Portland, OR - If the Vikings could have made the game just a few seconds longer, they might have had a big come-from-behind win. Instead, they fell just short of the Montana Grizzlies, losing 69-67, at the Stott Center.

PSU trailed by as many as 14 in the second half, and were still down by nine with 3:01 to play. Charles Odum scored all 10 points in a 10-1 run, and the Vikings cut it to two points on two occasions, and one with just four seconds to go.

The Vikings fouled Mathias Ward, who made just one of two. Chehales Tapscott rebounded and Gary Winston raced up the floor. However, a converging Montana defense prevented Winston from ever getting a final shot away.

The Grizzlies held on for the win and maintained a share of first-place in the Big Sky Conference at 8-1. Montana is the hottest team in the league with four straight wins and 10 in their last 11.

Meanwhile the Vikings, who have lost two in a row, are now in fifth place at 4-5. 

Montana made eight of its first 11 shots on the way to a 19-13 lead. For most of the half the Grizzlies, the Big Sky's best defensive team, kept the game at its' preferred half-court pace. 

Late in the half, Tapscott sparked a 7-0 run with two steals and a pair of free throws. That finally gave PSU a 32-30 lead with 2:16 left before intermission. But the Griz scored the last five points of the half to go in leading 35-32.

Montana pushed their lead to 43-32 early in the second half and maintained the defensive pressure. Eventually that lead grew to 55-41 at the 9:34 mark before PSU got back into it.

"I told the guys, 'We can't wait until we are down 12 to start fighting.' You can't come out and dig yourself a hole like that to start the second half," said Viking Coach Tyler Geving.

"It's frustrating, because I don't feel like we are a 10-11 team (overall), and I don't feel like we are a 4-5 team (in conference). I feel like we are a lot better than that."

The Grizzlies defense did a job on Odum, the Vikings leading scorer, for most of the game. He had only five points before he was part of the big comeback. Odum finished with 19 points, but also had seven turnovers.

Tapscott scored 14 points and grabbed a career-high 16 rebounds. It was the most boards by a Viking in five years. 

Renado Parker scored 10 points with eight rebounds off the bench.

Will Cherry scored 20 points and had five steals to lead Montana. Ward pitched in 18 points, while Derek Selvig scored 10 points with nine rebounds.

Montana shot .500 from the field (25-50), compared to .423 for the Vikings (22-52). PSU had a big edge on the glass at 39-23, but also committed 15 turnovers for 19 Montana points.

GAME NOTES: Tapscott's double-double was his eighth of the season. In addition to the rebounds, he tied a career-high with five steals… Montana has now won seven in a row against the Vikings… PSU has lost two straight at home, but won their last two on the road… the Vikings travel to Weber State for a game next Thursday. Tip-off is 6:05 p.m. PT and the game will air on a different station than normal, AM1360 KUIK. A live video stream is available at www.b2tv.com.