This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Ogden • A matchup between the preseason pick to win the Big Sky conference and the team tabbed to finish last went the way one might expect Saturday night in Weber State's conference opener.

The Wildcats led from start to finish in a 77-56 victory over visiting Idaho State as the Bengals couldn't contain the inside trio of Joel Bolomboy, Zach Braxton and Kyndahl Hill.

Bolomboy was particularly instrumental early as the 'Cats built a 16-point advantage by halftime. The 6-foot-7 senior fired in six of his seven first half shots and supplemented that with a perfect 7-for-7 performance at the line in scoring 19 points in the first 20 minutes.

"On paper, we were a little bigger. But when a team comes in, anything can happen," said Bolomboy, who finished with 25 points and 13 rebounds. "I think we played as a team and executed exactly what coach [Randy] Rahe asked us to do."

Idaho State (5-8, 0-1) stayed within shooting range at times in the first half, losing touch temporarily when a Bolomboy slam put Weber State (9-5, 1-0) up 23-13 with 8:40 left before halftime.

The Bengals, who were led by Ethan Telfair's 15 points, reduced the deficit to five — but the Wildcats then scored the next 11 points to make the cushion more permanent.

"Their post guys had their way with our guys," Idaho State coach Bill Evans said. "I think that was the difference in the game. I thought we did a pretty good job with their perimeter guys, but their post guys just had their way."

Freshman Zach Braxton and junior Kyndahl Hill finished with 11 points each for Weber State.

"We play inside-out all the time; we talk to our guys about that all the time," Rahe said. "We throw it into our bigs all the time, that's our philosophy. Tonight the bigs didn't have to kick it out, because [the Bengals] weren't doubling."

The only real drama came when guard Jeremy Senglin caught an elbow trying to defend in the second half. Senglin was called for the foul, which caused a chorus of boos when the junior immediately started bleeding and had to race off the court.

"It's an emotional game and, when I saw the blood and Jeremy said he got elbowed, our guys got excited," Rahe said. "I didn't mind them getting excited, getting those juices flowing a little bit." —

Weber State 77, Idaho State 56

IDAHO ST. (5-8)

Luzcando 2-7 2-2 6, Wilson 3-8 3-4 9, Ingram 1-2 0-0 2, Telfair 3-13 9-10 15, Faruq-Bey 5-12 3-4 13, Nakken 0-2 0-0 0, Topalovic 2-5 0-1 4, Lennox 3-8 0-0 7, Chivichyan 0-0 0-0 0, Smith 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 19-59 17-21 56.

WEBER ST. (9-5)

Bolomboy 9-12 7-9 25, Richardson 2-10 0-0 6, Braxton 4-9 3-8 11, Cannon 2-5 0-0 6, Senglin 2-7 2-3 7, Williams 0-0 0-0 0, John 1-2 1-1 3, Jefferson 1-1 0-0 2, Gittens 1-4 0-0 2, Baker 1-4 2-2 4, Hill 3-4 5-6 11. Totals 26-58 20-29 77.

Halftime—Weber St. 44-28. 3-Point Goals—Idaho St. 1-12 (Lennox 1-4, Smith 0-1, Telfair 0-1, Nakken 0-2, Faruq-Bey 0-4), Weber St. 5-21 (Cannon 2-2, Richardson 2-10, Senglin 1-3, John 0-1, Baker 0-1, Bolomboy 0-1, Gittens 0-3). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Idaho St. 40 (Luzcando, Topalovic 8), Weber St. 39 (Bolomboy 13). Assists—Idaho St. 5 (Telfair 4), Weber St. 15 (Baker 4). Total Fouls—Idaho St. 21, Weber St. 22. A—6,478.

Big Sky Standings

Conference Overall

W L Pct. W L Pct.

Idaho 2 0 1.000 10 5 .667

Montana 2 0 1.000 7 6 .556

Weber St. 1 0 1.000 9 5 .583

N. Dakota 1 1 .500 6 7 .462

Montana St. 1 1 .500 6 8 .429

N. Colorado 1 1 .500 4 10 .286

S. Utah 1 1 .500 3 9 .233

Sacramento St. 0 0 .000 7 4 .636

Idaho St. 0 1 .000 5 8 .417

Portland St. 0 0 .000 4 7 .364

E. Washington 0 2 .000 6 8 .429

N. Arizona 0 2 .000 2 11 .154

Saturday's games

Montana St. 74, N. Arizona 72, OT

North Dakota 79, E. Washington 71

Idaho 75, N. Colorado 70

Montana 83, Southern 66

Weber St. 77, Idaho State 56

Sacramento St. at Portland St., late