Idaho State falls to Sun Devils in defensive battle in Tempe
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The following is a news release from Idaho State University
TEMPE, Arizona – The Idaho State men’s basketball team took the court for the first time this season on Tuesday night, facing off against the Arizona State Sun Devils for the third time in program history.
The Bengals would strike first, thanks to three straight Jake O’Neil buckets, and an Isaiah Griffin floater, Idaho State would jump out to an early 8-0 advantage. Arizona State would respond, taking their first lead of the game, 14-13, with 11 minutes remaining in the first half. After the Bengals led 16-14, the Sun Devils would go on a 15-0 run over the next 10 minutes to take a 29-16 advantage. After a few last second baskets by both teams the Bengals head into the halftime break trailing, 20-31.
To begin the second half the Bengals and Sun Devils would play each other well, however, with just under 11 minutes remaining, the Bengals would make their move. After trailing 29-41, ISU would rattle off a 9-2 run to cut the ASU lead to just 5, 38-43. After a Connor Hollenbeck layup and two Dylan Darling free-throws, the Bengals would find themselves down 44-45 with only 5:07 to play. However, Arizona State would end the final five minutes of the game on a 9-4 run, and escape with a win by a final score of 55-48. Idaho State will drop to 0-1 following the loss and the Sun Devils move to 1-0.
Isaiah Griffin led the way for Idaho State in this one, finishing with a team-high 12 points on 4-of-12 shooting from the field and 2-of-6 from three-point range, and seven rebounds.
Newcomer and newly appointed team-captain would end his first career game with a double-double, 10 points on 5-of-13 shooting, a game-high 11 rebounds, two steals, one block, and one assist.
The final Bengal scoring in double-figures was Connor Hollenbeck, who would finish with 10 points on 4-of-9 shooting from the floor, and five rebounds.
Dylan Darling and Evan Otten were the final two starters for ISU, Darling ended his first-ever game with the Bengals with eight points, three rebounds, three assists, one steal, and one block, and Otten would finish his first-ever start with six rebounds, two blocks, and one steal.
Off the bench for the Bengals, Blake Daberkow would finish with three points on 1-of-4 shooting from three-point land, and one rebound, and team-captain, AJ Burgin, would end his night with two points, three rebounds, and one assist.
Head Coach, Ryan Looney, shared his thoughts on the team’s performance vs. ASU: ” I am proud or our effort tonight. Our players competed. We did a good job on the glass and taking care of the ball. Great days are ahead for this team.”
The Bengals finished the game shooting 25.4 percent from the field, and 14.3 percent from deep finishing 4-of-28 from three-point territory. The Bengals would end the game outrebounding ASU, finishing with 46 rebounds while also tallying 6 assist and 4 steals.
Arizona State finished the game shooting 36.4 percent from the field and 29.2 percent from beyond the arc. The Sun Devils would finish with 9 assists and 44 boards, and 6 steals.
The Idaho State men’s basketball team will be back in action on Thursday night in Los Angeles, California as they take on the USC Trojans for the second-ever time. The game will tip off at 8 p.m. MT and will be broadcast on BIG10+.