by Zachary Knecht
Featured Image: Photo by Weber State Athletics
Weber State Idaho Recap
The Weber State Wildcats dominate in Idaho, taking a win from the Vandals 73-65. The ‘Cats marched into the ICCU Arena and continued their excellence in conference play with another impressive victory.
Weber State is above .500 for the first time this season at 11-10, and it is well deserved! After a rocky start in non-conference play, the ‘Cats have turned it all around, winning six of their eight games against Big Sky opponents and keeping them in contention for the title. The Vandals, on the other hand, drop to an 8-14 overall record, finding themselves in ninth in the conference with a 2-7 record.
Game Odds
Weber State covered the spread Thursday in their big win, coming in as 2.5-point favorites but pulling away by eight points. The total of 138 points barely hit the over of 137.
Team Leaders
It was Dillon Jones again to supply the life of this Weber State offense. He led the game with 21 points and 14 rebounds en route to another double-double this season. He practically lived at the free-throw line, hitting 12 of his 15 attempts. The star forward continues to step his game up for this roster when it matters and is a massive reason for their success this year.
Idaho’s team leader in points came off the bench. Trey Smith took control of the Vandals’ offense and dominated from deep. He hit five of his nine shots from beyond the arch on his way to being the team’s most productive scorer. Divante Moffitt also had himself a night with 13 points, dishing out seven assists.
Three-Point Excellence
While the ‘Cats didn’t take an abundant amount of shots from range, they made every shot count, going seven of 13 from three. On any given day, Weber State can get the hot hand as they have for much of this season, and it helped them pull away in this one.
Half the team got in on the action, contributing to the impressive shooting totals. Depth has always been a strength of Weber State’s team, and they showed that in Thursday’s game.
Rebounding Dominance
So often, winning the rebounding game helps propel that team to victory. The Wildcats didn’t just win it, they dominated it. Thanks to the help of Dillon Jones, they won the rebounding battle 33-20 in a commanding fashion. Their aggressiveness helped propel them to another conference win and was a vital part of their effort.
What’s to Come
The ‘Cats never looked back after their one-sided first half, but they must prepare for their greatest test against the Eastern Washington Eagles, who are undefeated in the Big Sky.
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| Weber State Starters | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | MIN |
| Dillon Jones, F | 21 | 14 | 4 | 4-6 | 1-2 | 38 |
| Steven Verplancken Jr., G | 17 | 3 | 0 | 7-12 | 2-4 | 38 |
| KJ Cunningham, G | 12 | 2 | 1 | 5-5 | 2-2 | 32 |
| Alex Tew, C | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2-7 | 0-0 | 19 |
| Dyson Koehler, F | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 20 |
| Bench | ||||||
| Junior Ballard, G | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2-7 | 1-4 | 25 |
| Daniel Rouzan, F | 4 | 2 | 1 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 11 |
| Zahir Porter, G | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1-1 | 1-1 | 8 |
| Handje Tamba, C | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 8 |
| Louie Jordan, F | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 |
| Team Total | 73 | 33 | 10 | 26-46 | 7-13 |
| Idaho Starters | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | MIN |
| Divante Moffitt, G | 13 | 3 | 7 | 5-13 | 0-3 | 34 |
| Isaac Jones, F | 12 | 4 | 1 | 5-9 | 0-0 | 35 |
| Dominique Ford, G | 10 | 2 | 1 | 3-7 | 3-5 | 21 |
| Yusef Salih, G | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1-5 | 1-4 | 29 |
| Nigel Burris, F | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 15 |
| Bench | ||||||
| Trey Smith, G | 17 | 1 | 1 | 5-10 | 5-9 | 30 |
| Rashad Smith, G | 4 | 5 | 0 | 1-3 | 0-2 | 26 |
| Michael Hanshaw, F | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 5 |
| RJ Walker, G | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 5 |
| Team Total | 65 | 20 | 12 | 21-49 | 9-24 |