The Idaho Central Arena grew quiet as junior guard Hope Hassmann stepped to the free throw line for a chance to seal the Idaho Vandals’ (28-5, 17-1) 59-51 semifinal victory over Sacramento State (15-18, 8-10). Hassmann took some deep breaths, dribbled the ball twice and swished both free throws, capping the Vandals’ victory over the Hornets. Hassmann led the Vandals with 15 points, three rebounds and three assists.
The Vandals’ women’s basketball team will now advance to its first championship game since 2016, hosting the no. 2-seeded (25-6, 16-2) Montana State Bobcats, tomorrow at Idaho Central Arena at 2 p.m., as they look to punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
The fourth quarter, better known as “winning time” according to head coach Arthur Moreira, was what decided the contest. Rebounding, defense and the free throw line made the difference. With the Hornets successfully slowing down the Vandals’ offense for most of the game, Idaho began to drive the ball inside and draw fouls. The Vandals went to the line 12 times during the quarter and drilled 10, outscoring the Hornets 15-8.
The Vandals’ defensive ability has been on display heavily in the tournament, even when the shooting hasn’t been there. Today, Idaho went 19-58 from the field, 4-17 from three and 17-19 from the free throw line. For an offense that has averaged nearly 80 points per game, the offense has not been clicking in the tournament.
However, that has never deterred this team and belief remained that shots would fall when they needed to. Their unique and aggressive style of defense paid off in the clutch as they held the Hornets scoreless for nearly five minutes and began to pull away.
“We emphasize defense quite a bit,” Moreira said. “We have a lot of very unique concepts and a lot of things that takes a while to get it, but once they’ve got it, they’re doing a great job. That’s what it takes to win the postseason.”
Idaho also outrebounded the Hornets 14-5 in the final frame and 41-34 in the game, a lot of those falling to redshirt senior Debora dos Santos, who finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds, her seventh double-double of the season.
The Vandals, coming off a day of rest, faced the fifth-seeded Hornets who came fresh off a victory over third-seeded Idaho State. Both teams entered with just one game separating them from a championship.
The Hornets grabbed an early lead before Hassmann and sophomore guard Ella Uriarte knocked down back-to-back three pointers to give the Vandals their first lead of the game. Both teams went back and forth until senior Kyra Gardner hit a jumper from the right corner to give Idaho a 17-12 first quarter lead.
The dynamic guard duo of Hassmann and Gardner got the Vandals going in the second with back-to-back jumpers. Idaho continued to create offense and redshirt senior dos Santos extended the lead as Hassmann surveyed the floor, threaded the needle and hit dos Santos in the hands. She caught the ball, laid it in and made the ensuing free throw, pushing the Vandals’ lead to 12.
Sacramento State countered with a 13-0 run of their own, capped by a three pointer from senior forward Fatoumata Jaiteh, giving the Hornets a 25-24 lead.
Idaho closed the half on a 6-0 run and dos Santos’ layup at the horn sent the Vandals into the locker room with a 30-25 lead.
Both offenses struggled to score and the defenses shined on both ends, especially the Vandals. Their sticky man-to-man defense and team intensity made it difficult for the Hornets to get anything going. The Hornets shot 9-30 from the field and 4-11 from beyond the arc. The Vandals weren’t much better at 12-35 and 3-10 from three.
The Hornets got nine combined points from sophomore guard Natalie Pitcoin and senior Benthe Versteeg as the lead kept changing. The Vandals’ suffocating defense took another turn, forcing the Hornets’ fifth shot-clock violation of the game. Hassmann made a contested layup and Idaho took a 44-43 lead into the fourth quarter.
Idaho used their experience, willpower and elite defensive ability to get the hard-fought victory and advance to the Big Sky championship.
“Just staying the course and just letting the game come to me, and overall, it’s just a team game,” Hassmann said. “At the end of the day, I’m just giving it to my teammates. If I’m not doing the greatest, I want to do the best for my team. So getting stops on defense and then just ultimately leaning on my team.”
The Vandals now face the lone team to beat them this season. The Bobcats handed Idaho a 99-66 loss in Bozeman back in January, but Moreira believes this is a different team now.
“That first game was the reality check for these girls,” Moreira said. “We’re way better prepared now. They’re really good. I mean, Trish does a fantastic job. She built a powerhouse there.”
The Vandals have come through every time they were called upon and with their goal of March Madness one game away, they need to pass one final test to win the Big Sky championship.
“I feel like our team is so special in finishing games,” Hassmann said. “When we got up late in the fourth, I just knew we had it sealed, just because I know our girls and we’re not going to give up, and we finish games really strong.”