The defending champions of the Big Sky Conference, Vandals were led by fourth-year head coach Don Monson and played their home games on campus at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho.

[5] Although the Vandals hit 14 of their first 15 shots to jump to 28–10 lead over the Irish, Notre Dame regrouped at home to win by two in overtime.

[16] (team photo) The alley-oop was a frequently used play against man-to-man defenses,[17] and sophomore Pete Prigge (6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)) was the sixth man.

[18] Monson was named the Kodak Coach of the Year in Division I in 1982 (photo)[19][20] and rumors were rampant that he would jump to a higher league,[21] maybe to struggling Arizona in the Pac-10.

[22] That position was eventually filled by Lute Olson (a year later), and Monson chose to stay for a fifth season at Idaho.

Senior point guard Owens was the Big Sky's player of the year and a repeat MVP in the conference tournament.

He was joined in the backcourt of the all-conference team by junior guard Kellerman, the previous season's player of the year.