When the shots refused to fall early Saturday night, the seventh-seeded Idaho Vandals (18-14, 9-9) leaned on their defense.
In a game that opened with one of the strangest scoring droughts of the season, Idaho gradually settled in and turned a defensive masterclass into a convincing 68-45 victory over eighth-seeded Sacramento State (10-21, 6-12) in the opening round of the Big Sky Conference tournament at Idaho Central Arena in Boise.
After sweeping the Hornets during the regular season, the Vandals delivered their most dominant defensive performance of the year to secure a second straight trip to the conference quarterfinals. Idaho held Sacramento State to just 13 first-half points, which was the Hornets’ lowest scoring half of the season. The Vandals also limited the Hornets to 45 total points, tied for the lowest total in a Big Sky tournament game in the last decade.
More than five minutes into the contest, neither team had scored. When the first media timeout arrived with 14:48 remaining in the opening half, the scoreboard still read 0-0. Between the two sides, the game began with 21 consecutive empty possessions before Sacramento State’s Arman Madi finally broke the drought with a free throw.
Idaho’s offense was equally out of rhythm early. The Vandals began the game shooting just 2-18 from the field and missed 13 of their first 14 attempts from three-point range. For a team that often relies on perimeter shooting to fuel its offense, the frigid start could have easily opened the door for an early tournament exit.
Instead, Idaho’s defense ensured the Hornets never capitalized. Sacramento State struggled to find any offensive flow, opening the game 1-14 from beyond the arc and managing just three made field goals in the entire first half, also a season low.
As the Hornets continued to stall offensively, freshman guard Jackson Rasmussen became Idaho’s lone consistent scoring option.
Recently named the Big Sky Freshman of the Year, Rasmussen took control in the opening period, scoring 10 of Idaho’s first 27 points while the rest of the roster worked through the early shooting slump. His aggressive drives and midrange finishes helped the Vandals finally build separation in a game that had been stuck in neutral for much of the first half.
By the time the halftime buzzer sounded, Idaho had turned the sluggish start into a 27-13 lead. The Vandals maintained control after the break, and a familiar face helped ensure the lead would only grow.
Starting point guard Kolton Mitchell returned to the lineup after missing time with a back injury and delivered a statement performance in his first game action since Feb. 21. Mitchell erupted for 14 second-half points, as Idaho steadily widened the gap.
The redshirt sophomore finished with 17 points, and a career-high eight rebounds, adding three assists and shooting 6-12 from the field. At one point in the second half, Idaho stretched its advantage to as many as 27 points as the Hornets continued to struggle offensively.
Rasmussen led all scorers with 19 points, adding another milestone to his standout debut season. With the performance, the freshman became the all-time leading freshman scorer in Idaho history, surpassing Cameron Tyson’s previous mark set during the 2018-19 season. Rasmussen now has 441 points this year, nine more than Tyson’s record total.
Biko Johnson, who delivered the late-game heroics in Idaho’s regular-season finale earlier in the week, endured a difficult shooting start but still found ways to impact the game. The guard finished with 10 points and eight rebounds while contributing to Idaho’s defensive dominance.
Forward Seth Joba also provided a key spark off the bench. Joba scored eight points, grabbed five rebounds and energized the Vandals’ interior defense with a pair of emphatic blocks.
On the glass, the Vandals once again held a decisive edge against the Hornets, winning the rebound battle 51-34.
Despite the comfortable victory, neither team shot particularly well from long range. The Vandals finished just 21% from beyond the arc while the Hornets shot 18%. Overall, Sacramento State managed only 25% shooting from the field.
Without star guard Mikey Williams available, the Hornets leaned heavily on breakout Prophet Johnson to generate offense. Idaho’s defense never allowed him to settle in. Johnson missed his first seven shots and went more than 28 minutes before recording his first made field goal. Though he finished with nine points, the slow start proved costly for a thin Sacramento State rotation.
Forward Mark Lavrenov, who had recorded double-doubles in both regular-season meetings with Idaho, also struggled to find his rhythm in the third matchup. The standout freshman shot just 1-9 from the field and finished with two points before fouling out with 10:54 remaining in the game. Jahni Summers led Sacramento State with 10 points on 4-7 shooting.
The win marked the first time since the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons that the Vandals have won a Big Sky tournament game in consecutive years.
Idaho will now face the second-seeded Montana State Bobcats (18-13, 12-6) in the quarterfinals Sunday night at Idaho Central Arena. The two teams split their regular-season meetings, including a dramatic 92-89 Idaho victory in Moscow in which the Vandals rallied from a 21-point deficit — the largest comeback by the program in the 21st century.
The game will tip-off at 7 p.m. as Idaho looks to advance to the semifinals for the second consecutive season.