BOISE — For the second consecutive season, Idaho found itself in a one possession-game late in a Big Sky men’s basketball tournament game, and for the second straight season, the upset-seeking Vandals were bounced in the first round.

Senior star Trevon Allen powered 10th-seeded Idaho with 35 points Wednesday, including a pair of free throws to tie the game at 69 with two minutes remaining. But balanced, seventh-seeded Southern Utah had an answer for every Vandal jab, and the Thunderbirds earned a 75-69 victory at CenturyLink Arena.

SUU defeated UI for the third time this season but had more trouble dispatching the Vandals than it did in 28- and 32-point wins during the regular season.

“Tip your hat to Idaho. They were very prepared, and did a great job with their game plan,” SUU coach Todd Simon said. “They play extremely hard and Trevon Allen is such a good basketball player and quite a performance by him. ... But I was proud of our guys — we just kind of kept answering the bell.”

Allen, UI’s biggest bright spot in its 8-24 season, put his team on his shoulders again in his final game in black and gold. The Clarkston High School product via Lapwai, scored 12 of Idaho’s final 15 points with 10 coming after appearing to roll his left ankle during a loose-ball scramble with about six minutes remaining.

Allen tied the game at 65 with free throws, 67 with a runner and 69 with two more free throws. He finished with 30 or more points in his final three games as a Vandal.

“I just came out and tried to play as hard as I could,” Allen said. “It’s a credit to my teammates and my guys finding ways to get me the ball, setting good screens and allowing us to operate on the offensive end.”

With both teams in foul trouble late, SUU’s balanced attack prevailed. Cameron Oluyitan notched a driving layup for a 71-69 lead and grabbed a rebound on the other end, which led to free throws by Dre Marin, who went 4-of-4 from the free-throw line in the final minute to put the game out of reach.

Marin led four T-Bird players in double figures with 19 points. John Knight (16), Oluyitan (12) and Andre Adams (11) also contributed.

For UI, junior guard Ja’Vary Christmas came off the bench to score all 10 of his points in the second half.

Junior point guard Damen Thacker tallied a team-high nine rebounds despite being the shortest player on the court at a generous 5-foot-11.

“I think all season I’ve been fighting this guy trying to get 6-foot on the roster,” Thacker said with a smile when asked about his height, motioning to Idaho coach Zac Claus.

Thacker also took three charges.

“That’s a big team and at times we play a smaller lineup,” Thacker said. “But we’ve got a lot of guys that can guard a lot of different positions ... our only challenge is matching up when they get their subs in.”

Idaho trailed by nine points early before cutting the deficit to 29-27 at halftime. The Vandals took their first lead on an Allen jumper that made it 33-32 early in the second half.

But UI led for only 45 seconds and never by more than a point.

“They turned it into a one-possession game with a minute to play, and that’s what we wanted,” Claus said of his team. “We had to try to control the tempo a little bit, and I thought these guys competed like crazy.”

IDAHO (8-24)

Blakney 1-3 0-1 2, Forrest 0-2 3-4 3, Allen 11-23 11-13 35, Quinnett 1-5 0-0 2, Thacker 2-6 0-0 6, Christmas 3-5 2-2 10, Thiombane 1-3 0-0 2, Fraser 4-6 1-4 9, Dixon 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 23-54 17-24 69.

SOUTHERN UTAH (17-15)

Adams 5-9 1-3 11, Fausett 2-3 2-3 7, Knight 5-11 6-8 16, Marin 5-10 5-6 19, Oluyitan 5-9 0-0 12, Butler 2-4 2-2 6, Morgan 2-4 0-2 4, Long 0-3 0-0 0, N’Diaye 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-53 16-24 75.

Halftime — Southern Utah, 29-27. 3-point goals — Idaho 6-16 (Christmas 2-3, Thacker 2-4, Allen 2-6, Forrest 0-1, Quinnett 0-2), Southern Utah 7-17 (Marin 4-9, Oluyitan 2-3, Fausett 1-2, Butler 0-1, Morgan 0-2). Fouled Out — Allen, Thiombane. Rebounds — Idaho 31 (Thacker 9), Southern Utah 29 (Adams 7). Assists — Idaho 6 (Christmas 3), Southern Utah 12 (Marin 4). Total fouls — Idaho 23, S. Utah 20. A — N/A.

You can view the press conference here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5-xLo-TgZc

Stephan Wiebe can be reached at swiebe@dnews.com, by phone at 208-883-4624 and on Twitter at @StephanSports.