturday night in a game to be broadcast on 630 The Fan 7:30 p.m. pre-game and 8 p.m. tip off. Bakersfield beat Idaho last month at the Great Alaska Shootout 64-62.