POCATELLO − Gia Vukona is the youngest player on the Idaho State women’s basketball team, but you certainly wouldn’t guess that she just turned 18 in talking with her.

Maybe that comes with competing internationally before she’s old enough to drive, or choosing to attend college in a country halfway around the world. Whatever it is that gives the Auckland, New Zealand, native her composure, she certainly seems poised for her age.

“My parents, definitely,” says Vukona of where she turns for her support, even though they’re about 7,150 miles away from Pocatello. “I love talking with my family. Even at home, that was my support. If I have a bad day, I know there is another day that I can fix it. I’m still learning to adjust to everything here. But if there’s another day, there’s another thing to learn.”

Vukona, a 5-foot-11 wing player, arrived in Pocatello about a month ago to start school and begin working out with her new teammates. But she’ll be taking a break from Bengal practices next week, as she heads for another international adventure. She’ll be going to Malaysia to take part in the Asia Cup as part of the New Zealand U-20 national team.

“A couple of years ago, I tried out for the under-17 (national) team — we went to Mexico for the World Cup,” said Vukona. “And I just loved it. That was such a cool experience. I just wanted to do it again for my own age group. This team is a really cool group of girls. It’s always nice going back and just seeing people from New Zealand again. I’ve made heaps of friends there.”

The Asia Cup tournament will last about two weeks, and between pool play, crossovers and finals, Vukona and teammates could play as many as six games. It will be another opportunity for the Bengal freshman to experience more of the different approaches to how basketball is played around the world.

“There are so many different styles,” she said of what she’s learned in international competition. “A lot of the Asian teams are really quick and fast and shoot really well. A lot of the teams that I’ve played against can be really strong and physical. So I think learning to adapt to who you’re playing against and also how you want to play your style against other people.”

When she returns to Pocatello on Oct. 12, she’ll resume trying to find her place on a newly constructed Bengal roster that includes 10 new players this season.

“Gia is a long, athletic guard and, although she’s the youngest on the team, she has great experience playing club in Australia, with the New Zealand national team and a representative of NBA Basketball Without Borders,” said ISU head coach Seton Sobolewski.

The Bengal coach noted that Vukona comes by her basketball abilities naturally. Her dad, Mika, is a New Zealand basketball legend, having played on five New Zealand Basketball League championship teams, while serving as captain of the New Zealand Tall Blacks, the national team, where he competed for 16 years.

“Growing up, me and my brother would always go to his games every weekend,” said Gia. “We’d watch him on TV. It was such a cool experience living that. And I didn’t even know at the time how cool it was. It wasn’t until I grew up and starting playing basketball and really liking it. It’s like, ‘Wow, this is actually awesome.’ And I think my brother realized the same thing.”

A 6-foot-6 power forward, Mika was known as a feisty scrapper on the court — the kind of playing style Gia hopes to emulate in her career.

“He’s sort of what I want to be like,” she said. “He was the mongrel, the hustler, he was always trying to get the loose balls. His game was just sort of built on rebounding and outhustling everyone else. I think to play like that would be awesome.”

While she probably didn’t realize it at the time, Vukona made an early connection with Idaho State basketball when Brooke Blair, a future Bengal, served as her babysitter when she was younger. Blair, an Auckland native, was a star guard for Idaho State from 2015-2018.

Vukona’s official relationship with Sobolewski and the Idaho State program came several years later, when the Bengal coach began the recruiting process.

“Coach had watched a couple of my games, I think he got sent some film, and then he gave me a call one day,” said Vukona. “He told me all about the school and I just loved it. I love the coaching staff, the way he coached, just everything about ISU just sounded like a cool school.”

Vukona joins an Idaho State roster that features eight players from foreign countries, including Montenegro, Australia, Portugal, Iceland and France, as well as New Zealand. It’s a true melting pot of basketball talent, as well as cultural orientations.

“I love all the different backgrounds everyone is from,” said Vukona. “My roommate, Aziliz (Le Guen), she’s from France and we’ve gotten pretty close, which is really nice. And then I met Krystal (Arnason), who is also from Melbourne … I’ve played against her maybe once or twice. Getting to know all the girls is really cool.”

Vukona, who plans to major in biology with a concentration in biomedical science, is still adjusting to basketball American-style. She says U.S. players tend to be more aggressive offensively, more physical and faster.

“It’s pretty hard to keep up with them defensively sometimes,” she said, “but I think it’s an awesome challenge to learn.”

She’s also adjusting to the U.S. culture. She finds Americans more engaging, which is a positive. Oh, and there’s one other thing about America that she really enjoys.

“I love the drink sizes here,” she says with a smile. “I love my large Starbucks iced coffee.”