Marathon road trip continues for Women's Basketball with Idaho State on deck

Saturday, January 29

Pocatello, Idaho

2 p.m. MT

University of Northern Colorado

Idaho State

Photo by: Jam David

1/28/2022 12:53:00 PM | Women's Basketball

ESPN+ LIVE STATS GAME NOTES

By: By Thomas Hoffman, UNCBears.com

GREELEY, Colo. – The third of five straight road games takes Women's Basketball north to Pocatello for a matchup with second place Idaho State.

Game Info
Who: at Idaho State (12-6, 8-1)
When: January 29 at 2 p.m. MT
Where: Pocatello, ID
How To Follow: LIVE STREAM | LIVE STATS | UNC_BearsWBB

Opening Tip
A second straight dominant fourth-quarter performance lifted the Bears over Weber State on Thursday. Hannah Simental piled up 15 points in 10 minutes to ensure her team's victory just days after teammate Kurstyn Harden poured in 22 in the final frame at Sacramento State.

Simental (3.0 per game) and Allie Downing (2.4 per game) continue to hang near the top of the conference in three-point shooting. The dynamic duo ranks second and third in the Big Sky.

Northern Colorado's defense remains its biggest strength entering the weekend. Allowing just 61.3 points per game across seven conference games, the Bears boast the second-best defense in the conference. Eight different times this season, UNC has held its opponent below 60 points.

Kurstyn Harden and the rest of the Bears have been making a habit out of cleaning the glass. With a plus 6.4 rebound margin, Northern Colorado ranks third in the Big Sky and No. 49 in the nation. UNC has outrebounded its opponent in 12 of 15 games this season.

Last Time Out
Hannah Simental's 15 fourth-quarter points helped Northern Colorado overtake Weber State in the final minutes to secure the Bears' second conference win of the season, 65-55.

Scouting the Bengals
In his 14th year at the helm of the Idaho State program, Seton Sobolewski has his team near the top of the Big Sky standings once again. Entering the weekend, the Bengals sit in second in the conference with an 8-2 record.

Sobolewski's consistency is what makes ISU a dangerous team to face this season. Idaho State ranks third in both scoring (71.3 ppg) and points allowed (62.3).

Junior Tomekia Whitman is the Bengals' do-everything guard. Whitman is 11th in rebounding at 7.2 per game and leads the Big Sky in steals at 2.7 per contest.

Graduate Estefania Ors continues to lead ISU in scoring (12.5 ppg) along with Whitman (10.9 ppg) and Diaba Konate (10.1 ppg) who each average in double figures.

History against Idaho State
Northern Colorado will be looking to get back to its winning ways against the Bengals. UNC holds a 12-24 record versus ISU with a 6-11 mark in Pocatello. The last time the Bears won at Idaho State was a 61-59 victory in February of 2019.

What's Ahead?
The Bears continue its road slat, traveling to Northern Arizona on Monday, January 31. UNC returns to Bank of Colorado Arena on February 5, against Northern Arizona. Tickets can be purchased at UNCBears.com/Tickets.

To stay up to date on all things UNC Women's basketball, visit UNCBears.com, follow the team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the new UNC Athletics app by clicking here.