SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Idaho State (1-3) battled Utah (4-0) tough before falling 74-60 at the Jon M. Huntsman Center Monday night. The Bengals shot better as the game wore on with a 50-plus shooting percentage in the third and fourth quarters.
"This game was good for us in the sense that over the course of these three really tough games, we showed improvement," said Head Coach Seton Sobolewski. "We played with fire and cut the lead several times to single digits."
Three players reached double figures for ISU, led by Grace Kenyon with 17 points. Madison Hinrichs and Ellie Smith both had career-highs with 10 points. Smith and Kenyon also led the Bengals in rebounds with six apiece. The trio shot a collective 55.1 percent from the field.
Callie Bourne made her first start and collected nine points, five rebounds and five steals in 35 minutes. Saylair Grandon led the team in both assists (7) and steals (3) while putting up seven points in 33 minutes of play.
Idaho State outrebounded its opponent for the first time this season with 33 boards to Utah's 31. Utah held a slight edge in field goal percentage (47.4-43.9), but the real damage came from the three point line. Though ISU shot 38.5 percent from behind the arc, Utah was 50.0 percent with 11 three pointers.
The Bengals had 23 turnovers and the Utes used them to generate 29 points of offense. Idaho State forced 16 turnovers with nine steals and scored 16 points on the other end. ISU outscored Utah in the paint (36-32) and shared the ball effectively with 18 assists on 25 baskets.
"Obviously every game we suit up, the goal is to win," Sobolewski said. "But considering where we were in Spokane to where we are now, there is great improvement."
Idaho State opened a 6-2 lead to begin the game after Kenyon and Bourne scored on consecutive drives. Utah responded with a trio of three pointers as they put 15 unanswered points on the board. Smith and Kenyon were able to get ISU rolling again as they scored the next eight points to bring ISU within seven at the first break.
Utah extended its lead to 10 early in the second quarter before ISU's seniors narrowed the margin to four at 28-24. The Bengals stalled at the four minute mark and Utah took advantage with a 7-0 run that put them up 35-24 at the half.
The Utes pushed the lead to 16 coming out of the intermission and threatened to put the game out of reach. At that point, the Bengals caught fire, draining their next six attempts as they mounted a 14-4 run over three minutes. Utah would return the favor moments later with a 16-4 run that gave them a 60-44 lead heading into the fourth.
Utah secured its largest lead in the fourth after a layup and three pointer put them ahead by 21 with just 2:26 remaining. The Bengals took the last seven points of the game to outscore the Utes 16-14 in the final period. Though Utah never outscored Idaho State by more than seven points in a quarter, they were able to secure the 74-60 win.
Megan Huff tied Kenyon for a game-high 17 points after shooting 3-5 from three and 7-14 from the floor. She also matched her teammate Erika Bean for the lead in rebounds with seven. Bean collected seven assists and shot 75.0 percent overall.
The Bengals are currently on their way out of the states and on their way to Mexico. Idaho State faces Kennesaw State on Thanksgiving before playing Georgia Tech on Friday. Both games are part of the Cancun Challenge.
