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Bozeman, MT - Montana State center Paul Egwuonwo scored a career-high 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Bobcats back from a 10-point, second-half deficit and beat Portland State, 69-64, at Worthington Arena.

Egwuonwo hit 8-14 shots from the field and got help from little-used guard Stephan Holm, who scored 15 and hit three big three-pointers in the second half. 

Portland State hurt its own cause, missing a number of easy shots throughout the game and finished at 23-60 from the field (.383). The Vikings had entered the contest shooting over 54% from the field in its previous four games. They were icy cold in this one, providing their downfall. At one point late in the second half PSU missed nine straight field goal attempts as the Bobcats took the lead.

The game was tied at half, 32-32. Then a 7-0 run to start the second half got Portland State back in control. The Vikings held the lead for nearly 15 minutes.

Portland State was up 51-43 with 12:28 remaining in the game when Montana State began its comeback. The Bobcats ran off a 20-4 rally. A pair of free throws by Antonio Biglow gave MSU the lead at 56-55 with 5:28 left. That extended to a 63-55 advantage on a Holm three-pointer with 3:17 to go.

PSU got within three on two occasions in the final 90 seconds. But the Bobcats were 6-6 at the line down the stretch to hang on for the win.

Portland State had only eight turnovers on the night and battled a much-bigger MSU to a near stalemate on the glass, but couldn't overcome the poor shooting.

"How many little two footers did we miss tonight? It was unbelievable," said Viking Coach Tyler Geving. "Those are plays you have to make."

"You've got be more consistent on the road," said Geving as the Vikings lost their second of two games on the Montana trip. "When we are up (eight) in the second half you've got to be able to hang on down the stretch."

With the loss, Portland State is now 11-10 on the season, 6-6 in the Big Sky Conference. MSU is tied with PSU at 6-6, and 11-12 overall.

Gary Winston scored 14 points to lead four Vikings in double figures. Marcus Hall and DaShaun Wiggins each had 12 points. Kyle Richardson pitched in a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

The Bobcats shot 24-51 from the field (.471) and made 5-10 from three-point range.

GAME NOTES: Weber State has taken control of the Big Sky Conference race with a 10-2 record. Northern Arizona, North Dakota, Montana and Northern Colorado are in a four-way tie for second at 7-5… the Vikings and Montana State are tied for sixth, but are still one game out of second place at 6-6… PSU is now 1-7 on the road this season… Portland State will come home next week, hosting Northern Arizona on Thursday and Sacramento State on Saturday. Both games tip off at 7:05 p.m. Live video, audio and stats are available at GoViks.com by clicking on the Game Day box.