Portland, OR - Charles Odum posted a career-high 29 points to lead the Portland State Vikings to their third win in four Big Sky Conference games, beating Idaho State, 80-68, at the Stott Center.

For most of the night, the Vikings' play was as blustery as the chilly, wet weather on the Park Blocks. But PSU took charge midway through the second half, pulling away for the win.

Odum's 29 came on 10-18 from the field, 3-5 from three-point range and 6-7 at the line. He had 18 in the second half and eight in the final two minutes. 

The win gets the Vikings to an even 9-9 on the season and 3-3 in the Big Sky. PSU moves into a tie for fifth place with Saturday night's opponent, Eastern Washington.

Portland State got off to a sluggish start. The Vikings made only one of their first eight shots and trailed 9-2 after six minutes. Idaho State mixed up its defensive looks throughout the first half further confusing PSU. The Bengal lead increased to 10 on two different occasions.

Chehales Tapscott sparked an 8-0 run with five points and a steal, pulling the Vikings within 26-24 just inside of four minutes to go in the half. 

Odum made a running three-pointer at the end of the half, was fouled on the play and converted the free throw for four. That tied it for the first time at 32-32.

"That was a big play and gave us a little momentum," said Viking Coach Tyler Geving. "To go in there tied at half we felt pretty good."

The Vikings were lucky to have the tie at intermission, shooting only .367 from the field, but took advantage with 11 points off ISU turnovers.

"The way we are successful is to get energy off our defense and at the beginning of the game we didn't have any defensive intensity, so I think that is why we were flat both offensively and defensively," said Odum. 

Odum then opened the second half with a three and the Vikings had their first lead at 35-32. The lead changed hands six more times before PSU finally had the game in hand. Trailing 49-48 at the 10:32 mark, the Vikings went on an 15-3 run. Tapscott's driving layin at the 6:39 mark had PSU ahead 63-52.

The Vikings shot 12-19 from the field in the second half (.632) and took advantage by making 21-26 free throws. 

Tapscott had one of his best games with 15 points, six rebounds and career-highs of five steals and four blocked shots. His harassing defense in the front of the Viking press helped forced Idaho State into 16 turnovers which PSU turned into 23 points.

"Our defense got us back into it. Chehales made a bunch of nice plays, pressing again (and forcing turnovers). That got us some easy baskets, a little momentum and it went from two-point lead to 10 in a hurry in the second half," said Geving. "The good thing is, everybody in the locker room wasn't celebrating. They knew we didn't play well, but still found a way to win. That's what good teams do."

Kenny McGowen scored 20 points to lead Idaho State. Chase Grabau added 18 points and four assists. The Bengals dropped to 4-14 on the season, 2-4 in the Big Sky.

GAME NOTES: Portland State is now 6-1 at home this year… Odum was named Big Sky Conference Player of the Week earlier in the day for his performance in last week's win at Northern Colorado (22 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists)… it was Odum's seventh 20-point game of the season, but his first at home. PSU is 4-3 when he scores 20... the Vikings play at Eastern Washington on Saturday at 6:05 p.m. The game airs on Freedom 970 AM and www.freedom970.com. A live video stream is available at www.b2tv.com.