FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (January 31, 2026) – The first 20 minutes proved to be too much for the Northern Arizona men's basketball team to overcome, as the Lumberjacks saw their two-game winning streak come to an end at the hands of Idaho, 79-62, on Saturday.
"We were prepared. We had a good Friday yesterday after a big win on Thursday, but for some reason, we didn't play NAU Basketball in the first half," said head coach
Shane Burcar. "In the second half we were a little better. To go down 14-0 at the end of the first half, we have to figure out how to deal with adversity. When we get punched in the mouth, we have to deal with it."
Idaho used a pair of large runs in the first half to take an insurmountable 47-23 halftime advantage. The first, of the 12-0 variety, immediately followed a
Kavon Bradford 3-pointer that briefly pulled the Lumberjacks within 12-9.
With the Vandals up 24-9, the Lumberjacks briefly seized the momentum with an 8-2 run that brought the home team back to 26-17 with 7:31 left in the first half. However, a 14-0 Idaho surge to close the first half sent NAU into the locker room with a deficit it could not overcome.
Idaho shot 63.3% in the first half and 54.4% in the game. Although the Vandals cooled off a bit in the second 20 minutes, and the Lumberjacks shot 50.0% themselves in the second half, the 'Jacks could not climb out of their halftime hole.
NAU fell to 8-15 overall and 2-8 in Big Sky play. Idaho improved to 13-9 and 5-4 in league play.
The Lumberjacks trailed by as much as 26 with 12 minutes to play, but battled back to within 15 approaching the 5-minute mark.
Ryan Abelman knocked down a pair of 3-pointers during a 10-3 run that close the Idaho lead to 73-58. NAU would not get closer as it made only one field goal in the final five minutes, but it did outscore Idaho by seven points in the second half.
NAU was led by
Karl Poom, who scored 13 points, but the sophomore was the only Lumberjack in double-digit scoring.
Kavon Bradford scored nine points off the bench, while
Oakland Fort,
Chris Komin and Abelman chipped in eight points.
The Lumberjacks shot 43.4% for the game and only managed eight assists to 11 turnovers on the night. The Vandals narrowly outrebounded the Lumberjacks, 33-30.
Isaiah Brickner came off the bench for the Vandals and scored 31 points on 12-of-16 shooting. Brickner's 31 points were the most by an opposing player this season.
NAU heads out for a road trip through Idaho State and Weber State next Thursday and Saturday, with both games tipping off at 7 p.m. MST.
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