BOISE, Idaho — Idaho State looked every bit like a team on championship mission in its first game of the Big Sky Conference women’s basketball tournament in Boise, Idaho on Tuesday.
The Big Sky regular-season champions executed at what head coach Seton Sobolewski graded as “an A+” level defensively in the first half to hold Portland State to just 15 points total in the first two quarters.
In the second half, Portland State tournament star Desirae Hansen, one of the best postseason players in the league over the last few years, caught fire scoring 7 points in two posessions to bring the Vikings to within five.
Then Idaho State put the hammer down again, using its beautifully efficient offense and crisp ball movement to slice and dice Portland State’s zone.
The Bengals shot 55 percent from the floor and looked totally at ease on the way to a 66-50 over No. 8 PSU in the first of four quarterfinal games here on Tuesday.
“We played well today,” said Sobolewski, the Big Sky Co-Coach of the Year, after his team’s 20th win this season. “We handled the ball well, we got good shots, we were able to get the ball inside and we played great defense, especially in that first half. We played exceptional defense and that really set the tone for the game.”
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Hansen, an All-Big Sky junior combo guard who hit the game-winning shot in the championship game of this tournament as a freshman two years ago, hit three 3-pointers in the span of less than two minutes in the third quarter helped ISU cut the lead to 34-29.
The Bengals answered, closing the third quarter with a 50-32 lead thanks to Dore Goles’ shot at the buzzer. Idaho State pushed the lead to as many as 24 points, 61-37, when Goles drilled a corner 3-pointer with 5:16 left before Sobolewski called off the Bengals.
“We’ve been in the situation before and we talked about it at halftime – we knew they had a run in them,” Sobolewski said. “We knew it was going to come and how we handled it was going to be important. Do we get stops and respond on the offensive end? We knew it was coming and I thought we handled it well.”
ISU senior Delaney Moore was able to seal in the post consistently and finish at the basket with ease. She led all scorers with 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting.
“I think it was just finding the right positions to be in, knowing what our goals were as a team and my teammates ultimately finding me the ball,” Moore said.
Montana Oltrogge hit all five of her shots, including two from beyond the arc, on the way to scoring 12 points off the bench. Goles chipped in 10 points as ISU finished with 20 assists on 28 made baskets.
“That’s how we are – we don’t have anybody that jumps out on you on paper,” Sobolewski said. “You don’t have any 16 to 20-point scorers. You don’t have any big-time rebounders. We just do it collectively. And we really shared the ball well today, especially against Portland State’s zone, which you have to share the ball and be patient against.”
Portland State posted a 7-11 mark in league play this season despite not getting to start practice until three weeks after the rest of college basketball. head coach Lynn Kennedy said the Vikings practiced just 25 times this entire season in preparation for 25 games, of which PSU won 12.
In her final game at Portland State, senior Tatiana Streum scored 19 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Fellow senior Kylie Jimenez was held to 1-of-9 shooting as ISU bulldog point guard Diaba Konate badgered her with intense pressure all game.
“I’m just really proud of our team even though we came out with a loss,” Kennedy said. “You look back to three months ago and we didn’t even know if we were going to play this season. We played in 25 games and competed at the highest level despite only having 25 practices. I’m just so proud of our athletes and everything they went through, how hard it was and still finishing.”
The Bengals advance to take on the winner of Tuesday’s second quarterfinal between No. 4 Northern Colorado and No. 5 Southern Utah.
“We just played how we always played all season,” Oltrogge said. “We are battle-tested and we are ready of these moments and whatever is next.”
No. 4 UNC 63, No. 5 Southern Utah 59
Alisha Davis has already established a reputation around the Big Sky as one of the most physically formidable players in the league as just a sophomore for the upstart Bears of Northern Colorado.
By the time the first quarter was over in the second quarterfinal of Tuesday’s Big Sky women’s basketball tournament, Davis’ dominance was on full display.
The recently named league MVP showed she’s not just one of the best scorers and rebounders in the league. She can also play the roll of enforcer, protecting the rim and the paint with her tremendous physical strength and athleticism.
Davis blocked four shots in the first quarter and eight by the end of the game. The 6-foot-2 post’s ability to anchor Northern Colorado’s defensive rotations proved to be a pivotal factor as fourth-seeded UNC moved into the semifinals with a hard-fought 63-59 victory over No. 5 Southern Utah.
“If we get beat off the drive, Alisha is always there,” UNC head coach Jenny Huth said. “We don’t want to rely on her too much (laughs). But her length, her timing, her desire back there, she’s just so clutch and she made huge plays for us.”
Davis finished with 15 points and nine rebounds despite facing constant double teams and traps whenever she caught the ball in the post. And her eight blocked shots are among the most in a single game in this tournament’s history.
It’s the latest accomplishment for one of the league’s brightest stars. The daughter of former NFL linebacker Andra Smith was the only player in the league to average a double-double (16.8 points, 10.2 rebounds) in the regular season. And now she has her team into the semifinals to take on the top-seeded Idaho State Bengals.
“It’s definitely a blessing to have that honor,” Davis said when asked about the pressures of being the MVP. “It’s an honor I’m really grateful for. I have a great support system from my teammates, coaches, family, friends. I’m blessed to have that but now we are here and it’s something I have to leave behind me. Each game, we have to show up.”
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Northern Colorado was able to dispatch of the Thunderbirds by putting forth strong defensive efforts in the second and fourth quarters. UNC held SUU to 33 percent shooting overall. In a physical contest that neither team led by more than eight points, the Bears emerged the victor.
“It wasn’t pretty but we stuck together,” Huth said. “Conference tournaments when you start can be a little ugly. But we just stayed the course, stayed with it and I’m just really proud of our team.”
Jasmine Gales led all scorers with 21 points for UNC. Liz Graves scored 19 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to help SUU stay in the fight.
SUU, a team that played just 11 conference games this season, finishes the campaign 11-10.
Northern Colorado started this season 1-7. Now the Bears have won 11 of their last 14 contests heading to Wednesday evening’s semifinal against No. 1 Idaho State.
“We are way more bought into this process,” Davis said. “We really struggled in the beginning. But we talked about it and we knew we had a chance to win this conference tournament. It’s the little things and we are just having fun.”
No. 2 Idaho 67, No. 7 Northern Arizona 53
When the Vandals get to the Big Sky Tournament, it always seems like Jon Newlee’s Idaho squad had a rookie or a few locked and loaded, ready to announce their presence to the rest of the league.
On Tuesday, with All-Big Sky point guard Gina Marxen still out because of Covid-19 protocols, Sydney Gandy joined the list of Idaho freshmen who have breakout postseason performances in pivotal moments for UI.
Gandy played almost the duration of Idaho’s quarterfinal game against seventh-seeded Northern Arizona. The precocious 5-foot-5 guard from Orangewood Academy in Long Beach, California hit three 3-pointers and poured in 23 points to help lift the second-seeded Vandals into the semifinals with a 67-50 win over NAU on Tuesday night.
“You look back and think of those players who had great games and now Sydney joins that list,” Newlee said, eluding to players like Mikayla Ferenz, Taylor Pierce and Beyonce Bea who have made resounding tournament debuts. “I just think as the year goes along, our team gets better and better and from a personal standpoint, I think our players do. They are always ready to step up and Sydney was ready for this game.”
Gandy showed the same confidence in the post-game press conference as she did in the game on Tuesday.
“Gina has helped me a lot throughout the year, practicing with her,” Gandy said. “You know to not be too hard on yourself and even if you are, Newlee is always there to tell you it’s OK, you’re fine.
“This feels great and this is what I came here to do. This is what our expectations are.”
Idaho first-team All-Big Sky forward Beyonce Bea also missed time down the stretch of the regular season but returned to the lineup on Tuesday. The talented sophomore had eight points and eight rebounds.
UI slasher Gabi Harrington continued to be the X-factor for the Vandals. The graduate transfer from Montana scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds in the first half alone as Idaho built a 34-17 lead at the break. Harrington finished with 22 points and a game-high 13 rebounds as the Vandals won the battle of the boards, 50-37.
“I grew up with two older brothers so I had to live day to day that way,” Harrington said. “Story of my life (laughs). That’s what I think about out there: I’m getting this ball. I’m going to be tougher than you, I need to get this ball. And I think when I rebound like that, it brings our team energy.
“To win a conference tournament game, that’s a huge reason I came here: to win a championship. This is nothing new. Newlee has been talking about this all year, trying to get these wins.”
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Newlee’s teams have established a reputation for their wide-open offensive attack and sweet shooting from the perimeter. Tuesday, UI shot just 22 percent from beyond the arc (6-of-27) and 40 percent overall. But the hustle plays helped the Vandals advance to the semifinals of this tournament time for the fifth since returning to the Big Sky in 2014.
NAU junior point guard Regan Schenck, an All-Big Sky selection who stuffed the stat sheet all season, led NAU with 12 points and seven rebounds. No other Lumberjack scored in double figures. NAU went 5-of-17 from beyond the arc, 2-of-9 from the free throw line and 36.5 percent from the floor overall.
“We didn’t come out strong,” Schenck said. “They were ready to go. They were beating us to every 50/50 ball. They were going harder than every single person on the floor. It is tournament time so you should come out ready to play, ready to go. And if you lose, you are out.”
NAU was one of only two teams in the conference to play all 20 league games this season. The Lumberjacks went 10-10 to earn the No. 7 seed before cruising past Weber State in the first round on Monday.
On Tuesday, the season came to an abrupt end. NAU finishes the season with a 13-13 overall record.
“This program is in a really important place right now,” NAU head coach Loree Payne said. “We finally got the players in that fit our system. We are really going to focus on developing the leadership in our program and continuing to make that press to get into that semifinals, that championship.
“We finally have a group of players that expect to win.”
The Vandals have been one of the most successful teams in the Big Sky since the league moved the tournament to a neutral site six years ago. Idaho is back in the final four and awaits the winner of Tuesday’s nightcap between No. 3 Montana State and No. 11 Sac State.
The Vandals were supposed to play Montana State in last season’s championship game before the entire tournament and NCAA Tournament got called off.
“Absolutely, this is the expectation,” Newlee said. “Every year, we want to get least get to the semifinals. The expectations are to win this thing every year. That’s what our players know.”
This story will be updated throughout the tournament.
