In a back-and-forth battle with the Idaho Vandals women’s basketball team trailing by a point to the Utah State Aggies, junior guard Hope Hassmann changed that. As Hassmann found space beyond the three-point line, she let the shot go, and it swished into the net as the Vandals reclaimed their lead early in the fourth quarter.
The Aggies, however, outscored Idaho 23-17 in the final period and walked away with an 80-73 victory over the Vandals. Sophomore guard Ana Pinheiro’s career-high 18 points was not enough as the Vandals dropped their second consecutive game and fell to 8-4 on the season.
Coming into the game, Idaho was down two key players, with redshirt senior forward Debora Dos Santos and senior guard Mary McMorris out due to injury, and that depth was tested early in Logan, Utah.
After a sluggish shooting start, the Vandals trailed the Aggies 20-14 at the end of the first quarter and were looking for momentum.
Senior guard Kyra Gardner came out motivated to get the Vandals back in the game, knocking down her first shot of the second quarter. Gardner followed that by showing off her smooth stroke and draining a three-pointer to cut Idaho’s deficit to one.
Senior forward Sarah Brans got into the paint on the next possession and hit a tough jumper to give the Vandals the lead back, forcing Utah State to call a timeout.
The Aggies and Vandals traded baskets and the lead for the rest of the quarter until Pinheiro got a layup to drop with 38 seconds remaining, giving the Vandals a 40-38 halftime lead.
Pinheiro was the star of the show on offense, scoring at all three levels and finishing the half with 13 points. Gardner and Hassmann were also all over the floor for the Vandals. Gardner finished the half with seven points and was active defensively.
With the absence of McMorris, Hassmann had to take on more point guard responsibilities, and she was comfortable doing so. She finished the first half with three points, five rebounds (four offensive) and six assists.
Both teams came out in the third quarter, and the back-and-forth play continued as the Aggies took a slim 57-56 lead into the fourth quarter.
Idaho came out hot, making their first two shots of the quarter, but the Aggies made more plays down the stretch. Behind some potent and efficient offense and clutch free-throw shooting in the closing moments, the Aggies were too much for the Vandals and took the victory.
Junior guard Aaliyah Gayles led the Aggies with 18 points. The Aggies had four players finish in double figures and moved to 4-5 on the season.
Idaho struggled at times on offense and was sloppy with the ball, turning it over 15 times, which led to 22 Utah State points.
After a great first half, Pinheiro quieted down and had just five second-half points. Gardner was all over the floor, finishing with 14 points, 10 rebounds and three steals for her second double-double of the season.
Hassmann picked up more of a scoring role in the second half and finished with 14 points, six rebounds, and a season-high eight assists.
Idaho will have a week to recover as they close their three-game road trip and return to Idaho Central Credit Union Arena on Saturday, Dec. 20, at 2 p.m., to face Western Oregon and close non-conference play.