Denim Millward
Sports Editor
In the 2012-2013 men’s basketball campaign, the Idaho State Bengals, led by first-year head coach Bill Evans, struggled mightily and posted a 6-24 overall record. Though a good defensive team statistically, the squad was pretty dismal on the offensive end.
Boy, what a difference a year can make. (A slew of new talent doesn’t hurt either.)
An apparent renewed focus on offensive production and efficiency, coupled with the impressive play and hard work of newcomers such as Jeffrey Solarin, have helped the Bengals match their win total from last season, with 15 games still to go.
The statistical offensive improvements from last year to this year are nothing short of astounding.
Thus far this season, the Bengals are averaging 72.8 points-per-game, a whopping 15.8 point-per-game increase over last year’s paltry 52.0 average. The team field goal percentage has jumped from 40.7 percent to 46.5 percent, and the Bengals are sinking five more field goals per game. Three-point field goal percentage has increased 8 percent this year, and even free throw percentage is up a few ticks. Assists-per-game have also increased from 10.2 to 12.1, a clear indicator of improved efficiency.
The vast improvements cannot simply be explained away by an easier schedule. If anything, the comprehensive level of talent ISU has faced this season is greater than last year. The Bengals have been competitive in nearly every contest they’ve lost this season, with only two of their eight defeats coming by more than nine.
One of the double-digit losses, a hard-fought bout against the University of Washington Jan. 4, was much closer than the 19-point final deficit indicated. Even more impressive than the closes losses to higher-caliber opponents was the thrilling victory against the University of San Francisco on Nov. 18. On that night, senior point guard Tomas Sanchez sunk three clutch free throws in the final four seconds of overtime to net the Bengals the huge victory.
Though the success of the team has certainly been a team effort, Sanchez is the clear on-court leader and arguably the key component to the team’s success.
A hard-nosed, high-energy competitor, Sanchez’s 15 points, five assists and two steals per contest have been invaluable. If Sanchez can bring down his current turnovers-per-game average of 3.7, the Bengals could further elevate themselves in the Big Sky Conference.
Sanchez’s backcourt running mate, senior Andre Hatchett, has also posted impressive stats and has come up big in numerous games.
In his fourth season donning the orange and black, Hatchett’s scoring punch (15.2 points-per-game, up from just over nine points-per-game last year,) is good for third-highest on the team, and is a welcome addition to help take the strain of Sanchez and long-range specialist, junior swingman Chris Hansen.
Most impressive of the many new faces on the team has to be junior forward Jeffrey Solarin. At 6-foot-4 inches, Solarin is competing against taller opponents more often than not, yet still manages over 10 points and eight boards each contest and shoots a blistering 60 percent from the field. Solarin’s contributions, which may remind older NBA fans of one Charles Barkley, have been key to the Bengals’ significant improvements, and are almost certainly the main reason why ISU is averaging six more rebounds-per-game than last year.
While the offensive numbers have taken a huge leap, the Bengals have regressed somewhat in a few areas. Turnovers-per-game have ticked up slightly, and opponents are averaging 6 more points each contest.
With a coach who is considered very defensive-oriented, both the offensive leaps and bounds and the defensive regressions come as somewhat of a surprise. However, the positive gains made thus far certainly appear to outweigh the negatives, and the Bengals vastly improved record bears that out.
Another key factor in the success or failure of the Bengals this season has been home court advantage. Sanchez, Hansen, Hatchett and company are 5-1 at home, but just 1-6 away from Pocatello. Pulling out close games on the road seems to be a key weakness with this squad. With eight away games yet to be played, how the Bengals close out games away from the cozy confines of the Gate City will have an immense impact on whether or not Idaho State makes its triumphant return to the Big Sky Conference Tournament as well as what seed it gets.
As of the writing of this article on Jan. 19, it appears that there are at least three or more teams who will be competing for the Big Sky Conference championship late into the college basketball regular season. Northern Colorado and Northern Arizona are tied atop the division at 5-1, Weber State is 4-1, Montana State is 4-2 and the Bengals are 3-2. Though currently in fifth place in the conference, the Bengals are only one game behind first place in the loss column. The Bengals only have conference games left, and the log jam at the top of the conference adds that much more weight to every future contest.
The road for the Bengals doesn’t get any easier from here on out but it doesn’t get significantly harder either. Approximately half of the Bengals’ future games is composed of opponents currently ahead of them in the conference, while the other half is made up of the teams at or near the bottom of the conference standing.
With so much uncertainty for the conference going forward, each contest is sure to be a thrilling, hard-fought affair.
If the Bengals can maintain their offensive pace and production, reduce their number of turnovers and find a way to win those tough road games while maintaining their sparkling home win percentage, the second half of the season should be even more impressive and exciting.
