The University of Idaho Argonaut

Tensions were high in the Cowan Spectrum as the University of Idaho men’s basketball team dropped a close game to the University of Nevada’s Wolf Pack 85-72.
The game was played within a four point margin until the last eight minutes of the game.

A two-point jumper by Darin Nagle ended the first half at 35-33 Nevada. Both teams struggled to find an edge, but came up empty handed with neither gaining a significant lead at any point.
Both teams somersaulted through the second half with nine consecutive lead changes in the minutes between 15:06 and 11:54, with Nevada pulling out ahead 54-52 — a lead they never relinquished.
Nevada’s scoring was handled by just four starters who sank an outstanding 33 of 35 free-throws. According to Idaho coach George Pfeifer, it was the free-throw shooting that finally gave Nevada its edge.

“We did enough things to win this game. We just could not overcome 35 free throws to 16,” Pfeifer said.
Of Idaho’s 16 attempted free throws, only eight found the basket.
Even while fighting through a shoulder injury, Jordan Brooks led the team in scoring for a second consecutive game with 14 points. Pfeifer said Brooks could not raise his arm above his head during the shoot around before Saturday’s game.

“There were some things we couldn’t do that we would like to have done with him tonight, but I thought he was a gladiator,” Pfeifer said. “Jordan will be fine next weekend — I’m positive. We’ll give him some days of rest.”
Though it was a tough loss for Idaho, the team’s spirit did not seem to be broken. Pfeifer expressed that even though the Vandals hadn’t pulled out ahead in the end, he was proud of their performance.

“We have to let it go; we can’t dwell on it anymore. The game is over. We have to get moving and get on to the next game,” Idaho senior Clyde Johnson said.
Idaho’s record drops to 6-18, 3-4 with only four games left in the season before tournament time in March.
On the lowest tier of Nevada’s scoring players was true freshman Armon Johnson with 12 points. Johnson, who averaged 37 points a game as a high school senior, was in the game longer than any other player for the Wolf Pack.

The “Think Pink” night went well with many of the 1,817 fans attending dressed in official Idaho “Think Pink” T-shirts. The games were organized by members of Relay for Life to increase cancer education at UI and to make money for the upcoming Relay for Life event. The crowd was also Idaho’s largest home crowd this season.

Idaho will have a week of rest until Saturday, when the Vandals travel to the University of California Irvine for a non-conference game at 7:05 p.m. Idaho will return to the Cowan Spectrum only once more this season on March 8.