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POCATELLO, Idaho- The Idaho State men's basketball team won its eighth straight home opener by beating Colorado Christian 93-66 on Friday night at Reed Gym. The Bengals improved their record to 1-2 with the victory.
Idaho State saw great balance in the scoring column as it had six players in double figures, led by Andre' Hatchett's career-high 16 points on 5-for-7 from the field. He also had five rebounds and three assists in 27 minutes of play.
Brandon Glanz came off the bench to score 12 points in 11 minutes off the bench while
Abner Moreira,
Chase Grabau,
Kenny McGowen and
Sherrod Baldwin had 10 points. The 10 points for Baldwin was also career-high.
Moreira led ISU in rebounding with nine while Grabau and Baldwin each had six.
As a team, ISU shot 57.6 percent from the field and Colorado Christian shot 43.6 percent. Idaho State out rebounded the Cougars 39-28 and the team had 20 assists to only 11 turnovers.
“We are learning and improved in several areas tonight,” O'Brien said. “Six in double figures makes me smile and 20 assists to 11 turnovers is really something that we have been trying to get too.”
Idaho State led the entire game and built a 24-11 lead with 12:51 to play following a dunk by Moreira. Colorado Christian got within three at 36-33 with 2:31 to play but ISU extended the lead just before halftime to take a 44-35 lead at the break.
“The first six minutes we played like we had been practicing and played with a lot of intensity on the defensive end of the floor,” O'Brien said. “That resulted in some running and easy shot opportunities. They were really frustrated with what they were going to do offensively. They were having a hard time handling Chase, Kenny and Andre's pressure. The last 12 minutes of the half we backed off defensively and started lining up between the ball and the rim. All we did was give up lay ups and commit fouls.”
Idaho State led by as many as 30 points at 89-59 with 2:35 to play in the second half.
“I thought the second 20 minutes was much more consistent,” O'Brien said. “That is the word I use every day, preaching consistency. The type of rhythm we have, the type of shots we take, the balance in the scoring column and the intensity we play with needs to be consistent. In the second half we were much closer to what I expect out of these kids at this stage.”
Idaho State returns to Reed Gym on Wednesday, Nov. 23 for a contest against West Coast Conference foe, Loyola Marymount. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. and the game can be heard live on 930 AM.
