The University of Idaho Argonaut

Vandal guard Mac Hopson attempts a layup past Washington State guard Marcus Capers Wednesday evening in Pullman at Beasley Coliseum. The Vandals could not overcome a large 11-0 WSU run in the first two minutes of the second half. The Vandals lost the contest, 76-68, dropping to 5-3 on the season. Nick Groff/Argonaut

Lack of energy among starters, bench leaves Don Verlin embarrassed over loss

What seemed to be a quicker, more talented Idaho (5-3) men’s basketball team Wednesday night against the Washington State Cougars (7-2) only turned into disappointment for Idaho coach Don Verlin.

“I think they really manhandled us in every phase of the game,” Verlin said. “I thought they were coached better, I thought they played harder, I thought they were much more prepared than our basketball team tonight (Wednesday).”

“I don’t think we expended any energy tonight (Wednesday) because I think we played horrible,” Verlin said. “I thought we didn’t compete from
the start.”

A key for Idaho was to shut down WSU’s Klay Thompson and if energy from the game against Portland was continued, Idaho could have been successful, but Verlin said the Vandals defended Thompson horribly.

“He got any shot he wanted, he went anywhere he wanted and we did a horrible job on him,” Verlin said. “It showed by his shooting stats and he only played half the game.”

Thompson finished with 25 points.

Going into the second half with Idaho trailing 36-28, Idaho couldn’t execute, throwing up shot after shot with nothing going in.  The Cougars would steal Idaho’s surge of energy again, going on a 21-2 run, hitting their first five shots.  Miscommunication from the offense between the Vandals caused several turnovers — mistakes the Cougars took advantage of.

Verlin tried to throw in bench players, expecting more energy out of them, but he saw the same results.

“There’s no excuse for it,” Verlin said.  “Vandal basketball, Vandal players need to expect more than what they got tonight and I’m embarrassed with how we played tonight (Wednesday).  You’re not allowed to play in this program if you don’t play hard.”

Even a late surge from Idaho’s Jeff Ledbetter, who hit three 3-pointers close to the end of the game, couldn’t carry the team and the game was over from there.

“You gotta give credit to Ken Bone and Washington State tonight because they whooped our tails,” Verlin said.

One of the Vandals main starters, Luiz Toledo, sat on the bench the whole night — a decision made by the training staff.  Verlin offered no further comment on the extent of his injuries.

Verlin had only one thing on his mind when returning to Memorial Gym for practice — working on the team’s toughness.

On Saturday, the Vandals will face Eastern Oregon in Memorial Gym.  Eastern Oregon is ranked at No. 25 in the NAIA Div. 2 polls for the second straight week, with an overall record of 7-4.  Eastern Oregon will have momentum over the Vandals, coming into Memorial Gym after back-to-back wins.