Another late-game comeback propelled the Idaho women’s basketball team to victory Saturday night when the Vandals defeated San Jose State 67-63 in Idaho’s second straight conference win.
The Vandals (7-16, 2-5, WAC) came into the game fresh off a win at Hawaii that broke an eight-game losing streak and followed it up with another hard-fought victory to complete the road trip. Freshman Krissy Carr led the way for Idaho with 13 points and a career high 10 assists. The Vandals will try to keep the wins coming when they play New Mexico State Thursday and La. Tech Saturday in Moscow.
Idaho coach Jon Newlee said he liked the way his team came together this week.
“This whole trip was a total team effort,” Newlee said. “They really came together as a group on this trip and the results speak for themselves.”
The two road wins pull the Vandals out of last place and up to No. 6 in the conference. They’re just one game out of fourth place. Newlee said his team is back in it and looking to make an impact.
“It was an opportunity to get back in the race if we could pull off something special and get a road sweep and we did,” Newlee said.
The Vandals entered the second half down by four to San Jose State and were down late in the game, but once again the Vandals made a comeback. With 54 seconds left in the game and Idaho down by 2, freshman Tayler Weiks hit a 3-pointer, giving the Vandals a one-point lead.
“Right there I was going to call a timeout,” Newlee said. “I thought I might set something up, but she (Weiks) was there and I thought we’d just let it roll and I was just hoping she would take it. She stepped up with confidence. She shot the ball with confidence, and make or miss, I just want them to shoot with confidence.”
The Vandals took the momentum of that shot and finished the game with a 7-0 run to take the win. Late in the game, Newlee made sure to get the ball in his best free throw shooter’s hands — senior Keri Arendse. She made both free-throw attempts down the stretch to give the Vandals a two-possession lead.
“I saved that last timeout and drew that up for Keri to get the ball,” Newlee said. “I have total confidence in Keri at the line with the game on the line. She is one tough kid, she is not afraid of anything.”
The Vandals had four players in double figures. Karr and Arendse both finished with 13 points while sophomore Alyssa Charlston buried 14 points. Freshman Stacey Barr rounded things out for Idaho with 11 points.
It was a quick turnaround for Idaho, going from an eight-game skid to a two-game winning streak. The young team will try to keep improving as the second half of the conference season begins Thursday at home against New Mexico State and again at home Saturday against La. Tech. Both games tip at 5:30 p.m.