Idaho gives up late burst in first loss of season in men's basketball

MOSCOW — The Vandals led for most of the second half, but a late UC Davis run thwarted Idaho’s attempt for a second straight men’s basketball victory Thursday at the ICCU Arena.

UC Davis won 79-75.

Idaho (1-1) led 70-62 with 5:49 remaining in the game after a pair of Kristian Gonzalez free throws.

Aggies guard Ty Johnson hit a 3-pointer to start the UC Davis run. Leo DeBruhl hit a pair of free throws and a layup and Pablo Tamba made two baskets as UC Davis (1-1) went on an 11-0 run over a 3:33 span to take a three-point advantage.

Four Vandals finished in double figures, led by forward Tyler Mrus with 17 points. Gonzalez had 16 points, forward Kyson Rose added 12 and forward Julius Mims finished with 11.

Mrus was 5-of-10 from beyond the arc in the game and led the team with three steals.

Gonzalez had eight rebounds to lead Idaho. Gonzalez, Kolton Mitchell and guard Isaiah Brickner had a team-high three assists apiece.

Foul trouble doomed Idaho as Mims, Rose and freshman Mitchell fouled out of the game as the Vandals committed 23 personal fouls.

Idaho shot strong in the first half (15-of-29, 51.7%), but the basket closed up on the home team in the second half. The Vandals made just 9-of-24 (37.5%) of their shots and were 3-of-12 from the 3-point line in the final 20 minutes.

The two teams traded the lead 12 times, mostly in the first half with Idaho in front for nearly three-quarters of the game.

UC Davis took advantage of Vandal mistakes and used Idaho’s 18 turnovers to score 25 points.

Johnson was the driving force offensively for the Aggies with 30 points on 10-of-23 shooting. Johnson also led the team with four steals.

Next up, Idaho will travel to Pullman for its first road game of the season. The Battle of the Palouse is scheduled to tip off at 6:30 p.m. on Monday.

UC DAVIS (1-1)

Rocak 2-6 4-4 8, Tamba 7-10 3-6 17, DeBruhl 2-7 4-6 9, Johnson 10-23 8-8 30, Lose 1-1 1-2 3, Sevilla 2-5 0-0 6, Chappell 1-4 0-0 3, Daughtery 1-5 0-0 3. Totals 26-61 20-26 79.

IDAHO (1-1)

Mims 4-11 3-4 11, Mrus 6-13 0-0 17, Gonzalez 4-7 4-7 16, Mitchell 2-4 0-0 4, Payne 2-5 4-9 8, Anderson 2-5 0-1 5, Brickner 0-1 2-2 2, Rose 4-7 2-2 12. Totals 24-53 15-25 75.

Halftime_Idaho 40-37. 3-Point Goals_UC Davis 7-27 (Sevilla 2-5, Johnson 2-7, Chappell 1-4, Daughtery 1-4, DeBruhl 1-4, Tamba 0-1, Rocak 0-2), Idaho 12-28 (Mrus 5-10, Gonzalez 4-6, Rose 2-4, Anderson 1-2, Brickner 0-1, Mims 0-1, Mitchell 0-1, Payne 0-3). Fouled Out_Mims, Mitchell, Rose. Rebounds_UC Davis 35 (Rocak 9), Idaho 33 (Gonzalez 8). Assists_UC Davis 8 (Tamba, DeBruhl, Johnson 2), Idaho 15 (Gonzalez, Mitchell, Brickner 3). Total Fouls_UC Davis 20, Idaho 23. A_1,736 (4,200).