Sophomore guard Ana Pinheiro had the ball in her hands with the chance to put the Vandals back in the lead of their back-and-forth battle with the University of California Golden Bears. Pinheiro received the ball at the top of the lane and drove by her defenders, getting to the left side of the hoop.
She rose up over two defenders and kissed it off the backboard to give the Vandals the lead. That was the last lead the Vandals held in the game. The Bears outscored the Vandals down the stretch to get the 68-61 victory over Idaho, dropping them to 8-3.
Idaho and Cal went back and forth. However, toward the end of the third quarter, the Bears started to stretch their lead, and a wing three-pointer pushed it to double digits, the largest of the game.
Senior guard Mary McMorris patiently waited for a crease to open up, and she banked in jumper to give the Vandals some momentum as they trailed 53-45 heading into the fourth quarter.
Leading up to the game, head coach Arthur Moreira was excited for the challenge that the Bears brought to the table.
“That’s going be the best team we’ve played all season,” Moreira said. “They’re super athletic, one through five they guard really well, really strong, paint presence. Those are the type of teams that we have toplay. Our goal is to play in NCAA tournament and try to win a game in the tournament, because I think they’re very similar to what we would play in the first round.”
Idaho showed their versatility on offense, using their inside game to help their outside game. After three quarters, they had given Cal all they could handle. Now they had 10 minutes to finish the job.
After a layup by the Vandals to open the quarter, they had cut the lead to six. Then senior guard Kyra Gardner did what she does best: disrupt. With her length and nose for the ball, she jumped the passing lane, stole it and raced up the court.
Gardner spun and finished through contact to bring the Vandals within four. A few possessions later, junior guard Hope Hassmann drove downhill and finished over multiple defenders. The next possession, Pinheiro gave the Vandals the lead, forcing the Bears to call a timeout.
After the timeout, California came out and knocked down back-to-back three-pointers and sprung out to an 8-0 run. Outscoring the Vandals 13-5 over the final six minutes, California secured the win and improved to 8-3.
The Bears were extremely effective on the defensive end, forcing the Vandals into tough shots and slowing down their explosive offense, holding them to a season-low 61 points. Idaho was efficient from inside the arc, finishing 25-70 from the field. However, they struggled from beyond the arc, shooting just 4-23 from three-point range and 7-13 from the free throw line.
Pinheiro led the Vandals on both ends of the floor. She fueled the Vandals and helped keep them in the game for stretches, finishing with 14 points and seven rebounds.
Gardner and Hassmann each finished with 11 points. Hassmann also grabbed five rebounds and dished out two assists, while Gardner pulled down seven rebounds and, behind her excellent defense, finished with four steals.
The Vandals are going to have to win the ugly and close games that come with conference play. A test like California will make the team better in the long run and prepare them for a gauntlet of a Big Sky schedule on their quest to not only win the tournament in Boise but to bring a championship home.
Idaho will continue their road trip with a journey to the Wasatch Mountains and the Utah State Aggies. Idaho will look to get back in the win column when they tip off with the Aggies on Saturday, Dec. 13, at noon.