The ICCU Arena fell silent with under a minute left in the regular season finale against powerhouse Montana State. Graduate guard Olivia Nelson picked up her fifth personal foul and left ICCU Arena in a Vandal uniform for her final time.
As she walked off, the crowd rose to its feet, offering a standing ovation for Nelson and graduate forward Jennifer Aadland, the last of the seniors still on the floor. The two shared a quiet embrace when they got to the bench, knowing their season wasn’t defined by the 67-54 loss to Montana State which dropped Idaho to an 18-11 (10-8) record.
“If you asked me four years ago if I would ever be in Moscow, Idaho, I would have said no,” Nelson said. “This year has been super special. I’m grateful the fans came out and that they supported us all season. Our team put together a great senior night. Our locker room was awesome. They decorated well, and it was an exciting night.”
Ten minutes before tip-off, the music stopped, the talking ceased in the crowd and the focus drifted to midcourt, where head coach Arthur Moreira was standing with flowers and his usual smile, but for a different reason.
Before the focus was on the Vandal seniors, Moreira wanted to pay tribute to the Bobcat seniors and gave every Bobcat senior an individual flower to recognize them on their last game of the regular season.
All eyes turned to the five Vandal seniors: Nelson, Aadland, graduate forward Rosie Schweizer, senior forward Vitória Carvalho and senior guard Ashlyn Wallace Moreira. Staff hugged them and celebrated all their hard work in turning the Vandal program around.
The game then started, and the Vandals got off to a quick start that had the Bobcats on their heels. The Vandals’ ball movement and control were top-notch and they took advantage of some Bobcat’s pressure. Nelson was huge for the Vandals with her poise and calm demeanor on the court, dealing with the Bobcats’ ferocious defense.
Nelson’s jumper with 56 seconds left in the quarter put the Vandals up 16-10 and seemingly in control of the game. The Bobcats got a late free throw by Taylee Chirrick to cut the Vandals’ lead to 16-11 at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Bobcats showed why they are the no. 1 team in the Big Sky with their excellent defense. The Bobcats have been the best defense in the Big Sky all season with their excellent team defense and intense full-court pressure.
The Vandals did a good job of handling that during the first quarter, but in the second quarter the Bobcats made the Vandals’ lives miserable.
They jumped out to an 8-0 run to take an 18-16 lead. From there, the Bobcats did not look back. After every basket made, the pressure built and the Vandals broke down, committing 11 turnovers. The six-point Vandal first-quarter lead turned into a 25-22 deficit at halftime.
The Bobcats imposed their will physically, especially in the second quarter, and the Vandals did not respond well, which Moreira was not pleased with.
“Our toughness got better in the second half, but early in the game they punked us a little bit,” Moreira said. “When we talked about how the games officiating postseason, that’s the best thing we can get from it, you’ve got to play through contact, you’ve got to be physical.”
The third quarter was the best quarter for both teams’ scoring. The Bobcats started it off with a 5-0 run to increase their lead to seven. Sophomore guard Hope Hassmann, who had a quiet game up until then, decided to show her grit and toughness and sparked some energy into the Vandals.
The Vandals were down 34-26. Hassmann got the ball off the inbounds and raced up the court, using her speed to blow by the defense. She turned the corner and headed to the basket.
Once she got toward the basket, she stopped, hesitated, went up through two defenders and made the basket plus the foul. Hassmann converted the freethrow and the Vandals trailed 34-29.
Idaho fought tooth and nail the rest of the game, but the Bobcats—behind a 25-point third quarter and 17-point fourth quarter—cruised to a 13-point victory. They are heading into Boise with a 27-3 (17-1) record and are regular-season champions.
Bobcat graduate guard Katelynn Martin led all scorers with 18 points and senior guard Esmeralda Morales finished with 15.
Idaho was led by Nelson who after just four points in the first half, showed her poise and stellar offensive prowess. She put up 10 in the second half and 14 for the game. Junior guard Anja Bukvic is the only other Vandal in double figures with 13.
The Vandals ended the regular season 18-11 (10-8) and can attribute their success to the seniors and leadership within the program.
“I’m just really thankful for these girls that came here,” Moreira said. “They decided to stay with us [despite the head coach change] and they laid the foundation for the program.”
The Vandals and Grizzlies will tip-off from Idaho Central Arena in Boise on March 10 at 1:30 p.m.
Jayden Barfuss can be reached at [email protected]