POCATELLO — Brandon Boyd walked into the postgame press conference, slouched his head over the table in front of him and let out a sigh.

Idaho State had just lost another game after leading at halftime, after extending that lead to double digits, after losing that lead, and after failing to complete a rally that, as the saying goes, is too little, too late.

The Bengals (10-12, 5-6 Big Sky Conference) led for 26 minutes, 11 seconds of Thursday's 85-82 loss to Northern Colorado at Holt Arena. ISU led by 10 points twice in the game — once in each half — and was up 40-32 at halftime.

In their last six games, the Bengals have lost three times after building a double-digit, second-half lead.

“That's a tough one to lose,” said Boyd, who scored a game-high 26 points. “Just a couple stretches again — that's our team — just a couple stretches. We just lose focus, and it's another lead we just lost. So that's a tough one to lose.”

Idaho State didn't score more than four consecutive points in the second half, while Northern Colorado (16-9, 7-5 Big Sky) went on runs of 6-0 (twice) and 11-0. A Jordan Davis layup with 2:50 remaining gave the Bears their first lead since 17-14 early in the first and were the fourth and fifth points of UNC's 11-0 spurt that ended with an 82-74 lead and 1:39 on the clock.

The Bengals answered their first-half deficit with a 12-0 run to take the lead. They couldn't repeat the conquest in the final moments. ISU closed the gap to two points twice in the final 37 seconds, but couldn't string enough crucial plays together to complete the comeback.

Boyd cut ISU's deficit to two points after converting a layup plus a foul shot with 37 seconds to play. Boyd then drew an offensive foul with 18.3 seconds remaining, giving ISU the ball back with a chance to tie the game or take the lead.

Boyd drove toward the hoop, spun and flipped a layup toward the rim, but Northern Colorado's Roberto Vercellino swatted it away, and the loose ball was corralled by UNC.

After Davis was fouled and made one of two free throws to push UNC's lead back to three points with 3 seconds to play, Geno Luzcando was fouled as he led ISU back up the court. He made the first free throw and missed the second on purpose, but the Bears grabbed the board.

UNC's Anthony Johnson then went 1 of 2 from the stripe, giving ISU a final chance at a desperation 3-pointer to send the game to overtime. With 1.1 on the clock, Erik Nakken inbounded from the baseline. His overhand pass was tipped by Vercellino and fell into the hands of UNC's Andre Spight as the buzzer sounded.

“We made some good plays down the stretch,” Bengals coach Bill Evans said.

Idaho State was hurt by foul trouble and UNC's ability to score from in close. The Bears racked up 48 points in the paint, and ISU was whistled for 28 fouls. Starting center Novak Topalovic fouled out at the 6:38 mark in the second half, and starting guard Balint Mocsan followed suit at 2:50. They combined to score 16 points in 32 minutes.

Northern Colorado was also hit by the whistle, with three players fouling out and 30 team fouls. UNC shot 56.6 percent from the floor, including 62.8 percent from 2-point range.

“They drove us like they were on a freeway in a Mercedes,” Evans said. “They drove us and drove us and drove us. I'm not sure what to do about it. All of a sudden, you don't get guys with great feet.”

Idaho State shot 52 percent from the field, but missed 12 of its final 18 shots. The Bengals also outrebounded the Bears 28-27, marking the first time this season ISU has lost despite winning the rebounding battle. ISU also had a season-low five assists and made a season-low four 3-pointers.

The teams combined to shoot 72 free throws.

“It was physical, then it went touch fouls, and then physical again,” Boyd said. “So it's tough to really get a gauge. But that's not an excuse for us. We still made some mistakes in the second half that we shouldn't have.”

In addition to Boyd's 26 points, Luzcando scored 19 to go along with seven rebounds. Topalovic had 11 points, and Gary Chivichyan scored eight off the bench. Leading scorer Jared Stutzman was held to seven points on 1-of-5 shooting.

Davis led UNC with 24 points. Spight, who scored 73 points in two games last week, scored 18 on Thursday.

After the completion of Thursday's games, Idaho State is seventh in the conference standings with seven regular-season games remaining. The Bengals have dropped six of eight games after starting league play 3-0.

“Could be coaching, could be players not making free throws, could be players not doing what they're supposed to do,” Evans said. “Could be players trying to do what they're not supposed to do. It can be a multitude of a lot of things. It could be a combination of all those things.

“But in the end, somebody's got to get stops. Somebody's got to make baskets.”

Idaho State men's basketball vs. Northern Colorado