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Idaho men can't get over hump against EWU

trevan pixley, lewiston tribune, idaho
·4 min read

Feb. 12—There is no such thing as a moral victory.

A perfect example was Idaho's 73-66 loss Saturday to Big Sky Conference leader Eastern Washington at Idaho Central Credit Union Arena.

The Vandals were down by three with 26 seconds left in regulation when coach Zac Claus was pleading his case to the officials as Idaho senior Divant'e Moffitt looked like he was getting fouled as he was trying to steal the ball away from an Eagles player.

The momentum that the Vandals (9-17, 3-10) looked like it had went down the drain after the technical. Steele Venters hit one of two free throws to make it 68-64, and the Eagles (19-7, 13-0) cruised from there.

Here is what we learned:

Isaac Jones is special

If there were any positives to be taken away, it's the fact that Idaho junior forward Isaac Jones continues to prove he is the real deal. Against the Eagles, he raised his stock up another notch thanks to his toughness

Early in the first half, Jones and Eastern Washington's Ethan Page got tangled up battling for a rebound. Page poked Jones in the eye, sending the Vandals' leading scorer to the floor.

Jones got some butterfly stitches and when he returned, he scored two straight baskets to put Idaho in front 20-13 with 9:09 remaining in the first half.

As if that wasn't enough, Jones twisted his left ankle driving to the basket to start the second half. After more bench time, he returned a few minutes later and hit a layup to put the Vandals back in front 44-42 with 13:27 to go.

On the next Idaho possession, he threw down a dunk that brought the 3,310 fans to their feet for a four-point Vandal lead.

"He's such an offensive force," Claus said. "He was very productive for us when we needed it most."

Silly mistakes

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Moffitt scored on two straight possessions to put Idaho in front by four with 4:15 to go before halftime.

But Eastern Washington responded by going on a 7-2 run to end the half. With the Eagles down by one, Trey Smith fouled Dane Erikstrup as he attempted a last-second shot. Erikstrup converted both free throws to put the Eagles up 31-30 as they headed into the locker room.

"They want the scoreboard to look the right way," Claus said. "We know we're right on the cusp, and this game shows it."

Vandals got help but couldn't finish the job

The Vandals opened as 7-point underdogs against the Eagles, according to CBS Sports. At tipoff, Eastern Washington was 5 1/2 -point favorites.

Coming in, it seemed Idaho's only chance of covering was if the Eagles played their worst game of the season. They did, but it still didn't matter.

Eastern Washington's field-goal (39%) and free-throw percentages (61%) were well below its season averages of 48% and 75%, respectively. Despite that, the Vandals still couldn't close the deal.

EASTERN WASHINGTON (19-7, 13-0)

Price 5-7 3-6 16, Venters 5-12 1-2 13, Davis 3-8 4-5 12, Jones 2-8 4-7 9, Allegri 3-13 2-4 8, Coward 4-6 0-0 8, Erikstrup 1-3 4-5 6, MAgnuson 0-1 1-2 1, Stroud 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 23-59 19-31 73.

IDAHO (9-17, 3-10)

Jones 7-14 4-4 18, Moffitt 4-12 6-7 14, Salih 2-6 3-3 8, Ford 1-5 5-6 8, Burris 2-3 0-0 5, T. Smith 3-8 0-0 7, Harge 1-1 2-2 4, R. Smith 1-6 0-0 2. Hanshaw 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 21-56 20-22 66.

Halftime — Eastern Washington, 31-30. 3-point goals — Eastern Washington 8-27 (Price 3-4, Davis 2-4, Venters 2-7, Jones 1-5, Coward 0-1, Magnuson 0-1, Allegri 0-5), Idaho 4-25 (Burris 1-2, Ford 1-3, Salih 1-4, T. Smith 1-6, R. Smith 0-4, Moffitt 0-6). Fouled out — Jones. Rebounds — Eastern Washington 41 (Davis 10), Idaho 38 (Jones 9). Assists — Eastern Washington 11 (Davis 4), Idaho 10 (Moffitt 6). Total fouls — Eastern Washingto 18, Idaho 23. Technical — Idaho bench. A — 3,310.

Pixley may be contacted at (208) 848-2290, tpixley@lmtribune.com or on Twitter @TreebTalks.