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When Idaho center Marvin Jefferson picked up his second foul just 4Ý minutes into Saturday's game at Boise State, it looked like a break for the Broncos.
Turns out, it wasn't.
Substitute Luciano de Souza went 4-of-5 behind the 3-point line and scored all 16 of his points in the first half to jump start Idaho's 79-55 victory over the Broncos.
"Coaches told me to just bring all of the energy that I had," said de Souza, who matched his career-high.
"He came in and made a bunch of shots and our guys did a great job of getting him the ball," Idaho coach Don Verlin said.
Jefferson said he was frustrated to go to the bench early but quickly got over it.
"When your team is just clicking like that, whether you're in or not, it feels really good," Jefferson said. "This game has been a long time coming for Luci - he had been struggling. Tonight it looked like the basket was twice as wide when he shot. He couldn't miss."
The senior from Brazil's 3-point barrage gave Idaho a double-digit lead that never got below 18 points in the second half.
Unlike the first meeting, when Idaho blew a nine-point lead and lost to the Broncos 77-67 in overtime, the Vandals sealed the deal.
"After we lost that game at home, I said we weren't going to let that happen again," de Souza said.
It was more than just his shooting. Idaho shot 56 percent, kept BSU in check on offense. The Vandals held BSU point guard Anthony Thomas scoreless. He had 17 in the first game.
"We did a great job defensively," Verlin said.
It was Idaho's biggest win in the rivalry and the Broncos' worst home loss since 1999 when Cincinnati won 78-46.
"Was it a convincing win? Yes it was," Verlin said.
BSU still has the biggest win in the rivalry - a 90-61 win at home in 1978.
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