Braxton Gregory
Sports Editor
Pocatello Idaho — Idaho State’s men’s basketball team posted an 87-71 win over rival Idaho, led by a stellar performance from Dylan Darling and a complete team effort that featured explosive shooting and strong defense.
Darling finished with 28 points, six 3-pointers and nine assists, driving the Bengals’ offense. His shooting from beyond the arc was pivotal as the Bengals connected on 16 of 26 attempts (61%), a season-high for both volume and accuracy. Darling’s performance drew praise from his teammates, with guard Jake O’Neil highlighting his impact.
“He’s crazy, he’s the best scorer I’ve ever been around,” O’Neil said. “It’s more than the scoring; he sets the offense.”
Head coach Ryan Looney credited Darling for taking advantage of Idaho’s switching defense. “I thought Dylan did a good job taking advantage of some of the switches,” Looney said. “He got a lot of those 3-pointers off with bigger, slower guys trying to guard him.”
Idaho State’s shooting performance marked the best of the season. Along with Darling’s six 3-pointers, AJ Burgin added four off the bench for the second straight game, while O’Neil hit three. Six Bengals hit at least one 3-pointer, stretching Idaho’s defense.
“I think it was a combination of things,” Looney said. “Players making good decisions with the right players taking the 3-pointers, which leads to a higher percentage.”
Despite foul trouble limiting the minutes of starters Evan Otten and Connor Hollenbeck, Looney’s bench stepped up, with Blake Daberkow and Jackson Greene contributing key minutes. Daberkow finished with five points, two rebounds and two blocks, while Greene tallied seven points, four rebounds, two assists, a steal and a block.
“We needed them tonight with foul trouble,” Looney said. “Those guys had an opportunity and took advantage of it. It was huge for us and big for them as well.”
On defense, Idaho State limited Idaho to 44% shooting and 25% from 3-point range. Looney was proud of his team’s effort to execute the defensive game plan.
“[I’m] really proud of our guys,” Looney said. “We had a game plan defensively against what we thought was a very good offensive team, and for the most part, we won the rebounding battle and didn’t turn it over very much. It was a fantastic team effort.”
The Bengals outrebounded Idaho 32-25, including a 9-6 advantage on the offensive glass, and committed just six turnovers.
In addition to Darling’s 28 points, O’Neil’s double-double, and strong bench contributions, Isaiah Griffin added 14 points. Former Bengal Kolton Mitchell led Idaho with 17 points, but it wasn’t enough to keep pace with Idaho State.
The win lifts Idaho State to 11-11 overall and 5-4 in Big Sky play.
