complete notes and stats in pdf

PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS vs. NORTH DAKOTA
Thursday, February 27, 5 p.m. PT • Betty Englestad Center (3,064), Grand Forks, ND
 
PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS
Record/Big Sky: 13-12, 8-8
Head Coach: Tyler Geving (65-82/5th year)
 
NORTH DAKOTA
Record/Big Sky: 12-14, 9-7
Head Coach: Brian Jones (114-128/8th year)
 
Live Video Stream: www.WatchBigSky.com
Live Audio Stream: www.GoViks.com • Play-by-play: Tom Hewitt • Pregame Show: 4:45 p.m.
Live Stats: www.undsports.com//liveStats/liveStats.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=13500
vikslive.statb.us, viksmobile.com
 
THE OPENING TIP
The Portland State Vikings want to play the second half of their four-game road trip just like the first half as they make their longest voyage of the season with games at North Dakota and Northern Colorado this weekend.
     
PSU comes off road wins over Southern Utah (86-79) and Eastern Washington (87-76) in its last two games and putting the Vikings in the thick of the Big Sky Conference Tournament race. Portland State was in 10th place in the extraordinarily tight conference standings a week ago, but now stand in a tie for sixth at 8-8. PSU is tied with Eastern Washington, Montana State and Northern Arizona as the teams vie to be one of seven to reach the Big Sky Tournament, Mar. 13-15. Just one game ahead of that group, in a tie for third at 9-7, is Thursday night's opponent North Dakota, as well as Sacramento State and Montana.
     
With the Big Sky standings as tight as they are - nine of the 11 teams in the Big Sky are at .500 or better - nothing is certain for the post-season. But, with four games left in the regular season, PSU probably needs to win two to make the Big Sky Tournament.
     
PSU (13-12, 8-8) plays at North Dakota (12-14, 9-7) on Thursday in a 5 p.m. PT game. Live video, audio and stats are available at GoViks.com. Just click on the Game Day box.
     
The Vikings beat the UND, 70-68, in Portland on Feb. 1. PSU is 3-7 on the road this season, but has won its last two. North Dakota has an 8-3 home record.
 
COMING UP
Portland State plays at second-place Northern Colorado (16-9, 10-6) on Saturday. The Vikings beat the Bears, 80-57, in Portland on Jan. 30.
     
The Vikings will wrap up the regular season at home in what may be two crucial games to their Big Sky Conference Tournament hopes. They play first-place Weber State (15-9, 12-4) on Mar. 6 and 10th-place Idaho State (10-15, 7-9) on Mar. 8.
     
The top seven teams in the Big Sky Conference will earn berths into the conference tournament, Mar. 13-15, at the home of the regular season champion. The host will have an opening round bye, while quarterfinal games will match 2 vs. 7, 3 vs. 6 and 4 vs. 5.
 
SHOOTERS TAKE OVER IN SECOND HALF OF VIKING WIN
Portland State got an important Big Sky Conference road win on Monday night at Eastern Washington, 87-76. The Vikings led by a single point at halftime, 31-30, but lit it up in the second half. PSU made eight three-pointers and shot .607 from the field overall in the second half. The Vikings also hit 14-19 at the line scoring 56 points after intermission. Kyle Richardson had one of his best games of the season in leading five Vikings in double figures. Richardson scored 22 points, hitting 8-10 field goals and 6-8 at the line. He added eight rebounds and a career-high four blocked shots. Marcus Hall scored 16 points, while Tim Douglas and Andre Winston Jr. each had 14. Gary Winston scored 12. Hall and Douglas each made four three-pointers and Gary Winston hit three.
 
YOU LIKE CLOSE GAMES? TRY THE BIG SKY
Portland State flipped the script on Monday night, leading for almost the entire game - though by single digits most of the night - and coming away with an 11-point win at Eastern Washington. That didn't follow the trend for Big Sky games this year.
     
At Southern Utah last Thursday, Portland State was involved in a contest that had 14 lead changes in the second half alone. Fortunately, the Vikings took the last lead with just over a minute to go and went on to win 86-79 over Southern Utah. That was just another example of how close basketball games are in the Big Sky Conference - or perhaps how slim the margin of error.
• Prior to Eastern Washington, the previous six games in which the Vikings have played were all decided by seven points or less (for a total margin of 29 points). PSU is 7-6 in close games this year (decided by seven points or less).
• Portland State has played in eight conference games (out of 16) in which neither team has led by more than 10 points. The SUU game is not included in that group as the Vikings largest lead over SUU was 11 points, while the Thunderbirds largest lead was three.
• PSU has played three overtime games in Big Sky play (2-1).
 
THE SERIES: PORTLAND STATE VS. NORTH DAKOTA
• ALL-TIME SERIES: North Dakota leads 4-1. UND leads in Grand Forks, 2-0.
• BIG SKY SERIES: North Dakota leads 2-1. UND leads in Grand Forks, 1-0.
• STREAK: None
• LAST MEETING, FEB. 1 IN PORTLAND, PSU 70-68: Gary Winston scored 15 of his team-high 19 points in second half to lead a come-from-behind win. The Vikings shot a season-high .614 from the field, but had to overcome 19 turnovers, in their first all-time win over North Dakota. DaShaun Wiggins had 16 points off the bench... Troy Huff led UND with 20 points and seven rebounds.
• COACHES:  Viking Coach Tyler Geving is 1-2 all-time against North Dakota. UND's Brian Jones is 2-1 against the Vikings.
 
NORTH DAKOTA: Formerly a member of the Great West Conference, North Dakota is now in its second season in the Big Sky Conference. Located in Grand Forks, ND, the University of North Dakota moved up to the Division I level in 2007... currently, UND is without a mascot and will name one in 2015.... North Dakota is 12-14 this season, 9-7 and tied for third in the Big Sky Conference. UND holds an 8-3 home court record... senior guard Troy Huff leads the team with a 19.5 scoring average, 7.3 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game. Huff ranks second in the Big Sky in scoring, fifth in rebounds and first in steals... Jaron Nash averages 10.5 points and 4.2 rebounds while shooting 53% from the field... Aaron Anderson averages 10.3 points and has a team-high 36 three-point field goals... UND forces more turnovers than any team in the league at 15.0 per game and lead the league with 8.7 steals per game. However, North Dakota allows opponents to shoot a league-high .482 from the field.
 
SUSTAINABLE AND RECYCLABLE QUICK NOTES
WINNING LINES
• Portland State is 13-12 this season, 10-5 at home, 3-7 on the road.
• The Vikings are 8-8 in the Big Sky Conference, 5-3 at home and 3-5 on the road.
• With 13 wins this season, PSU has bettered last year's win total (8-20) and conference win total (5).
• PSU is 7-6 in close games (seven points or less).
• The Vikings have come back to win five games this season when trailing at halftime.
• Portland State is 46-23 at home in five seasons under Tyler Geving.
 
HOT SHOTS:
• JR G Gary Winston leads the Big Sky Conference in three-point percentage (.480).
• SR F Kyle Richardson scored 22 points (8-10 FG, 6-8 FT), had eight rebounds and a career-high four blocked shots in the Win at Eastern Washington. Over the last nine games, he has made 51-77 shots from the field (.662) and averaged 14.3 points.
• JR G Andre Winston has averaged 15.0 points and 3.7 assists in the last three games.
• JR G DaShaun Wiggins has averaged 15.0 points over his last eight games and is now the team's leading scorer this season (12.9).
• PSU shot .607 from the field, made eight three-pointers and 14-19 free throws in the second half against Eastern Washington, scoring 56 points in an 87-76 win.
 
NOT SO HOT:
• PSU has allowed opponents to shoot .520 from the field over the last six games.
• The Vikings have never won a game at North Dakota (0-2, 0-1 Big Sky)
 
A WINNING LINEUP: With Monday's win at Eastern Washington, the four-guard starting lineup of Tim Douglas, Andre Winston Jr., Gary Winston, and Marcus Hall and forward Kyle Richardson has gone 7-4.
 
MORE POINTS, MORE WINS: Portland State has scored in the 80s in each of its last two wins. This season, the Vikings have gone 6-0 when scoring over 80 points, 10-5 when scoring 70 or more.
 
SHOOT IT WELL, WIN A GAME: Portland State has won two straight games when it was outshot by its opponent. But the key to the wins may have been strong second-half shooting for PSU... the Vikings shot a solid .473 overall (including .548 in the second half) to a .521 mark for Southern Utah on Feb. 20...  then, the Vikings shot .484 at Eastern Washington (though .607 in the second half) to the Eagles .509 mark... for the season, the Vikings are 8-0 when they shoot a higher percentage than their opponents, 5-12 when they don't... in the previous seven games for Portland State, the team that had the highest shooting percentage won every game.
 
KEEP SHOOTING, GARY: JR G Gary Winston has been on a hot streak, averaging more than 14 points over the past 13 games, scoring in double figures in 12 of those games. He posted a career-high 26 points at Southern Utah (2/20). That broke his previous career high (21), recorded at the start of the 13-game run in a win over Montana (1/11)... Winston averages 10.5 points and 2.4 assists this season. He was averaging just 5.0 points prior to the 13-game stretch.
• Winston leads the Big Sky Conference in three-point percentage (36-75, .480). He also led last year (.470).
• Winston is the Portland State career leader in three-point percentage (.457).
• Winston hit clutch three-pointers in two Viking wins this season. He made the game-winner with 2.6 seconds remaining in the third overtime of an 81-78 win against Montana (1/11). Then, with the Vikings clinging to a 61-58 lead against Sacramento State (1/16) in overtime and less than a minute to play, Winston rose up and buried a trey to make it 64-58 with 42 seconds to go. That shot essentially sealed the win for the Vikings.
• Posted 19 points (7-12 FG, 2-4 3-pt, 3-3 FT) with five rebounds and tied a career-high with six assists in a win over Northern Colorado (1/30).
• Had 19 points (7-8 FG, 3-3 3-pt, 2-2 FT), two assists and two steals in the win over North Dakota (2/1).
 
OUR COUSIN VINNIE: If you remember the "Microwave", former Detroit Piston sixth-man Vinnie Johnson, then know that Portland State appears to have their own version in JR G DaShaun Wiggins. Wiggins has come off the bench in 18 of 24 games this season and yet leads the team in scoring (12.9), is a co-leader in steals (26), and fourth in three-pointers (27) in just 23 minutes per night... Wiggins has averaged 15 points over the past seven games.
• Wiggins' had a 21-point, seven-rebound, three-assist, two-steal performance in a win over UC Davis (11/24).
• He set new career-highs with 22 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals against Idaho (12/14).
• Scored a game-high 20 points (7-13 FG, 5-6 FT) against Montana State (1/9).
• Posted 21 points (5-11 FG, 3-7 3-pt, 8-9 FT) with five assists in the win over Eastern Washington (1/27).
• Wiggins has led the team in scoring eight times and rebounding twice.
• Wiggins ranks 13th in the Big Sky Conference in scoring.
 
POST PRESENCE: SR F Kyle Richardson is playing the best basketball of his career. Over the last nine games, he has made 51-77 shots from the field (.662) and averaged 14.3 points... after graduating and transferring to Portland State for his final season this year, Big Rich has stepped up his role and his game. Richardson, along with JR G Tim Douglas (who was also a high school teammate), are the only Vikings to start every game. In 26  minutes per night, Richardson averages 8.6 points and 5.5 rebounds - both career highs. He also has a team-leading 21 blocked shots.
• Richardson scored 16 points (7-9 FG) with eight rebounds in a win over Northern Colorado (1/30).
• Had a career night with 25 points (10-15 FG), 12 rebounds and three blocked shots at Montana (2/6).
• Posted 22 points (8-10 FG, 6-8 FT) with eight rebounds and a career-high four blocked shots in a win at Eastern Washington (2/24).
• Richardson has led the Vikings in rebounding 10 times this season and has three double-doubles.
• Ranks seventh in the Big Sky in field goal percentage (.570) and 11th in rebounding (5.5).
 
THE LEADER: JR G Tim Douglas is making a big impact for the Vikings this season. He is averaging 12.8  points and a team-leading 3.4 assists.
• Douglas has led the Vikings in scoring in five games and assists in 14 games.
• He has scored in double figures a team-high 19 times with a season-high 27 against Portland (12/7).
• Douglas was named Big Sky Conference Player of the Week on Dec. 10.
• Douglas ranks 13th in scoring and seventh in assists in the Big Sky Conference.
 
HALL MONITOR: SR G Marcus Hall continues to be a dangerous shooter for the Vikings. He leads the team with 42 three-point field goals made and shoots .412 from distance... Hall's main value has been defending bigger opponents in the Vikings' four-guard lineup. He has handled the role well.
• Ranks eighth in the Big Sky in three-point percentage at .412.
• Hall has a team-high 42 three-pointers for the season.
• Posted a career-high 19 against Montana State (1/9), then two nights later hit another career-high in the win over Montana (1/11). Hall had 21 points in that game with seven rebounds and three assists.
 
WINSTON HITTING THE MARK: JR G Andre Winston Jr. has been efficient on offense this season, averaging 9.5 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.5 assists. He shoots .504 from the field and .769 at the line. He also has an excellent 61/35 assist-to-turnover ratio. Those are nice improvements over his numbers last year of 7.0, .391 and .705.
• Winston had a career-game in the win over Eastern Washington (1/27), scoring a career-high 23 points (7-13, 8-10 FT) with six rebounds, and career-highs of six assists and three steals.
• In the past three games, Winston has averaged 15.0 points and 3.7 assists, shooting 15-24 from the field  (.625) and 15-19 at the line (.789).
 
THE BIG CAT IS ON THE PROWL: JR C Brandon Cataldo has been a "project" player for the Vikings the past two seasons. This season he has begun to assert himself. Cataldo is averaging modest numbers of 4.6 points and 3.7 rebounds per game in 10.5 minutes per night. Those work out to 17.5 points and 14.1 rebounds per 40 minutes.
• Cataldo leads the team with a .609 field goal percentage. He shoots .581 from the field for his career.
• Cataldo has led the Vikings in rebounding three times this season.
 
FOSTERING GOOD DEFENSE: You wouldn't expect a walk-on player who almost never shoots the ball to have a big impact on your team, but SR G Alyx Foster has for the Vikings. Foster has attempted just 12 shots, scoring 13 points all season. But he has proven valuable in a defensive role, and in particular lately, playing the "4" position at only 6-foot-3. Foster has averaged 11 minutes per game over the last 12 contests as a backup to Marcus Hall. And though he averages less than a point and just over one rebound per game, Head Coach Tyler Geving would tell you Foster has been vital to the Vikings' success.
 
FOUR GUARDS AND A GOALIE: By necessity, Portland State Head Coach Tyler Geving has had to play small this season, more so than ever now with the suspension of SR F Aaron Moore. The strength of the Viking team is in its guards and Portland State is now playing more of them than ever - a little reminiscent of the Don Nelson/RUN-TMC era of the Golden State Warriors in the late 1980s and early 1990s (Google 'em). The starting lineup of four guards and one big man has produced exciting and successful play. Strategically, PSU spreads its opponents out on the floor, attacks on the drive and kicks out for three pointers when open. The "four guards and a goalie" approach has been effective offensively. Meanwhile, defending and rebounding against bigger opponents has also gone well as the Vikings are out-scrapping the competition.
 
... AND SOMETIMES FIVE GUARDS: The Vikings went with five guards down the stretch in the 67-64 win over Southern Utah (1/25). PSU trailed 56-52 with 6:03 to play when Coach Geving inserted a five-guard lineup. The Vikings outscored the Thunderbirds, 15-8, the rest of the way for the victory... Geving went to five guards again in the second half of the Vikings' win over Eastern Washington (1/27). In a 12-minute span, PSU outscored Eastern Washington, 34-18. Including a five-guard stint late in the first half, PSU outscored EWU, 43-26, with that lineup... in the five-guard lineup, the tallest Viking on the court has been either SR G Marcus Hall (6-4) or SR G Alyx Foster (6-3) with no other player taller than 6-2.
 
SEASON HIGHLIGHT REEL           
• Portland State made 15 straight field goals to open the second half in a 79-43 win over Pacific Lutheran (11/13). The Vikings did not have a miss until 3:15 remained in the game and outscored the Lutes, 47-20, in the second half. PSU shot 53% from the field in the game. JR G Tim Douglas led four Vikings in double figures with 16 points.
• SR F Aaron Moore led a come-from-behind win over Loyola (11/22), 67-63, by tieing his career-high of 20 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. JR G Andre Winston Jr. added 16 points as the Viking erased a 17-point second-half deficit.
• For the second game in a row, PSU came from double-digits down in the second half to earn a win. The Vikings beat Southern Illinois Edwardsville, 77-74 (11/23). JR G Tim Douglas scored 18 points to lead the Vikings while JR G DaShaun Wiggins added 17 points off the bench.
• JR G DaShaun Wiggins had a Viking season high of 21 points in a 79-63 victory over UC Davis (11/24). Wiggins added seven rebounds, three assists and two steals in just 21 minutes. It marked PSU's fourth win in a row - its longest winning streak since the 2011-12 season.
• JR G Tim Douglas posted a team season-high 27 points in a loss to Portland, 92-76 (12/7). Douglas added six rebounds, four steals and three assists. He was named the Big Sky Conference Player of the Week for his performance.
• JR G DaShaun Wiggins set season-highs in every category with 22 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals in a loss to Idaho (12/14). JR G Tim Douglas handed out a season-high eight assists in the game.
• Portland State scored a season-high 98 points - its most in 62 games - in a 98-65 win over Evergreen State (12/23). The Vikings shots a season-high .545 from the field. SR F Aaron Moore scored a career-high 21 points, while SR G Marcus Hall added season-bests of 13 points and seven rebounds.
• PSU wrapped up its first winning preseason mark in three years at 5-4 (12/23).
• SR G Marcus Hall scored a career-high 19 points (7-10 FG, 5-7 3-pt), hit a career-best five three-pointers and handing out a best-ever six assists in a 79-76 loss to Montana State (1/9).
• JR G Gary Winston hit a three-pointer with 2.6 seconds left in triple overtime to beat Montana, 81-78 (1/11). Winston scored a career-high 21 points (6-11 FG, 3-7 3-pt, 6-8 FT) in the game and all nine of the Viking points in the third OT. He added five assists. Also posting a new career-high was SR G Marcus Hall with 21 points (5-7 FG, 5-6 3-pt, 6-6 FT), seven rebounds and three assists.
• Portland State ended a 20-game road losing streak with a 68-64 overtime win at Sacramento State (1/16). It was PSU's second straight overtime game and win. The Vikings got career-highs of 12 points (6-9 FG) and 10 rebounds from SR F Kyle Richardson.
• JR C Brandon Cataldo scored a career-high 10 points in a 77-56 loss to Northern Arizona (1/18).
• SR G Marcus Hall hit a decisive three-pointer with 28.6 seconds remaining as the Vikings beat Southern Utah 67-64 (1/25). PSU trailed by four with six minutes to play but came back for a three-point win. JR G DaShaun Wiggins scored 15 points to lead four Vikings in double figures.
• JR G Andre Winston Jr. scored a career-high 23 points (7-13 FG, 8-10 FT) with six rebounds, six assists and three steals in a 92-83 win over Eastern Washington (1/27). JR G DaShaun Wiggins added 21 points as the Vikings shot .655 in the second half of the game to come back from a 10-point halftime deficit.
• Portland State shot a season-high .547 from the field in knocking off first-place Northern Colorado (1/30), 80-57, at the Stott Center. It was PSU's third win in a row and fifth in six games. The Vikings held the top offensive team in the conference to only .393 from the field and 57 points. JR G Gary Winston scored 19 points with six assists. SR F Kyle Richardson scored a career-high 16 points (7-9 FG) with eight rebounds.
• JR G Gary Winston had another excellent shooting night, scoring 15 of his team-high 19 points in a 70-68 win over North Dakota (2/1). Winston made 7-8 from the field, 3-3 from three-point range and 2-2 at the line. The Vikings shot a season-high .614 from the field (27-44).
• SR F Kyle Richardson posted career-highs of 25 points (10-15 FG), 12 rebounds and three blocked shots at Montana (2/6).
• JR G Gary Winston scored 21 of his career-high 26 points in the second half as the Vikings beat Southern Utah, 86-79 (2/20). JR G DaShaun Wiggins added 19 points as the Vikings ended a four-game losing streak.
• Portland State earned back-to-back road wins for the first time in two years with an 87-76 victory at Eastern Washington (2/24). SR F Kyle Richardson had 22 points (8-10 FG, 6-8 FT), eight rebounds and a career-high four blocked shots to lead five Vikings in double figures. PSU shot .607 in the second half, making eight three-pointers, 14-19 FTs and scoring 56 points.