The Idaho Vandals women’s basketball team started off the season strong with a 3-1 record with a loss against University of California, Davis. They have collected impressive wins over Washington State and Southern Utah, cementing themselves as strong contenders and the top spot in the Big Sky standings. The team has two games this weekend to continue to show their dominance and boost their record before conference play.
UC Riverside
The first game the Vandals will play is against the University of California, Riverside, Highlanders on Friday, Nov. 21. The Highlanders are currently 0-3, but all their games have been close against good teams such as Arizona and Saint Mary’s. If the matchup between the Vandals and the Highlanders follows the trend of the Highlanders’ last three games, then it is sure to be a close game where Idaho will be tested and UC Riverside will have the chance to prove itself.
The Vandals have the upper hand, due to being on a winning streak and having a higher scoring offense. There are three players on the team who have an average-points-per-game above ten while UC Riverside only has one. This game could be a trap game for the Vandals which could lead to a falloff in performance during this weekend.
CSUN
With wins against Bethesda University of California and the University of San Diego, the California State University Northridge Matadors could be an easier game this weekend for the Vandals. The Matadors have not seen real challenge yet this season as Bethesda isn’t associated with the NCAA and San Diego’s only win is against Bethesda as well.
Sophomore guard Nazário Rita has been the Matadors’ leading scorer with 16.7 points per game. The Vandals, however, have a more consistent and spread-out offense as the drop off from the leader in points per game is a lot less drastic than the Matadors. This is a similar case to the UC Riverside game as both teams look to prove themselves against Idaho and Idaho looks to continue their winning streak.