The Idaho Vandals men’s basketball team had the privilege of hosting their matchup at the ICCU Arena on Dec. 14 against Evergreen State. This heavily favored game for the Vandals ended up being a complete blowout. The Vandals took control of the entire game and even put up a Benjamin in the final minutes, ultimately taking care of the Geoducks 109-55, the biggest win in the Coach Pribble era.
Coming off a devastating 80-65 loss to Notre Dame in South Bend, the Idaho Vandals had an opportunity at a bounce-back game against the winless NAIA school at home. Evergreen State, which is currently 0-8, has played competition in Division 1 basketball this season as they faced off against Portland State at the Viking Pavilion on Nov. 19. This matchup was similar to their previous games this season as the Geoducks lost 90-61.
Going into the game, the Vandals’ starting lineup went off. Junior guard Jack Payne scored the first points of the game as he drained a deep three-pointer to take an early 3-0 lead. But the three-pointers didn’t stop there.
After a missed layup by Evergreen State’s highest scorer, senior wing Tony Frohlich-Fair, senior guard Biko Johnson gave the Vandals position, ultimately leading to another drained three-pointer, this time from sophomore guard Kolton Mitchell.
But the Vandals were still not satisfied and took possession again, leading to yet another three points, this time from freshman forward Jackson Rasmussen. It wasn’t until the Vandals were up 15-0 when the Geoducks entered the board.
The game didn’t get much prettier as the Vandals took a 30-7 lead halfway through the first half and at halftime led 56-17. Senior guard bench player Isiah Brickner, who had a phenomenal game against North Dakota, had another great game against Evergreen State.
Brickner recorded one three-pointer, five field goals and even a dunk late in the first half with the help of a beautiful assist from fellow benchman sophomore guard Miles Klapper, ultimately ending the night with a combined 11 points.
Coming out of the locker room for the second half, the Vandals padded their stats as Johnson and Mitchell both drained a three-pointer. After this, the Vandals’ bench truly began to shine and controlled the rest of the game, even putting up 100 points with just over five minutes left.
In total, the Vandal bench combined for 61 points and helped Idaho cruise to a dominating 109-55 win. Senior guard Aiden Sevilla led the bench with 14 points. Sevilla, a transfer from University of California, Merced, was perfect on the free-throw line, draining two three-pointers and recording four field goals. Sevilla also recorded a season high with 21 minutes played in the Idaho uniform.
“Everyone knows in our locker room, the minute Aiden steps onto the court, we are going to get better,” Coach Pribble said in a post-game interview. “You should read this guy’s resume. He is an extremely experienced, tough basketball player.”
Sevilla has been waiting for an opportunity to show what he can do, and he excelled from the first time he checked into the game.
“Obviously it feels good to get a win, it always feels good to see the ball go through the hoop a couple of times. I think, really, I just knew I needed to be prepared whenever my name was called,” Sevilla said.
Sevilla’s performance showcased the talented depth of this Vandal squad, giving Idaho a strong option when it comes to its bench for consistent scoring and energy. With stars across the lineup, the Vandals look to have a lethal team capable of taking on bigger opponents from any spot on the court.
Idaho will have their work cut out for them as they travel down to California to take on the 5-6 Cal Poly Mustangs on Sunday, Dec. 21, at 4 p.m.