Idaho did not put up much fight in Saturday’s game as Montana defeated the Vandals 80-57 in dominating fashion.
The Griz jumped out early behind back-to-back transition three-pointers by graduate student guard Aanen Moody and dominant play in the paint. Montana took a 21-8 lead with just under 13 minutes to play in the first half.
With the Vandals needing a response, EJ Neal gave them five straight points, cutting the Griz lead to 21-13.
Just before the final media timeout of the half, redshirt freshman forward Tyler Lindhart checked in for the Vandals for the first time since Jan. 27 and immediately scored. Despite Linhardt’s inspiring return, Idaho couldn’t get anything else going in the final three minutes as Montana took a 41-29 lead into the locker room.
Montana shot well in the first half, finishing 14-for-24 from the field, 7-for-10 from beyond the arc and a perfect 6-for-6 from the free-throw line.
On the other hand, the Vandals were less than efficient on the offensive end. They finished 11-for-28 from the field, 3-for-8 from the three-point line and 4-for-6 from the free-throw line.
The Griz went on to outscore the Vandals 39-28 in the second half and cruised to their 20th win of the season. Moody led all scorers with 22 points, burning the Vandals for four three-pointers.
Freshman forward Dischon Thomas added 20 points of his own to help the Griz to victory. Neal led the Vandals with 15 points and was a huge spark off the bench on both sides of the ball.
Denker added 13 points of his own to help the Vandals. The Grizzlies improved to 20-10 (11-6) with one game left in the regular season against Idaho State.
Despite the loss, the Vandals are looking forward and trying to finish the season strong.
“Of course, we wanted to win, but the whole year we’ve been trying to build toward Boise. So, this is just another step along the process,” Minnis said.
With the Vandals losing their second consecutive game by 15 points or more, Head Coach Alex Pribble spoke on the recent struggles.
“I think it’s a little bit we’re playing with expectations. Our guys are starting to worry more about the scoreboard and feel more pressure to perform,” he said.
The Vandals fell to 11-19 (5-12). They are now locked into the first game of the Big Sky tournament, as they will finish with the ninth seed and face Sacramento State. While there is a possibility of Sacramento State and Idaho finishing with the same conference record, the Vandals swept the season series and will finish with the better overall record.
Before the Vandals travel to Boise, they will take on Portland State 16-14 (7-10) on Monday, March 4 at 7 p.m.
Jayden Barfuss can be reached at [email protected] or on X @JaydenBarfuss10