Weber State Tops Idaho Vandals With Second Half Surge
Feb 25, 2023, 9:30 PM
Weber State's Dillon Jones drives against the Idaho Vandals on Saturday, February 25. (Robert Casey)
(Robert Casey)
OGDEN, Utah – Dillon Jones’ 21 points helped Weber State turn a tight first half into a blowout in the second half with a 67-53 win over Idaho.
Weber State (16-14, 11-6) hosted the Idaho Vandals (10-20, 4-13) at the Dee Events Center on Saturday, February 25.
Closing out the home schedule with a 💪 win! #WeAreWeber pic.twitter.com/BDovId6yEP
— Weber State MBB 🏀 (@WeberStateMBB) February 26, 2023
The Wildcats entered the weekend in third place in the Big Sky, trailing Montana State by three games. Earlier this week, Weber State came up short against the Eastern Washington Eagles, falling 89-82.
Idaho came in losers of two straight. The Vandals lost 65-55 against Idaho State on February 23.
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Jones’ 21 points led all scorers. He also contributed 14 rebounds and four assists.
Isaac Jones scored a team high 17 points for Idaho in the loss.
First Half
Weber State used threes from Steven Verplancken and Dyson Koehler to build an early 10-6 advantage over the Vandals.
Stevie V for 3️⃣!#WeAreWeber pic.twitter.com/RpWUNiyh2N
— Weber State MBB 🏀 (@WeberStateMBB) February 26, 2023
Idaho used a pair of threes to fight back, taking a 13-12 lead. The Vandals briefly held the advantage until Handje Tamba made a driving layup to give the Wildcats a one-point lead with 10:20 left in the half.
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A minute later, Koehler followed an Alex Tew dunk with his second three to give Weber State a 19-16 lead.
💪 Alex Tew! #WeAreWeber pic.twitter.com/1j9gctYP8o
— Weber State MBB 🏀 (@WeberStateMBB) February 26, 2023
The Wildcats would end up taking a 28-24 lead into the halftime break. Both teams shot below 35 percent for the half with Idaho finishing 8-of-25 from the field and Weber State hitting just 10-of-29 shots.
'Cats on top at the break! #WeAreWeber pic.twitter.com/js4gvzn1rS
— Weber State MBB 🏀 (@WeberStateMBB) February 26, 2023
Second Half
Weber State exploded out of halftime, outscoring Idaho 13-2 to open up a 41-26 lead.
DJ AND ONE! #WeAreWeber pic.twitter.com/M0jzgKQK54
— Weber State MBB 🏀 (@WeberStateMBB) February 26, 2023
The Wildcats never looked back, leading by double-figures for the rest of the game.
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After shooting under-35 percent in the opening 20 minutes, Weber State found their stroke. The Wildcats made 15-of-29 shots in the second half, including 6-of-12 from deep.
Weber State finished with a 67-53 win.
Up Next
Weber State concludes their regular season schedule with a road tilt against Northern Arizona on Monday, February 27. Tip-off for this game is scheduled for 6 p.m. (MT).
