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POCATELLO, Idaho- The Idaho State men's basketball team returns to ICCU court in Holt Arena on Saturday, February 8 vs. North Dakota. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. and Idaho Central Credit Union will be giving away shirts to the first 1,500 fans that come to the game. The game will be broadcast live on 930 CBS Sports Radio and Rock 102.5 with live streaming, audio and stats at isubengals.com.
North Dakota leads the series 4-1. Idaho State's only win over ND was a 76-63 victory on December 3, 2011. This was a year before North Dakota joined the Big Sky Conference.
North Dakota is 9-12 and 6-5 in Big Sky Conference play. Troy Huff is scoring 19.1 points a game and grabbing 7.6 rebounds. ND is scoring 73.6 points and shooting .456 from the field. The team averages 31.6 rebounds and allows opponents to shoot .483 percent from the field.
When Opponents Shoot Over 50%
Thursday's win over Northern Colorado was the first time this season the Bengals have won a game when the opponents have shot 50 percent or greater. ISU is now 1-5 this year when teams shoot 50 percent or better from the field. The Bengals were 1-6 last season when opponents above 50 percent. That win was the season-ending 72-71 win over Portland State. The Vikings shot 50.9 percent.
Playing It Close
Ten of the Bengals 12 losses are by eight points or less. The Bengals lost by eight points at Utah, seven at Northern Colorado, six at Weber State, six at Sacramento State, four at North Dakota and vs. Idaho, two at Bakersfield and four at home vs. Bakersfield, two at NAU and five vs. Montana. ISU's only double digit losses are at Arizona State (88-60), and Washington (85-66).
Sanchez Clutch Down the Stretch
Since arriving in Pocatello,
Tomas Sanchez has shown a knack for making big shots down the stretch. The Bengal guard has hit three game-winners in the final seconds since the start of the 2012-13 season. Last year he scored with seven-seconds remaining to beat Portland State 72-71. In last year's 60-59 win over Sacramento State he scored four points in the final 11 seconds to rally the Bengals to a 60-59 win. In the win over Northern Colorado, on Thursday, he hit a 3-pointer with 14 seconds remaining to lift ISU to the victory.
Winning the Battle of the Boards
This year the Bengals have won the rebounding battle 12 times and tied an opponent on the boards in one game. This mark already tops last year when ISU only won the battle of the boards nine times and had one game where both teams had the same number of rebounds.
When the Bengals Win
In the eight wins, ISU is averaging 80.1 points a game, while holding teams to 66.1 points. ISU is also averaging 39.6 rebounds. In the 12 losses, ISU is shooting .437 percent from the field, averaging 30.8 rebounds and scoring only 64.7 points a game.
We Are Your Bengals
