Bengal women win second straight behind evenly distributed offense, solid defense
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POCATELLO — Coming off a last-second win over Rhode Island in the Cancun Challenge, the Bengals returned to Reed Gym Thursday with a hard-fought win over the University of Denver.
Idaho State (4-5) seized control of what had been a tight contest at the half, with a dominant third quarter. Then they rode out an aggressive Pioneers defense to earn a 73-61 win Wednesday night.
Head coach Seton Sobolewski was happy with the overall effort of his squad.
“I thought we did a great job defensively, for really good stretches,” he said after the game. “I thought we handled the pressure in the fourth quarter well enough to make sure we got the win.”
After a quick exchange of 3’s to begin the game, both teams hit an offensive lull. It wasn’t until more than six minutes into the first quarter when things began to open up for the Bengals — aided by a technical foul call against Denver head coach Doshia Woods.
The technical free throw, made by Sophia Covello, triggered a 10-point ISU run and 12-3 finish to the quarter that ended with the Bengals leading, 24-18.
A big part of that run was the entry of Tasia Jordan, who came into the night leading the Bengals in scoring — averaging 11.1 points per game.
Jordan made both of her field goal attempts and both of her free throw attempts, closing the first period with six points and a game-high plus/minus of plus-8.
“She’s a spark,” Sobolewski said of Jordan. “When she has her stuff together — I think there were, maybe, two games last year where she scored 18 in the first half — she has that scoring ability.”
It was more of the same in the second quarter for the Bengals, who struggled to find an offensive rhythm while Jordan was on the bench. Still, behind contributions from Piper Carlson and Halle Wright, ISU maintained its lead. Despite being held off the scoreboard for the final 2:25 of the first half, the Bengals went into the break up, 37-29.
The Bengals finally did find an offensive rhythm it had been lacking, in the third quarter — a quarter in which they outscored Denver 25-11, paced by Maria Dias’ six points.
Jordan, who finished the first half with nine points on 4-of-4 shooting, went 1-of-2 from the field and missed both of her free throws in the second half, finishing with 11 points.
Even with the slow second half, Sobolewski was excited about what Jordan gave her team as she continues to find her form following a knee injury that shortened her 2023-24 season.
“It’s been tough for her, with her injury,” the coach said. … “She’s definitely someone that has to be in the gym, has to be in practice, to be in sync. … It’s nice to see her back in (sync), hopefully this will, kind of, boost her confidence and we’ll see even more out of her.”
Jordan is not the only key contributor the Bengals expect to see more from.
Nika Lokica has not played since suffering a midsection-upper leg injury in the Bengals’ Nov. 16 loss to BYU. Sobolewski said that he hopes the high-scoring guard will be back soon, noting that this team has the potential to be very good once it is healthy.
“I don’t know how long it’s going to take, she’s already been out a while,” he said of Lokica. … “That’s not good — you’ve got to get a couple games under your belt before you hit conference play, and she might not. We’ll see how it all plays out.”
One player who returned from injury Wednesday was Ruby Sweeney-Spitzeck, who made her ISU debut scoring five points on 2-of-5 shooting.
Wright, Dias and Kacey Spink each had 11 to lead the Bengals, while guard Jordan Jones added her own 11 to lead the Pioneers.
Spink though was all over the floor, snatching a game-high 10 rebounds and swiping a game-high five steals. Her plus-17 differential was also the best in the gym.
With contributions coming from all over, ISU turned a 37-29 halftime lead into a 62-40 advantage through three quarters. And they would need all of that cushion.
Denver, with increased full-court pressure, held the Bengals to 11 fourth-quarter points. And shooting 6-of-11 from the field, 4-of-5 from 3 — and 5-of-6 from the free throw line — the Pioneers made it more competitive down the stretch than Sobolewski would have liked.
After holding on for the win, the Bengals will travel to face the University of Missouri — Kansas City, Saturday.