The Portland State Vikings will play their second top-10 opponent of the season this Sunday when they travel to Washington State for a 5:30 p.m. game. It will be the first meeting between the two schools in seven years.

PSU carries a three-game winning streak and 6-3 overall record to Pullman. The Vikings are going for their first four-game winning streak since February 2006. Meanwhile, the Cougars are 8-0 and ranked eighth in the nation. PSU has never beaten Washington State (0-5).

The Vikings made a narrow escape for a win on Wednesday night, defeating Lewis and Clark at The Rose Garden, 61-60. PSU led by 18 points in the second half, but held off the hard-charging Pioneers in the late-going. SR C Scott Morrison did not play in the game, resting a sore back, but he will return for Sunday's contest at WSU.

Washington State picked up a big 51-47 win at 17th-ranked Gonzaga on Wednesday. That kept the Cougars' perfect season alive.

WHAT (OR WHERE) NEXT?
Portland State played Wednesday's home game at The Rose Garden due to water damage on the Stott Center basketball floor. The location for the Dec. 12 game with Cal Poly has yet to be determined. The possibility still exists that it could be played at the Stott Center. An announcement will be made by early next week.

PORTLAND STATE VS. #8 WASHINGTON STATE
Sunday, December 9, 5:30 p.m., Friel Court (11,671), Pullman, WA
Television: None ? Live Webcast: None ? Live Stats: None
Radio: AM 910 KTRO, www.am910ktro.com
Pregame Show: 5 p.m. ? Tip-off: 5:30 p.m. ? Play-by-play: Tom Hewitt

STORYLINE
Portland State meets Washington State for the first time in seven seasons. The Cougars lead the all-time series, 5-0. WSU beat PSU, 83-55, on Nov. 20, 2000, but the previous four meetings were all decided by six points or less... the Cougars are ranked eighth in the nation, making them PSU's second nationally-ranked Pac-10 opponent this year (#2 UCLA). The Vikings are 4-37 all-time against Pac-10 teams... currently 8-0, Washington State comes off a 26-8 season... the Cougars are 5-0 at home, while the Vikings have gone 4-3 on the road.

THE COUGARS
Washington State gets the job done with defense and solid half-court offense. The Cougars are allowing just 51.5 points per game this year, while opponents shoot only .372 from the field. Just once this year has an opponent scored more than 64 points.
Meanwhile, WSU shoots .496 from the field, .772 at the line, and has shot nearly twice as many free throws as its opponents.
Senior guard Derrick Low is averaging a team-best 13.5 points per game. He has a team-leading 21 three-point field goals. Also scoring in double figures are Kyle Weaver (12.0 ppg, 3.8 apg) and Taylor Rochestie (10.9 ppg, 4.8 apg). Rochestie is shooting .600 from the field and .526 from three-point range.
Head Coach Tony Bennett is in his second season and has a record of 34-8.

COMING UP:
PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS VS. CAL POLY MUSTANGS
Wednesday, December 12, 7:05 p.m., site TBA, Portland, OR
Television: None ? Live Webcast: None ? Live Stats: GoViks.com
Radio: AM 910 KTRO, www.am910ktro.com
Pregame Show: 6:30 p.m. ? Tip-off: 7:05 p.m. ? Play-by-play: Tom Hewitt

STORYLINE
Portland State and Cal Poly will meet for the second time in as many years on Wednesday at a site to be determined in Portland. The game is a return contest for last year's ESPN BracketBuster game. The Mustangs won that one in San Luis Obispo, 92-87... the schools have played five times over the past nine seasons with PSU holding a 3-2 advantage in the series. The Vikings are 2-0 against the Mustangs in Portland... Cal Poly is 4-3 this season, with a game at Northern Arizona on Sunday... last year, the Mustangs were 19-11. They finished 9-5 and in second place in the Big West.

JUMP SHOTS
WINS AND LOSSES
Portland State is 6-3 this season, 4-3 in road games with three of those being neutral site contests... the Vikings are 2-0 at home, and now 101-42 in home games since basketball was reinstated for the 1996-97 season. Included in that total is a 72-27 record at the Stott Center... Head Coach Ken Bone is 37-32 in his third year at Portland State. He has at least one win against every Big Sky Conference school. Bone has not faced Washington State as a PSU head coach.

WINNING THE CLOSE ONES
With an overtime win at the Utah Valley on Saturday, and a one-point win over Lewis and Clark on Wednesday, the Vikings are now 5-1 in games decided by seven points or less. The Vikings also have a 43-point win, and losses by eight and 21 points.

VIKINGS IN THE GARDEN
The Portland State program is now 17-9 all-time when using the Rose Garden as a home court. Prior to Wednesday's game with Lewis and Clark, PSU's last appearance in the Rose Garden was a Dec. 12, 2001 game against Oregon State.

VIKINGS SURVIVE ROSE GARDEN SCARE, 61-60
It wasn't pretty, but the Vikings managed a narrow escape in a 61-60 victory at their home away from home, The Rose Garden, on Wednesday night. The game, which was Portland State's home contest, was played at the Rose Garden in Portland due to water damage on the Stott Center floor. The Vikings had command early, and an 18-point lead in the second half, but Lewis and Clark roared back in the closing moments and nearly stole the victory... the Pioneers missed their first nine shots as the Vikings built an early 8-0 lead. Tyson Papenfuss finally got Lewis and Clark on the board with a layin at the 14:32 mark of the first half... both teams struggled offensively throughout the half. However, the Vikings' Andre Murray was the difference. He had 12 points and eight rebounds by halftime, hitting 6-8 from the field. The Vikings led 32-20 at the break... the Vikings pushed the lead up to 48-33 on a three-pointer by Deonte Huff with 8:52 left in the game, but the Pioneers roared back to make a game of it... Lewis and Clark cut the deficit to 11 at the 7:43 mark, then a three-pointer by Mark Robinowitz at 6:11 cut it to 50-42. Gene Rivera hit two free throws at the 4:44 mark and LC was with 52-46... it got dicey for the Vikings in the closing moments. PSU lost its two leading scorers inside the final five minutes. First, Murray went down with an ankle sprain. Then, Huff fouled out. With center Scott Morrison sitting out to rest a sore back, the Vikings' lineup was thin... twice the Pioneers closed it to five points, but Julius Thomas made three inside baskets to help the Vikings maintain the lead. Then, Rivera hit field goals at 1:32 and 37.5 seconds to cut the Vikings lead to 60-57... PSU's Brian Curtis made one of two free throws with 23.5 seconds left to make it 61-57. But, Thomas Tillery's driving layin and free throw at the 15.3 second mark had Lewis and Clark within 61-60. Trying to run out the clock, the Vikings turned it over on their final possession, but Lewis and Clark could not get a good shot up before the final horn... Murray finished with 14 points and nine rebounds for the Vikings. Huff had 13 points and six rebounds. Thomas came off the bench for a season-high 11 points and seven rebounds.

NO DOUBTING THOMAS' SHOT SELECTION
SO F Julius Thomas set a Portland State record last season by shooting .639 from the field (62-97). This year, he has picked up where he left off, hitting 14 of his first 18 shots (.778). That's four missed shots in eight games played... Thomas had his best game of the year against Lewis and Clark, scoring 11 points on 5-5 field goals. He also grabbed seven rebounds and had two assists in 18 minutes off the bench... in his brief career, Thomas has made 76-115 shots for a .661 field goal percentage.

THREE AT A TIME
A big concern for the Portland State Vikings coming into the 2007-08 season was, “who would provide the long-range shooting?” Portland State lost seniors Juma Kamara and Paul Hafford who had combined to make 145 three-pointers - nearly 70% of the team total in 2006-07. Although the Vikings made just 8-35 from long range in their last two games, they have proven to be effective again from outside. Seven different Vikings have at least five three-point field goals, and three already have 11 or more. The long-range shooting is coming from all sources. Leading the team from three-point range is SO F Tyrell Mara, who hit 5-6 against the University of Portland and is 17-38 on the year (.447). JR G Jeremiah Dominguez is 19-46 this season (.413)... with an average of 7.67 three-pointers per game, the Vikings are leading the Big Sky Conference, and are well ahead of last year's pace (6.6). The Vikings' three-point percentage has improved to .347, compared to .333 last season.

THE BIGGEST THREE SO FAR
JR G Andre Murray hit perhaps the biggest three-point field goal of the season so far when he buried one with 17 seconds left against Utah Valley. That three-pointer tied the game at 47-47 and sent it into overtime. The Vikings went on to win, 60-53... Murray had 12 points in 33 minutes as he was making his second start of the season. He hit 5-8 shots from the field and 2-3 from three-point range... Murray started again against Lewis and Clark and had another good game before an ankle sprain took him out with 4:44 to play. Still, Murray led the team with 14 points, nine rebounds and four steals... Murray has stated three games this season in which the Vikings have gone 3-0. In his last two starts he averaged 13.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals. He made 12-20 field goals (60%)... Murray averages 5.7 points and 2.8 rebounds on the season.

IT DOESN'T ADD UP
Through nine games, the Vikings have very balanced scoring with six different players having led the team on a given night. No Viking has scored as many as 20 points. Despite balance in the scoring column, the Vikings' overall numbers are down in the early going. PSU scored 93 against Linfield (11/20), but are averaging only 68.0 points per game so far. Last year, PSU averaged 78.2 per game. Ironically, all three Viking shooting percentages are as good or better (.448, .347, .707) compared to last year (.457, .333, .645), and turnovers are down (14.6 this year, 15.7 last year). In addition, the Vikings lead the Big Sky Conference in three-point field goals made per game (7.67). No doubt, the Vikings want the pace of the game to increase and be more suitable to their style of play.

ON THE OTHER HAND...
Portland State is allowing only 64.6 points per game - third-best in the Big Sky Conference - after giving up 75.2 last year. PSU opponents have only scored over 70 points three times this year and shoot only .439 from the field.

HUFF STUFF
SR G Deonte Huff was a key to the Viking win at the University of Portland last week, scoring five points in a 10-3 run to open the second half and give PSU a 10-point lead, and hitting four straight free throws in the final minute to help seal the win. Huff had a season-high 15 points, four rebounds and two assists in the game. Since then, Huff had 12 points and eight rebounds at Utah Valley, then 13 points and six rebounds against Lewis and Clark. Huff has now been in double figures in six straight games... Huff is averaging 11.2 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. His free throw percentage is up to .846 this season after shooting .642 last year. He has made 20 of his last 21 free throws (.952)... Huff had 29 points, 17 rebounds and six assists as he earned All-Tournament honors at the Top of the World Classic.

FAST START FOR JEREMIAH
JR G Jeremiah Dominguez had a season-high 19 points, scoring nine of those in overtime, in leading the Vikings to a 60-53 win over Utah Valley last Saturday. He also had three assists, three rebounds and three steals. That continued the excellent start to his Portland State career. Dominguez ranks second on the team in scoring (11.4), and leads in three-point field goals (19), assists (28), steals (22) and minutes played (30.4), while running the point. He is shooting .462 from the field and .413 from three-point range... Dominguez hit the winning basket against IUPUI and was named All-Tournament at the Top of the World Classic. He shot 60% from the field in the tournament... Dominguez had a season-high seven assists against Linfield.

IT TAKES A THIEF
Did I mention the 22 steals? That's right, JR G Jeremiah Dominguez has 22 to rank second in the Big Sky Conference with an average of 2.44. That is the highest average by a Viking since PSU brought back basketball for the 1996-97 season.

BIG CANADA
SR C Scott Morrison, a native of British Columbia, sat out Wednesday's game to rest his sore back. Morrison will return to action on Sunday at Washington State... prior to missing the Lewis and Clark game, Morrison had been red-hot, hitting 20-30 shots in his last four games (.667) and 38-61 on the season (.623). Morrison scored 15 points (7-9 FG) with four rebounds, three assists and a block at Portland, then had his second double-double of the year with 12 points and 10 rebounds in the win at Utah Valley.... Morrison leads the Vikings in scoring (11.8), rebounding (6.3) and blocked shots (9)... Morrison has scored in double figures in seven of eight games this year... Morrison is PSU's all-time leading shot-blocker with 143 in his career and ranks second all-time in shooting percentage (.539)... Morrison has also passed the 500-rebound plateau for his career... on his current pace, Morrison will be Portland State's all-time leader in games played and blocked shots, and rank in the top 10 all-time in scoring, rebounding and field goal percentage.

LITTLE CANADA
SO F Tyrell Mara, also a native of British Columbia, played perhaps his best game of the year in the win at the University of Portland. Mara hit 5-6 three-point field goals on his way to 15 points, seven rebounds, two assists and three steals. Although he failed to score on three shot attempts at Utah Valley, Mara had six rebounds, a career-high five assists and two steals in a career-high 34 minutes played. Against Lewis and Clark, Mara added four points, five rebounds and two assists... Mara is averaging 8.9 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists while being the only Viking to start every game... Mara is shooting .467 from the field and .447 from three-point range... Mara had a team-high and career-high 18 points in the Vikings' win over IUPUI (11/16). He had a career-high of eight rebounds at UC Davis (11/24)... Mara averaged 2.9 points and 2.7 rebounds as a freshman in 2005-06. Mara played only briefly in 2006-07, then had to sit out with a knee injury.

A KINDER, GENTLER SEASON
Through the first nine games of the season, there have been exactly zero technical fouls called on Portland State and its' opponents. Are the NCAA's new stricter behavior guidelines working? Last season, there were a total of 21 technical fouls called on PSU and its' opponents in 30 games played.