Vandals wear down in 2nd half
LAS CRUCES, N.M. - Idaho led by two points at halftime, but couldn't maintain its energy in the second half and fell at New Mexico State 80-68 in Western Athletic Conference play Saturday at the Pan American Center.
Idaho (9-9, 2-2 WAC) led by as many as nine points in the first half and took a 37-35 lead into the break, but fouls and road fatigue after its overtime win at Louisiana Tech on Thursday caught up with the Vandals as the second 20 minutes progressed.
"They just kind of wore us down there at the end," Idaho coach Don Verlin said. "They just move you down there, move you down there and get a lot of fouls called, and tonight they made their free throws at a really good clip. That was really the difference.
"I thought we did some really, really good things tonight, we've just got to be able to sustain it and do it for a longer period of time."
Freshman Connor Hill, the former Post Falls High standout, bounced back from an 0-for-5 shooting day at Louisiana Tech on Thursday to lead Idaho with 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting, including a 3-of-5 effort from 3-point range. Kyle Barone and Deremy Geiger each had 11 points, and Djim Bandoumel scored 10. Geiger also led Idaho with four rebounds, five assists and three steals.
Hernst Laroche scored 20 points to lead New Mexico State (13-5, 3-0), which attempted 21 free throws in the second half and 32 in the game, compared to just 12 for Idaho. The Vandals were whistled for a season-high 25 fouls, 15 of which came after the break. Perhaps another sign of tiring was long-range shooting. The Vandals made four of their first eight 3-point attempts in the first, then went just 3 of 16 over the remainder of the game.
Idaho allowed New Mexico State to shoot an opponent season-high 58.7 percent from the floor (27 of 46). The Aggies also out-rebounded the Vandals, 38-21, including 12 on the offensive glass. Idaho shot 44.1 percent (26 of 59) from the floor and 33.3 percent (7 of 21) from 3-point range.
"We were in serious foul trouble in the second half - just about every guy out there had four fouls - so we went to the zone and the zone was working to get them to miss shots, but we couldn't rebound out of it," Verlin said.
Idaho plays host to Utah State on Saturday.
IDAHO (9-9)
Bandoumel 4-6 2-2 10, Barone 4-7 3-5 11, Tatum 2-6 0-0 5, Madison 4-13 0-0 9, Geiger 3-11 3-4 11, Habeeb 2-3 0-0 4, Hill 4-8 1-1 12, McChristian 2-3 0-0 4, Kammerer 0-1 0-0 0, Faines 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 26-59 9-12 68.
NEW MEXICO ST. (13-5)
McKines 8-12 7-8 23, Watson 2-3 5-7 9, Rahman 5-7 2-2 12, Laroche 5-10 7-9 20, Mullings 3-5 0-0 6, Sy 0-4 0-2 0, Nephawe 4-5 2-4 10. Totals 27-46 23-32 80.
Halftime_Idaho 37-35. 3-Point Goals_Idaho 7-21 (Hill 3-5, Geiger 2-7, Tatum 1-1, Madison 1-8), New Mexico St. 3-10 (Laroche 3-5, Watson 0-1, McKines 0-1, Sy 0-3). Fouled Out_None. Rebounds_Idaho 21 (Geiger 4), New Mexico St. 38 (McKines 10). Assists_Idaho 14 (Geiger 5), New Mexico St. 11 (Watson 5). Total Fouls_Idaho 25, New Mexico St. 14. A_5,306.