The Sacramento State men’s basketball team might have finally figured it out – just in time for March as the Big Sky tournament draws near.

With an emphatic  83-51 win over the Idaho Vandals in The Nest on Thursday, the timing of this team seemingly putting it all together couldn’t have been more perfect.

“[We’re] obviously trying to win as many games as possible,” senior forward Bryce Fowler said. “But also just trying to get better every day and just try to be ready for March,”. 

Coming off a down-to-the-wire road win last weekend against Idaho State, the Hornets (8-16, 4-13 Big Sky) opened Thursday’s matchup with the Vandals (8-19, 5-12 Big Sky) continuing the momentum they built on their road trip.

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This was easily Sac State’s best game of the season.

Offensively, the Hornets didn’t miss a beat all night. The ball was moving, guys were cutting and making good decisions, everything seemed to be working for Sac State early as they shot a staggering 51% from the field and were able to get out to a 13-9 lead over the Vandals just under the 14-minute mark.

Sophomore forward Cameron Wilbon seemed to be one of the many sparks for the Hornets on offense, as he was able to score on the perimeter or on the block when guards would switch on to him. Wilbon finished with 15 points on the night and seemed to make savvy play after savvy play when facing whatever coverage the Idaho defense presented.

“I feel like that’s what I pride myself on, when we play teams with bigger guys, they can’t stay in front of me [and] when we play teams with smaller guys like today I gotta punish ’em when we go inside,” Wilbon said. “I just feel like being a mismatch like that, it just helps our team.”

Sac State closed the second half on an 11-5 run to go into halftime with a 34-25 lead, seeming to pull away very early from Idaho.

The Hornets didn’t miss a beat to open up the second half, with the offensive storm continuing to pour on the Vandal defense. 

“It came together tonight,” interim head coach Brandon Laird said. “They’re having a lot of fun and they’re really connected, I’m really happy it’s coming together.”

Everyone was getting involved. Whether it was senior guard William FitzPatrick knocking down threes in transition, Fowler creating shots seemingly out of nothing, or Wilbon continuing his domination from the first half, it was a fun night for Sac State basketball as the lead continued to grow. 

.@CamLamarr15 with a hard drive to the rim!@SacHornetsMBB leads @VandalHoops 21-17 with under eight minutes remaining in the first half. @SH_Sports pic.twitter.com/lLlDZxsgkd

— Jordan Latimore (@jordanlatimore7) February 25, 2022

“I think we showed how exciting we can be to watch and how fun we can be when we play together,”Fowler said. 

Sac State cruised to the biggest victory of the season with a 32-point win over Idaho that never seemed to be close from the jump.

In addition to a seismic win for the Hornets, several team members said they are hoping this kind of dominant play can be the perfect capital for the squad as they head into the Big Sky tournament in two weeks.

“We could have quit and gave up on the year a while ago,” Fowler said. ”We just doubled down on it and just said: ‘We’re just gonna be our best then of the season and give everything we got.’” 

Sac State’s next game will be their final of the season at home in The Nest as they take on Eastern Washington Saturday at 7 p.m.