Complete game notes (PDF)

THIS WEEK: A big week lies ahead for the Portland State women's basketball team (13-12, 5-7 Big Sky), as they travel to face second-place Eastern Washington (16-10, 10-3 Big Sky) on Thursday at 6:05 p.m., before hosting Sacramento State (10-17, 5-9 Big Sky) on Saturday at 1 p.m.

GAME NO. 26
at Eastern Washington (16-10, 10-3 Big Sky)
Thursday, Feb. 23  •  6:05 p.m.
Cheney, WA  •  Reese Court

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

SERIES INFORMATION
All-Time: EWU leads 29-24
Big Sky: PSU leads 17-14
At EWU: EWU leads 17-8
At EWU Big Sky: EWU leads 9-6
Streak: EWU 1
Last PSU Win: PSU 73, EWU 62; 3/11/12 @ PSU; BSC Tourney
Last EWU Win: EWU 75, PSU 67; 1/21/12 @ PSU

PORTLAND STATE vs. EASTERN WASHINGTON STORYLINES
• The Vikings have won nine of the past 13, but have lost two straight in Cheney.
• Eastern Washington claimed a 75-67 win at the Stott Center on Jan. 21, as PSU committed 21 turnovers and coughed up a late lead. The Vikings led 28-27 at the break and the second period was a back-and-forth affair until late when the Eagles broke free from a 65-65 tie by scoring six unanswered points. PSU received 18 points and eight rebounds from Kate Lanz, while the Eagles got 15 points and six steals from Brianne Ryan, and 18 points and 10 boards from Carrie Ojeda.
• Last year they split the series, with the home team winning each time, before the Vikings earned a 73-62 victory in the semis of the Big Sky tournament.
• Eastern Washington has won the past two at Reese Court after the Vikings had won two in a row there.
• Sherri Murrell is 7-3 against EWU, including 2-2 in Cheney. In 16 years as a head coach she has a 9-6 record against the Eagles.
• Two of the top three scorers in the Big Sky will face off as Eastern's Brianne Ryan leads the league at 19.7 ppg, and PSU's Kate Lanz is third, averaging 16.7 ppg. They are 18th and 66th nationally in scoring, respectively.
• The Vikings Eryn Jones and Ryan both rank in the top 100 in 3-point FGs made per game and 3-point FG pct. Jones is 27th (2.6) and 21st (39.5%), while Ryan is 43rd (2.5) and 68th (35.1%).
• Ryan (1,385) and Jones (1,302) rank third and fourth amongst active Big Sky players in career scoring.
• PSU is 28th nationally in 3-point field goal percentage (35.1%), while the Eagles are 46th (34.1%).

GAME NO. 27
vs. Sacramento State (10-17, 5-9 Big Sky)
Saturday, Feb. 25  •  1 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: PSU leads 24-9
Big Sky: PSU leads 22-9
At PSU: PSU leads 13-3
At PSU Big Sky: PSU leads 12-3
Streak: SAC 1
Last PSU Win: PSU 92, SAC 74; 2/3/11 @ PSU
Last SAC Win: SAC 71, PSU 67; 2/18/12 @ SAC

PORTLAND STATE vs. SACRAMENTO STATE STORYLINES
• Saturday's game pits two teams against each other that are fighting it out for the sixth and final spot in the Big Sky Tournament. PSU currenlty has a one-game edge. The Vikings have four games left, two at home and two on the road. Sac State plays twice more, at PSU and at home against first-place Idaho State.
• Even with the Hornets win in Sacramento on Feb. 18, the Vikings have still won 10 of the past 12 in the series.
• Sherri Murrell has a 7-2 record against the Hornets while at PSU and a 12-2 record all-time.
• The Hornets took the first matchup of this season, 71-67, on Feb. 18 in Sacramento. PSU was up 56-51 with 7:48 left, but Sac State got hot and rallied for the victory to keep their postseason hopes alive. There were nine tie scores and 10 lead changes, and the teams combined for 47 turnovers. Eryn Jones paced PSU with 21 points and a career-best eight rebounds, while Kylie Kuhns had 17 points and nine boards on her way to being named Big Sky Player of the Week.
• Sacramento State is 30th nationally in scoring offense, averaging 71.7 ppg, while the Vikings are 49th, averaging 69.8.
• The Hornets are 296th nationally in 3-point field goal defense (33.6%), but held the Vikings to 3 of 11 (27.2%) shooting in their victory on Feb. 18.
• Despite the 47 combined turnovers last Saturday, both squads still rank in the top 100 nationally in assist/turnover ratio. Sac State is 61st (0.9) and PSU is 82nd (0.85).
• Jones is fourth amongst active Big Sky players in career scoring (1,302), while Sac State's Emily Christensen is sixth (1,084) and Kylie Kuhns is seventh (1,063).

HOW TO FOLLOW THE VIKINGS THIS WEEK: Thursday's game will be broadcast through Big Sky TV. Additionally, an internet audio broadcast will be available through GoViks.com with Teri Mariani calling the action. Live stats will also be available. On Saturday, Viking fans can follow all of the action through Big Sky TV and live stats will also be up. 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.

TIME TO RIGHT THE SHIP: With two weeks left in the regular season, Portland State must right the ship if they hope to make it into the Big Sky Tournament. After going 9-2 from Dec. 3-Jan. 12, the Vikings are just 2-7 since. Picked to win the Big Sky title in the preseason polls, that dream is now gone. But, PSU still has the inside track for the sixth and final spot in the league tourney, which runs March 8-10. One thing that bodes well for the Vikings is that they were also picked to win the league in 2009-10, but finished fifth. However, they became the lowest seeded team to ever claim the tournament title by rattling off three-straight victories in Cheney, Wash., to reach the “Big Dance” for the first time in school history.

SHAPING UP THE BIG SKY RACE: It appears to be a two-team race for the regular season title with Idaho State in first place at 12-1 and Eastern Washington two games back at 10-3. Those two teams face off twice in the final two games of the season, playing on Feb. 25th in Cheney and March 3 in Pocatello. Montana State (9-5), Northern Colorado (8-5) and Montana (8-5) have also clinched spots in the Big Sky tournament, which runs March 8-10 at the site of the regular season champion. PSU (5-7) has a one-game lead over Sacramento State (5-9) for the sixth and final spot. Northern Arizona (3-11) and Weber State (0-14) have been eliminated.

DOMINANT AT THE STOTT CENTER: Over the past four-plus seasons under Sherri Murrell, the Vikings have posted a 58-13 overall record (.817) and 31-7 Big Sky mark (.816) 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 37 contests by a double-digit margin, including 15 victories by at least 20 points. This year, PSU is 8-4 at home and winning by an average of 14.4 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 Feb. 20), while the Vikings as a team rank in the top 100 of seven categories. Jones is ranked 21st in 3-point FG percentage (39.5), 27th in 3-point FGs made per game (2.6), 71st in assist/turnover ratio (1.56) and 80th in assists (4.2 apg), Lanz is 41st in FT percentage (83.9), 66th in FG percentage (48.0) and 66th in scoring (16.7 ppg), and VanBrocklin is second in FT percentage (90.8). As a team, PSU is fourth in FT percentage (79.9), 28th in 3-point FG percentage (35.1), 49th in scoring offense (69.8 ppg), 74th in fewest turnovers per game (15.8) and 3-point FG defense (28.5%), 82nd in assist/turnover ratio (0.85) and 97th in fewest fouls per game (15.4).

WINNING VERSUS LOSING: There are some glaring differences when you compare the Vikings' statistics from games they've won and lost. PSU is shooting 44.5% overall and 40.6% from 3-point range in wins, but just 35.7% overall and 30.4% from behind the arc in their 12 losses. They also have a +3.6 rebounding margin in their victories, but a -4.8 margin in their defeats. Finally, they have a +2.0 turnover margin when winning and a -0.83 margin when losing.

MAKING THEIR FREE THROWS: The Vikings have made huge strides in their free throw shooting this season and rank fourth in the country, hitting at a 79.9 percent clip. PSU leads the conference in that category by a large margin as Idaho State is second with a 74.0 percentage. Courtney VanBrocklin (90.8%) and Kate Lanz (83.9%) have been the biggest reasons behind the high ranking as they are second and 41st nationally, respectively. Also, Eryn Jones is shooting 91.8% at the line, but doesn't have enough attempts to qualify for the rankings. Thirteen times this year the Vikings have shot 80 percent or better and only three time 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 10 attempts all year, making 99 of 109. 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.

WINNING THE BATTLE OF THE BOARDS: A bright spot for the Vikings that past couple of months has been their rebounding. Portland State has won the battle of the boards in 11 of their last 16 games and tied an opponent once during that span. The Vikings have a +2.9 rebounding advantage over their last 16 contests and have outrebounded an opponent by 10 or more four times on the season, including against Sac State on Feb. 18 (44 to 34).