Northwest Notes Aug. 9, 2023
Annual Vandal Boosters fundraiser event in Cd’A set for Aug. 17
COEUR d’ALENE — The annual Inland Empire Vandal Celebration, a fundraiser put on by the Kootenai and Spokane County Vandal Boosters and Alumni Chapters, is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 17 at the Hagadone Event Center at The Coeur d’Alene Resort Golf Course.
Special guests include University of Idaho president Scott Green, Coeur d’Alene CEO Andrew Fields, UI athletic director Terry Gawlik, head football coach Jason Eck, head men’s basketball coach Alex Pribble and head women’s basketball coach Carrie Eighmey.
The event begins with a no-host cocktail reception and silent auction at 5 p.m., followed by dinner at 7 and the program at 8.
Attire is “summertime dressy.”
Proceeds from the event benefit the Vandal Scholarship Fund and Alumni Scholarships.
RSVP by Sunday online at vandalcelebration.afrogs.org or call Shelly Robson at 208-651-7992.
Vandal football team ranked eighth in STATS Perform preseason poll
The University of Idaho was picked eighth in the STATS Perform preseason top 25 poll.
The Vandals were picked second among Big Sky Conference schools behind Montana State (third). Sacramento State (10th), Weber State (13th), Montana (14th) and UC Davis (16th) were also in the poll. The Vandals play every Big Sky team in the poll with the exception of UC Davis this season, with three of them (Sac St., Montana and Montana State) at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow.
The Vandals open the season Aug. 31 at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas.
The home opener is scheduled against Sacramento State on Sept. 23.
Wynott commits to Utah State, Campbell to USC
Kase Wynott, a 6-6 forward and rising senior at Lapwai High, has verbally committed to play basketball at Utah State in 2024, he announced on his X/Twitter page.
Wynott, one of the highest scoring players in Idaho high school history, scored 40 points against Lakeside in an overtime loss in the 1A Division I state championship game in March in Nampa.
Wynott had offers from nine schools, including Idaho, Eastern Washington, Idaho State, Montana and Montana State.
On Saturday, rising 6-4 senior guard Liam Campbell from Owyhee of Meridian announced on X/Twitter he has verbally committed to USC.
As a sophomore, Campbell helped Owyhee win the state title in its first season as a school.
Last December, he scored 29 points in a 20-point loss to Lake City in a game at North Idaho College.
Idaho, WSU men to meet in basketball season opener
The Washington State men’s basketball team has released its 2023-24 nonconference schedule. The Cougars will play seven home games at Beasley Coliseum in this year’s nonconference, as well as four neutral site games as part of multi-team events (MTEs).
Washington State begins its 2023-24 campaign, Monday, Nov. 6, welcoming longtime opponent Idaho to Beasley Coliseum. The Battle of the Palouse was the longest-running college basketball series in the country prior to the teams not playing last season. This November’s matchup will mark the 278th all-time meeting between the schools.
“We look forward to welcoming Idaho to Pullman again this year,” WSU coach Kyle Smith said. “As our closest regional opponent, we are happy to continue this historic series with the Vandals.”
The Cougars host Prairie View A&M, Nov. 10, in Pullman, a rematch of last year’s Pac-12 HBCU Legacy Series in Texas. Wazzu will look for redemption over the Panthers after dropping a 59-70 defeat in Prairie View last fall.
The Cougs travel to Uncasville, Conn., for the 2023 Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off Event at Mohegan Sun. The four-team MTE will pit WSU against Mississippi State on Saturday, Nov. 18 in the opening round, followed by a matchup with Northwestern or Rhode Island on Sunday.
WSU welcomes Utah Tech in a Black Friday tipoff Nov. 24 at Beasley Coliseum. The Cougars and Trailblazers have never met.
Wazzu will conclude the November calendar against Eastern Washington, hosting the Eagles, Nov. 27. WSU and EWU met twice last season; the Cougars won a regular season matchup at Spokane Arena, before Eastern returned the favor with an NIT opening-round win in Pullman last March.
The Cougars finish their home nonconference slate with three straight games at Beasley Coliseum. WSU will face Portland State on Saturday, Dec. 2, looking to build on a perfect 9-0 record all-time against the Vikings. Wednesday, Dec. 6, the UC Riverside Highlanders visit Pullman. The Cougs welcome Riverside to Beasley for the second time, after handing the Highlanders a 70-56 defeat in 2019.
The nonconference home schedule concludes Sunday, Dec. 10 against Grambling State. The Cougars have not faced the Tigers since 2011 and hold a 3-0 all-time record against Grambling.
The remaining two games of WSU’s nonconference schedule will be neutral-site matchups, beginning Saturday, Dec. 16 in Phoenix against Santa Clara in the Jerry Colangelo Classic at Footprint Center.
Washington State’s final nonconference game will be against the Boise State Broncos on Thursday, Dec. 21 at Spokane Arena.
The 2023-24 Pac-12 Conference schedule begins shortly after the winter holiday, with the full slate of games scheduled for release in the coming weeks. Tipoff times and TV selections for all games will be announced at a later date.