Wiley, Vandals return to CIT
This is the Vandals' second trip to the CollegeInsider.com tournament in three years, so they know a bit about what to expect about the obscure postseason event. Well, at least senior Brandon Wiley does.
Read on for more about the CIT and Idaho's first-round opponent, the University of San Francisco.
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Wiley is the only Vandal player who was around for that first trip to the CIT two years ago. He's the focus of my preview for today's paper, which you can read here.
Idaho and USF tip off at 7 p.m., with the winner advancing along with 11 other teams. The game is not on TV but you might be able to see a live feed here and you can follow my updates on Twitter (@SR_JoshWright) throughout the night.
Here are the probable starters with their key stats:
IDAHO
Demery Geiger, PG, 8.7 ppg, 2.7 rebounds, 2.6 assists
Jeff Ledbetter, SG, 12.5 ppg, 2.9, rebounds, 2.0 assists
Shawn Henderson, SF, 9.1 ppg, 4.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists
Brandon Wiley, PF, 7.8 ppg, 4.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists
Luiz Toledo, PF, 9.3 ppg, 4.4 rebounds, 0.6 assists
USF
Michael Williams, 15.1 ppg, 4.1 rebounds, 1.8 assists
Cody Doolin, 7.3 ppg, 3.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists
Rashad Green, 11.8 ppg, 5.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists
Angelo Caloiaro, 9.7 ppg, 6.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists
Perris Blackwell, 10.5 ppg, 7.2 rebounds, 0.9 assists
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The Dons have some solid wins on their resume, most notably Gonzaga, Colorado and Montana. And they lost by just six points to seventh-ranked San Diego State early in the year.
USF, along with UI one of the least-experienced teams in Division I experience coming into the year, started playing much better in conference play. It went 12-4 to close the regular season.
San Francisco is No. 120 in the RPI; Idaho is No. 137.
Lastly, a few extra quotes from UI coach Don Verlin on San Francisco and other items:
On the Vandals' mindset: "Oh, they’re excited to go play at San Francisco. It’s Brandon Wiley’s hometown. Obviously after the game the other night they were disappointed. You were hoping that your name would be called (on Sunday). It’s every team’s goal when they start the season. But we just got done practicing; they’re fired up, ready to go. This team’s got great character and I know the seniors are looking forward to playing some more and the returning guys are looking forward to playing some more also."
On looking forward to a possible home game with a win: "That’s exactly what I told our team. You know, we’ve been a good road team all year. We’ve won the most road games we have here in 25 years. So let’s get out there and try to get some good done and maybe we can a home game back here when our students our here. That’s one of the things we’ve talked about doing. And I know our games our excited to play. I think it’s the most wins since, what '93 or '94. Like everybody else, we were disappointed when it ended at the WAC tournament but getting another chance to continue the season is a great thing for this ballclub. It’s a great reward for a very, very good season."
On drawing on the last appearance in the CIT: "Probably just like a normal game, because it is at somebody’s home. Different than a game that would be at a neutral court. But we’re going to get ready and approach like we would if we were going to Nevada or New Mexico State. I don’t think it’s any different than any other game we play. The only difference is, you lose this time and you go home."
On USF: "hey’ve had some good wins. … They’re a very young team. I think this is a team that you’re going to see play pretty well the next few years because of their youth. And I believe they beat Portland twice. They’ve got some great wins on their resume. They’ve obviously played good here late in the year. We’re looking forward to the challenge."