Complete game notes (PDF)

THIS WEEK: Portland State (11-9, 3-5 Big Sky) looks to return to the win column this week when they host Weber State (2-19, 0-8 Big Sky) on Thursday at 7 p.m., and Northern Arizona (7-14, 2-7 Big Sky) on Saturday at 2 p.m.

GAME NO. 21
vs. Weber State (2-19, 0-8 Big Sky)
Thursday, Feb. 2  •  7 p.m.
Portland, OR  •  Stott Center

COVERAGE
Audio/Video: Big Sky TV
Play-by-Play: Teri Mariani
Live Stats: GoViks.com

SERIES INFORMATION
All-Time: WSU leads 23-19
Big Sky: PSU leads 16-15
At PSU: PSU leads 13-8
At PSU Big Sky: PSU leads 10-5
Streak: PSU 2
Last PSU Win: PSU 66, WSU 56; 1/7/11 @ NAU
Last WSU Win: WSU 65, PSU 62; 1/20/11 @ WSU

PORTLAND STATE vs. WEBER STATE STORYLINES
• Portland State has won the past two meetings, including a 66-56 in Ogden on Jan. 7. PSU has also won six of the past seven.
• Portland State is 7-2 against the Wildcats under Sherri Murrell, including 4-0 at home. They have won by an average of 15.3 points at the Stott Center and three of the victories have been by double-digits. Overall, the Vikings' seven wins have come by an average of 12.4 points.
• The past four games have all been relatively low scoring affairs, with PSU averaging 65.3 points and Weber State averaging 60.8 points.
• PSU controlled the Big Sky series early, winning six of the first eight, before Weber State won 11 of the next 14 regular season games. The Wildcats also knocked off the Viks in the 2006-07 Big Sky Tourney.
• Both squads enter on losing streaks. Portland State has lost four in a row, while the Wildcats have dropped 11 straight. Weber State did give first-place Idaho State a tough game on Jan. 28, though, losing by just two, 54-52. The Vikings have won just one time since their win in Ogden on Jan. 7.
• In the game earlier this season, four Vikings scored in double-figures and Keaton McFadden pulled down a career-best 11 rebounds in the victory. PSU took a 37-24 advantage into the break, and except for the first two minutes of the second period, they led by double-digits the rest of the way. Kate Lanz led the Vikings with 21 points, while Karley Lampman had 18. Mikell Woofield paced Weber State with 17 points and nine boards. PSU outshot WSU, 47.5%-37.5%, and held the Wildcats to just 1 of 9 shooting from behind the arc.

GAME NO. 22
vs. Northern Arizona (7-14, 2-7 Big Sky)
Saturday, Feb. 4  •  2 p.m.
Portland, OR  •  Stott Center

COVERAGE
Audio/Video: Big Sky TV
Play-by-Play: Teri Mariani
Live Stats: GoViks.com
TV: Comcast SportsNet (Tape-Delayed); Feb. 4: 7 p.m.; Feb. 5: 12:30 p.m.;  Feb. 6: 7 a.m.
Play-by-Play: Bob Akamian
Color: Ann Schatz

SERIES INFORMATION
All-Time: NAU leads 18-15
Big Sky: NAU leads 17-14
At PSU: PSU leads 10-6
At PSU Big Sky: PSU leads 9-6
Streak: PSU 4
Last PSU Win: PSU 84, NAU 74; 1/5/12 @ NAU
Last NAU Win: NAU 86, PSU 80; 1/16/10 @ NAU

PORTLAND STATE vs. NORTHERN ARIZONA STORYLINES
• The Vikings have won the last four games and nine of the last 10 in the series. They are 8-1 against the Lumberjacks under Sherri Murrell, including 4-0 at the Stott Center.
• Of Portland State's eight wins against NAU in the Sherri Murrell era, seven have come by double digits. PSU has won those games by an average of 19.6 points.
• PSU has held the Lumberjacks to under 60 points in six of the last nine games, including each of the past three in Portland.
• The Vikings clinched a spot in the Big Sky tourney last season with their 76-55 win over Northern Arizona at home on Feb. 19.
• Earlier this year, PSU earned a 84-74 victory in Flagstaff as they shot a season-high 54.5 percent. They shot 65.4% in the opening period. The Vikings led by 20 points at halftime, but had to make free throws down the stretch to hold off the Lumberjacks for what was their first league victory. The game started as a back-and-forth affair as the teams traded the lead four times over the first five-plus minutes. A 3-pointer by Portland State's Eryn Jones at the 14:06 mark broke a tie and put the Vikings up for good, 15-12. Jones' three-pointer started a 11-0 run that helped the Vikings establish control. Kate Lanz recorded her fifth-straight double-double with 29 points and 13 rebounds. Aubrey Davis and Trinidee Trice paced Northern Arizona with 15 points apiece.
• Both teams rank in the top 100 nationally in 3-point field goal percentage. Portland State is 30th, shooting 35.1%, while Northern Arizona is 85th, shooting 32.4%. The Lumberjacks rank near the bottom in 3-point field goal defense, though, allowing opponents to shoot 34.5% to rank 309th. The Vikings shot 50% (7-14) on Jan. 5.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE VIKINGS THIS WEEK: Both games this week will be broadcast through Big Sky TV with Teri Mariani calling the action. Live stats will also be available. Links for everything can be found by visiting GoViks.com, then clicking on the LIVE EVENTS tab. Under there you will find the LIVE AUDIO/VIDEO and the LIVE STATS pages.

VIKINGS ON THE TUBE: Portland State's home game against Northern Arizona on Feb. 4 will air three times on Comcast SportsNet. The game will be tape delayed broadcast that evening at 7 p.m. It will also air on Feb. 5 at 12:30 p.m., and on Feb. 6 at 7 a.m. Long-time Portland-area broadcasters Bob Akamian (play-by-play) and Ann Schatz (color analyst) will call the action.

LOOKING TO GET BACK ON TRACK: Portland State will look to get back on track this week after four consecutive conference losses. All four defeats have come to teams that are one through four in the league standings and have a combined 26-8 Big Sky record. This is PSU's first four-game conference losing streak since 2006-07.

COMING HOME: The Vikings return home just when they need to the most, playing their next four games at the Stott Center. During their current four-game losing streak, PSU has dropped three road contests. After playing five of their past seven away from the Park Blocks, the Vikings close by playing six of their last nine at home.

MAKING THEIR FREE THROWS: The Vikings have made huge strides in their free throw shooting this season and rank third in the country, hitting at a 80.9 percent clip. PSU leads the conference in that category by a large margin as Idaho State is second with a 72.9 percentage. Courtney VanBrocklin (90.8%) and Kate Lanz (86.2%) have been the biggest reasons behind the high ranking as they are fifth and 36th nationally, respectively. Also, Eryn Jones is shooting 90% at the line, but doesn't have enough attempts to qualify for the rankings. Eleven times this year the Vikings have shot 80 percent or better and only twice have they shot less than 70 percent. Their shooting at the charity stripe is much improved from the past two years when they ranked 217th (67.2%) in 2009-10 and 105th (71.1%) last season.

MORE ON THE FREE THROWS: Courtney VanBrocklin became the 10th player in PSU history to go perfect at the line with a minimum of 10 attempts when she made all 10 against UC Davis on Dec. 19. VanBrocklin made 23-straight until missing her first attempt against Montana State on Dec. 31. VanBrocklin has missed just eight attempts all year, making 79 of 87. If the season were to end today, her 90.8 percentage would break the Portland State single season record held by Renae Aschoff, who shot 88.2% in 1992-93.

CELEBRATING TITLE IX: This year marks the 40th anniversary of Title IX and the Portland State Athletic Department will host a weekend of events to celebrate and honor the impact that the legendary amendment has had on women, on sport and on its own department. The Title IX weekend of events will aim to recognize the successes that our womens teams and women student-athletes have experienced pre and post Title IX. On Saturday, Feb. 4, PSU will host free clinics for softball, women's soccer and women's tennis from 12:30-1:30 p.m., as well as a volleyball meet and greet and alumni social from 1-2 p.m. Tickets to the women's basketball game at 2 p.m. against Northern Arizona are just $5, and a postgame Title IX celebration will start at 4 p.m. For more information, contact Beth Connell in the PSU Athletics Ticket Office at 503-725-5627.

WINNING THE BATTLE OF THE BOARDS: A bright spot for the Vikings that past couple of weeks has been their rebounding. They have won the battle of the boards in eight of their last 11 games, and tied an opponent once during that span. They also have a +4.3 rebounding margin after getting outrebounded by 6.4 boards per game over their first nine contests. Over the last 11 games, Kate Lanz has averaged 9.4 rebounds and Keaton McFadden 6.3.

DOMINANT AT THE STOTT CENTER: Over the past four-plus seasons under Sherri Murrell, the Vikings have posted a 56-11 overall record (.836) and 29-6 Big Sky mark (.829) inside the Stott Center. Even more impressive, Portland State has won by an average of 13.8 points at home overall and in conference games. The Vikings have won 35 contests by a double-digit margin, including 15 victories by at least 20 points. This year, PSU is 6-2 at home and winning by an average of 14.7 points.

PSU IN THE NATIONAL STATISTICAL RANKINGS: Three PSU players – Eryn Jones, Kate Lanz and Courtney VanBrocklin – are ranked in the top 100 in the NCAA in different statistical categories (as of Jan. 29), while the Vikings as a team rank in the top 100 of eight categories. Jones is ranked 30th in 3-point FGs made per game (2.6), 45th in 3-point FG percentage (37.7), 68th in assist/turnover ratio (1.57) and 94th in assists (4.2 apg), VanBrocklin is fifth in FT percentage (90.8), and Lanz is 36th in FT percentage (86.2), 69th in FG percentage (48.5) and 70th in scoring (16.8 ppg). As a team, PSU is third in FT percentage (80.9), 30th in 3-point FG percentage (35.1), 58th in scoring offense (79.6 ppg), 61st in 3-point FG defense (27.8%), 63rd in fewest turnovers per game (15.7), 79th in assist/turnover ratio (0.85), 84th in fewest personal fouls per game (15.2) and 100th in 3-pointers made per game (5.6).

INSIDE THE RPI: The Vikings moved down nine spots to 152nd and are now fourth amongst Big Sky Conference teams in the NCAA RPI rankings that were released on Jan. 30. Idaho State is the highest ranked team at 64. The other remaining teams are ranked as followed: 121-Eastern Washington, 140-Montana State, 162-Northern Colorado, 191-Montana, 289-Sacramento State, 282-Northern Arizona, 333-Weber State.

THE BIG FOUR: The Vikings have four players that are scoring the bulk of the teams' points this season. Kate Lanz, Eryn Jones, Karley Lampman and Courtney VanBrocklin are accounting for 74.4 percent of the team's offense, while making 93.8 percent of the team's 3-pointers and 68.6 percent of the team's free throws. They are shooting a combined 86.7 percent (192-222) at the line. Three of them rank amongst the top 10 in the league in scoring as Lanz is second, VanBrocklin is fifth and Jones is 10th. Lampman is 25th, making the Vikings one of only two teams to have four players in the top 25 (Montana State is the other).