Feb. 27, 2010

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LOGAN, Utah - In January, the Utah State women's basketball team needed a last-second shot to defeat Idaho in Moscow. On Saturday, it was the Vandals turn as Rachele Kloke's three pointer as time expired lifted Idaho over Utah State, 54-53, at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.

The loss was the Aggies fourth straight as USU falls to 12-15 overall and 4-10 in the Western Athletic Conference. Idaho improves to 9-18 overall and evens its WAC record to 7-7.

Utah State was led by a trio of players that scored in double digits. Junior guard Alice Coddington led the way with 14 points all of which were scored in the second half. Red-shirt freshman Banna Diop scored 12 points and added eight rebounds in the loss. Junior guard Amber White scored 10 points and added a career-high five assists.

Idaho was led by career-high 28 points from Rachele Kloke, who drained four three pointers, including the game winner. Kloke was the only Vandal in double digits, as Yinka Olorunnife was second in scoring with eight points. Shaena Kuehu added seven points and eight steals for Idaho. The Vandals had 12 steals in the game.

In the first half, Idaho was struggling offensively, as the Vandals missed their first 10 shots of the game before Kloke made a layup at the 15:33 mark. Neither team was shooting well in the first half as USU held only an 8-4 lead six minutes into the first half.

The Aggies would take as big a lead as eight points in the first stanza but could never completely pull away from the Vandals. A Diop layup with 5:48 remaining in the half would give USU a 20-12 lead. The Vandals went on a 6-2 run to cut the lead to 22-18 at half time.

Idaho ended the first half shooting 18.2 percent from the field (6-of-33) and did not make a shot from beyond the arc (0-of-11).

In the second half, UI shot much better from the field, while Aggies struggled a bit. The Vandals used a 7-0 run to take a 32-28 lead with 14:26 left in the game. The four-point lead was its biggest of the game. The Aggies responded with a 5-0 run of their own to re-take the lead 33-32. The scored would change hands nine times all in the second half.

Utah State would build as big a lead as six points after a White layup with 5:36 remaining, but the Vandals were not done fighting. With 30 seconds remaining, Coddington hit a layup to give USU a three-point lead. Kloke hit one of her four three pointers with 11 seconds left to tie the score at 51-51. Coddington was fouled by Bianca Cheever with two seconds left to give USU a brief 53-51 lead. With 2.1 on the clock, Kloke drilled a three to give Idaho the win.

For the game, USU shot 37 percent from the field (20-of-54) and 33.3 percent from the three-point line. For the first time this season, the Aggies were perfect from the free throw line (9-of-9). Idaho shot 29.2 percent from the field (19-of-65) and 23.1 percent from three (6-of-26). UI shot 83.3 percent from the charity stripe (10-of-12).

The Aggies have two more home games remaining to conclude the regular season. USU looks to snap its four-game losing streak against Boise State on Wednesday, March 3 at 7 p.m.

Utah State continues its Aggie Incentive Plan which allow fans to earn points for attending women's basketball games. Aggie fans can accumulate points throughout the season and earn prizes like USU water bottles, clothing and a USU women's team autographed basketball. Attend as many USU women's basketball games as possible and accumulate points, for a chance to win great prizes!!

Live stats will be available for most Utah State women's basketball games through the women's basketball page on www.utahstateaggies.com, by clicking on GameTracker in the current events box. All home games can be viewed by clicking on "Watch Live", while they can be heard by clicking on "Listen Live." Both can be accessed on www.utahstateaggies.com on the front page or the women's basketball page.

For tickets contact the USU Athletics Ticket Office at (435)797-0305 or at 1-888-U-STATE-1 (1-888-878-2831) for more information or visit the Utah State athletic web site at www.UtahStateAggies.com.

-USU-