Weber State beats Idaho State 78-64

OGDEN, Utah (AP) — Damian Lillard scored 26 points and Scott Bamforth added 21 as Weber State beat Idaho State 78-64 Thursday night to kick off Big Sky Conference play.

Weber State (10-2, 1-0) led by as many as 20 points in the first half, but Idaho State (2-10, 0-1) rallied with a full-court press and cut the led to 61-49 with 10:59 remaining.

Idaho State’s Chase Grabau scored a game-high 31 points, 26 of his points coming in the second half. No other Bengal reached double figures.

Both teams were cold shooting the ball at the start of the game, combining to go 2 for 12 over the first 3:05.

The Bengals owned a brief 11-9 lead at the 12:48 mark, but Lillard responded with a basket to start a 9-2 run and the Wildcats never trailed again.

Idaho State dropped its fifth game in a row and seventh in eight games.