MOSCOW, Idaho (February 26, 2026) – After a low-scoring start from both teams, the Idaho Vandals (15-13, 7-8 Big Sky) controlled the court to secure a 78-58 victory over the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (10-19, 4-12 Big Sky).
The game opened quietly at ICCU Arena, with just eight total points scored in the first five minutes. The Lumberjacks offense kept it level at the start with a 3-pointer made by
Isaiah Shaw giving NAU a 7-6 lead. The Vandals responded with a 7-0 run to which NAU could not recover from.
The Lumberjacks struggled to find an offensive rhythm, missing 15 shots and committing seven turnovers in the first half. Idaho capitalized on those miscues, scoring eight points off turnovers.
Trailing for most of the half, the Lumberjacks found success in the final five minutes. Northern Arizona scored 14 of its 29 first-half points during that stretch to cut Idaho's lead to eight at halftime, 37-29.
Northern Arizona's offensive leader in the first half was
Ryan Abelman, who recorded eight points on 4-of-5 shooting in the opening 20 minutes.
In the first half, Northern Arizona shot 44.4% from the field, while Idaho shot 51.9%. Northern Arizona's offense went quiet in the second half, shooting 32.0% from the field and 22.2% from beyond the arc.
"Idaho is a very good team, a very physical team," head coach
Shane Burcar said. "If you only have one turnover (in the second half), you should score more than 29 points. But we were 8-for-25 from the floor and that's a hard recipe to have success."
While the Lumberjacks struggled offensively, the Vandals ramped up their offense to open the second half, extending their lead to 17 points while making their first three 3-point attempts in the first five minutes after halftime. Idaho finished the night by shooting 53.3% from the field and 50.0% from 3-point range.
The Vandals dominated the glass, outrebounding the Lumberjacks, 39-27. Idaho recorded 10 offensive rebounds and scored 14 second-chance points.
Diego Campisano led the Lumberjacks with 11 points and five rebounds. Defensively,
Traivar Jackson stood out for Northern Arizona, recording three of the team's four blocks while also adding three steals.
Chris Komin also recorded 11 points, shooting 57.1% on the floor while playing the full 40 minutes.
"Hopefully we go beat Eastern Washington on the road (on Saturday) and all is forgotten," Burcar said. "Recently, we've been playing good basketball. Hopefully tonight's an outlier."
Northern Arizona continues its road trip Saturday at Eastern Washington with tip-off at 2 p.m. MST before closing the regular season at home March 2 against Montana State.
The men's basketball game precedes the women's basketball game between NAU and Eastern Washington in the back half of a doubleheader. The women's game at Reese Court begins at 4:30 p.m. MST.
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