complete notes and stats in pdf

PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (14-12, 8-8) vs. NORTHERN ARIZONA LUMBERJACKS (16-13, 11-5)
Thursday, March 5, 5:30 p.m. PT • JL Walkup Skydome (7,000), Flagstaff, AZ
 
Television: Fox College Sports Pacific (Comcast 415, DirecTV 686-1, Dish 445 SD/9515 HD)
Live Video Stream: www.WatchBigSky.com
Live Audio Stream: www.GoViks.com • Play-by-play: Tom Hewitt • Pregame Show: 5:15 p.m.
Live Stats: www.vikslive.com, www.viksmobile.com
 
THE OPENING TIP
One win and they are in. It is as simple as that. Oh sure, a particular loss by a particular team could also do the trick, but the Portland State Vikings aren't counting on that kind of help.
     
PSU enters the final week of the season on the precipice of a Big Sky Conference Tournament berth. PSU dropped from fifth place to a tie for sixth last Saturday night after a 73-60 loss to first-place Sacramento State. That leaves the Vikings at 8-8 in league play and still within reach of ninth-place Southern Utah (6-10). Eight teams make the Big Sky Tournament and the Vikings want to avoid leaving it up to tie-breaker scenarios after this week's final two games.
     
Portland State (14-12, 8-8) travels to fourth-place Northern Arizona (16-13, 11-5) on Thursday, then faces the Thunderbirds (9-18, 6-10) in what could be a big game on Saturday. Southern Utah would need to beat the same first-place Hornets on Thursday, prior to facing the Vikings, to have any chance in a tie-breaker scenario with PSU. If the T-Birds can pull that off, and the Vikings lose at NAU and Southern Utah, the tie-breaker would depend on how the teams at the top of the Big Sky standings finish.

The most simplified way to look at Portland State's berth in the Big Sky Tournament is this: PSU needs one of three things to happen - 1) a PSU win, 2) a Southern Utah loss or 3) a Weber State (7-9) loss as PSU holds the tie-breaker over the Wildcats.
     
Which takes us back to our original thought... one win for the Vikings and they are in.
     
PSU had won three straight and was playing well before last Saturday's loss to the Hornets. In fact, the game with Sacramento State was tied through 32 minutes of action. But a timely 12-1 run by the Hornets in the late-going put PSU away, preventing them from already achieving their Big Sky Tournament destiny.
     
Now the Vikings meet NAU in a Thursday game that will be televised on Fox College Sports Pacific. The Lumberbacks beat the Vikings in their previous meeting, 73-60, on Jan. 3 in Portland. NAU comes into the game off a road loss at Northern Colorado, but the 'Jacks have still won eight of their last 10 games. NAU is 9-2 at home this season.
     
The Vikings play on the road for the first time in more than two weeks. Their last road outing was a big win over Eastern Washington on Feb. 14. PSU is 5-8 on the road overall, 3-4 in Big Sky games.
     
Thursday's game tips off at 5:30 p.m. PT and is televised on Fox College Sports Pacific (Comcast 415, DirecTV 608, Dish 447). A live video stream is available at www.WatchBigSky.com. Links to live video, audio and statistics can be found at GoViks.com by clicking on the Game Day box.
 
GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE VS. NORTHERN ARIZONA
• ALL-TIME SERIES: Portland State leads the all-time series 22-21. The Lumberjacks lead 12-7 in Flagstaff.
• BIG SKY CONFERENCE SERIES: The Big Sky Conference series is tied 20-20. NAU leads 12-6 in Flagstaff. The Lumberjacks lead 2-1 in Big Sky Tournament games.
• STREAK: Northern Arizona has won four straight in the series and the last two meetings in Flagstaff.
• LAST MEETING: Jan. 3 at PSU: Northern Arizona 73, Portland State 60: Portland State shot only .393 from the field, including a seven-minute stretch in the first half without a field goal. Northern Arizona shot .528 from the field and out-rebounded the Vikings, 38-27. Ako Kaluna led five 'Jacks in double figures with 18 points. Kris Yanku added 13 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds. Gary Winston had 18 points for the Vikings. Braxton Tucker scored 12 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Tyler Geving (83-97, 6th season) is 3-8 all-time against Northern Arizona. Lumberjacks Coach Jack Murphy (42-51, 3rd season) is 4-1 all-time against the Vikings.
 
SCOUTING NORTHERN ARIZONA
• Northern Arizona comes off a 15-17 season in 2013-14. The Lumberjacks were 12-8 in Big Sky Conference play and tied for second place. Four starters and eight letterwinners return from that team.
• A member of the Big Sky Conference since 1970, NAU has won four Big Sky Conference regular season titles in its history, and two Big Sky Tournament titles. The 'Jacks have made two appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
• Northern Arizona is 16-13 this season, 11-5 and in fourth place in the Big Sky Conference. The Lumberjacks have won eight of their last 10 games. They have a 9-2 home record.
• NAU leads the Big Sky Conference in rebounding margin (+4.5) and three-point field goal percentage defense (.323). The Lumberjacks shoot only .411 from the field, but have gotten to the free throw line more than any other team in the Big Sky (616 attempts).
• Senior guard Quinton Upshur leads the Lumberjacks in scoring (14.6 ppg) and has made 67 three-point field goals. Sophomore guard Kris Yanku averages 13.8 points and 4.9 assists per game. Also making 67 three-pointers is senior guard Aaseem Dixon, who averages 12.6 points.
• Junior forward Jordyn Martin leads the team with 6.9 rebounds per game while shooting .610 from the field.
 
THE BIG SKY CONFERENCE RACE
The Big Sky Conference title chase has become a muddled mess with one week to play. Sacramento State controls its destiny in first place at 13-3, but plays twice on the road. Montana is just one-half game back at 13-4 and faces 11th-place Montana State (4-13). Eastern Washington is one game behind at 12-4 and travels to last-place Idaho State (3-13) and eighth-place Weber State (7-9). Even fourth-place Northern Arizona (11-5) has a shot at the title with two home games.
     
The eight-team Big Sky Tournament will be hosted by the regular season champion on Mar. 12-14.
     
Portland State dropped into a tie for sixth place at 8-8. Along with Northern Colorado (9-8), Idaho (8-8), Weber State (7-9) and Southern Utah (6-10), it will be a scramble to decide the final four tournament spots. Fifth-place Northern Colorado is already in, but could drop as low as eighth with two losses.
     
The Vikings could still finish fifth, but could also be sixth, seventh, eighth and possibly not even make it at ninth if they lose twice, Southern Utah wins twice and Weber State wins twice. A PSU tie with Southern Utah would also mean a tie in the head-to-head series. The next tie-breaker would be record against teams in descending order of finish. PSU's best win is Eastern Washington (currently 3rd). Southern Utah's best win would be Sacramento State (they would have to beat the Hornets on Thursday). Depending on how EWU and SAC finish overall in the standings would decide that tie-breaker for PSU and SUU. Get it?
     
The simplest equation for the Vikings is to win at least once - either at Northern Arizona on Thursday or at Southern Utah on Saturday. 
     
If the tournament started today, the Vikings would take the sixth seed in a tie-breaker over Idaho. They would play third-place Eastern Washington in a quarterfinal round game.
 
SUSTAINABLE AND RECYCLABLE VIKING QUICK NOTES
WINNING LINES
• Portland State is 14-12 this season, 9-4 at home, 5-8 on the road.
• The Vikings are 8-8 in the Big Sky Conference, 5-4 at home, 3-4 on the road.
Stott Stuff
• PSU has gone 150-56 in 206 games at the Stott Center since the 1996-97 season. Including home games at Memorial Coliseum (12-6) and the Rose Garden (19-9), the Vikings are 181-71 at home over the past 19 seasons.
• Portland State is 57-27 at home in six seasons under Tyler Geving.
• Since the start of the 2006-07 season, PSU is 94-30 at home, including 55-26 in Big Sky Conference regular season and tournament games.
• Portland State has lost only six non-conference home games in the last nine seasons (39-6). PSU is 23-6 against Division I schools, and 16-0 against lower division schools over that span.
Big Sky Battles
• Portland State is 157-163 all-time in all Big Sky Conference games, including the Big Sky Tournament (9-9).
• PSU is 105-51 in home games, 48-107 in road games and 4-5 in neutral site games.
• PSU is 70-66 in Big Sky games since the start of the 2007-08 season, 77-69 including tournament games.
And The Trivial
• Portland State is 27-24 all-time in overtime. Coach Tyler Geving is 5-4 all-time in overtime, including 1-0 this season. PSU was 3-1 in overtime last season.
• PSU is 2-15 against nationally-ranked opponents since joining the Big Sky Conference in 1996-97.
• Head Coach Tyler Geving is 1-2 all-time against ranked opponents.
• Portland State is 19-42 in games televised in the Portland area since joining the Big Sky Conference in 1996-97. That includes a 9-7 home record and 10-35 road record... PSU is 2-1 in games televised in the Portland area this season.
 
HOT SHOTS
• JR C Collin Spickerman set a Portland State school record with seven blocked shots against Sacramento State. The previous record was six, set four times, including once by Spickerman... Spickerman has 19 blocks in the last five games (3.8). He has blocked at least one shot in 17 straight games, and 23 of 26 overall. He ranks second in the Big Sky Conference (2.2). His 58 blocks ranks third all-time in a season at Portland State and seventh all-time for a career.
• In the last seven games SR F Tiegbe Bamba has scored 94 points (13.5), grabbed 52 rebounds (7.4) and had 10 steals. He has made 34-54 (.630) from the field and 24-32 at the line (.750).
• PSU is on a school-record pace at the free throw line (.750). The Vikings lead the Big Sky Conference and rank 21st in the nation overall.
• SR G Gary Winston became the 18th Viking to pass 1,000 career points for a career. Winston also tied his career-high with eight assists against Sacramento State.
 
NOT SO HOT
• Portland State had 17 turnovers for 20 Sacramento State points in last Saturday's loss.
• SO F Braxton Tucker missed last week's game with Sacramento State due to a knee contusion.
• SO G Bryce White will miss the remainder of the season due to low back problems.
• JR C Dorian Cason will miss the remainder of the season due to plantar fasciitis.
• Portland State has allowed opponents to shoot .389 from three-point range, ranking 336th in the nation (of 355).
• Portland State's -3.0 rebounding margin ranks 11th in the Big Sky Conference.
 
FAST FINISHES: Are the Vikings headed for another fast finish this season? The closing stretch of every season during Head Coach Tyler Geving's tenure has included a fast finish (i.e. a better record over a closing stretch than the record leading up to it).
 
Season     Start     Pct.   Finish Pct. Final
2009-10     10-17   .370    3-2   .600  13-19
2010-11     11-14   .440    3-2   .600  14-16
2011-12     10-12   .454    7-3   .700  17-15
2012-13     5-16     .238    3-4   .429   8-20
2013-14     11-12   .478    6-3   .667  17-15
2014-15     11-11   .500    3-1   .750     ?
 
CHARITY WORK: Once again this season, Portland State is a team adept at drawing fouls and getting to the free throw line. The Vikings are also hitting at a school-record pace... PSU is shooting .750 at the line (410-547). The school record is .743 set in 2001-02 and matched in 2012-13.
 
1,000 WATCH: SR G Gary Winston became only the 18th player in Portland State basketball history to score 1,000 points when he passed that number in a win over Northern Colorado (2/21). He is the eighth player  during the Big Sky Conference era (1996-present) to reach that milestone... here is where Gary stands on some of PSU's all-time lists:
 
Games Played: 110, t4th
Career Points: 1,021, 18th
Assists: 289, 8th
3-pt FGs: 167, 4th
3-pt FGAs: 392, 5th
3-pt FG%: .426, 5th
 
• Winston has led the team in scoring six times and assists 15 times this season.
 
SPICKERMAN PROVES REJECTION CAN BE A GOOD THING: JR C Collin Spickerman has provided a defensive presence for the Vikings this season. He has set a school record for blocks in a game (7), and his 58 blocks currently ranks third-most in a season in PSU history.
• Though he is averaging only 20 minutes per game, Spickerman ranks second in the Big Sky Conference in blocks (2.2) while shooting .500 from the field and .769 at the line.
• Spickerman has blocked at least one shot in 17 straight games and 23 of 26 overall.
 
SIXTH-MAN SENSATION NO MORE: SR G DaShaun Wiggins was Portland State's leading scorer last season despite not being a starter. He averaged 12.9 points per game in 22.9 minutes per night, earning Big Sky Conference co-6th Man of the Year honors... in 2014-15, Wiggins has moved into the starting lineup and improved on that scoring average.
• Wiggins leads the team in scoring at 15.5 per game which is ninth in the Big Sky Conference.
• He shoots .424 from three-point range to rank eighth in the Big Sky.
• Leads the team with 41 steals, ranking fourth in the Big Sky.
• Wiggins has scored in double figures in 24 games this season and led the team in scoring 13 times.
 
BAMBA's BOARDS: SR F Tiegbe Bamba has become the Vikings top rebounder with a stretch of excellent play in recent games. Bamba had back-to-back double-doubles on the road (1/22 and 1/24) and has averaged eight rebounds over the last 11 games.
• Bamba is averaging 11.1 points, a team-high 6.5 rebounds and shoots a team-high .569 from the field.
• Bamba was named Big Sky Conference Player of the Week following a 19-point, six-rebound, four-steal, two-assist performance in a win at USC on Nov. 15. Bamba made 8-11 FGs and 3-3 3-pt FGs in the game.
• Has led the team in scoring four times and rebounding 14 times this season.
• Bamba ranks eighth in the Big Sky in field goal percentage (.569) and 10th in rebounding (6.5).
 
X-FACTOR: The extent of SO F Braxton Tucker's contributions this season may be a bit of a surprise. Tucker earned a starting job in preseason practice and has fluorished as a Viking post with a deadly mid-range jump shot. Tucker averages 11.5 points and 5.3 rebounds per game.
• Tucker ranks 12th in the Big Sky in rebounding (5.5) and 11th in field goal percentage (.502).
• Has led the team in scoring five times and rebounding six times this year.
 
ON GUARDS: Portland State has great depth at guard. Here are a few more highlights:
• SR G Tim Douglas ranks second on the team in assists (2.9) and first in free throw percentage (.848).
• SO G Zach Gengler leads the Vikings in three-point percentage (.429). He is averaging 7.2 points and 3.2 rebounds since becoming a starter. Gengler has only 14 turnovers in 19 games.
• FR G Iziahiah Sweeney has only seven turnovers in 22 games.
 
HOME-ROAD DIFFERENTIAL: Portland State is 9-4 at home this season, 5-8 on the road.
• PSU averages 76.8 points at home, shooting .469 from the field, .404 from three-point range and .767 at the line.
• The Vikings average 68.2 points on the road, shooting .419/.362/.731.
• PSU has been out-rebounded opponents at home (-1.7), and by 4.3 per game on the road.
• Opponents shoot .446 from the field, .381 from three-point range and .729 at the line in the Stott Center. They shoot .479/.398/.726 in their own arenas against the Vikings.
 
SELLOUTS: Portland State's game with Sacramento State at the Stott Center was officially a sellout (1,500). PSU has now had 13 sellouts at the Stott Center in the Big Sky era (1996 to present). The Vikings are 9-4 in home games that are sellouts.
 
STRONG INDICATORS: Strong indicators of winning and losing through 25 games:
• The Vikings are 13-1 when leading at halftime, 1-11 when trailing at halftime.
• The Vikings are 6-2 when they out-rebound opponents.
• The Vikings are 10-2 when shooting a higher percentage than opponents.
• Portland State is 8-4 in games decided by eight points or less.
 
LINEUP ROULETTE: Head Coach Tyler Geving has used 10 different starting lineups this season. The constant change was the result of numerous nagging injuries to different players and certainly affected team continuity.
• The most common starting unit has been SR G Gary Winston, SR G DaShaun Wiggins, SO G Bryce White, SO F Braxton Tucker and SR F Tiegbe Bamba. That group has eight starts and a 5-3 record. However, White is out for the season with low back problems.
• The most recent starting unit of SR G Gary Winston, SR G DaShaun Wiggins, SO G Zach Gengler, SO F Braxton Tucker and JR C Collin Spickerman has started six times and is 4-2.
• 10 different players have started games this season, none have started every game and only three players have competed in every game.
 
THE TYLER GEVING BASKETBALL SHOW: The Tyler Geving Basketball Show is available on Blog Talk Radio. The show takes place each Wednesday night, 10:30-11:00 pm, PDT. The link to listen changes each week, but the weekly link can be found at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/tylergevingshow. Geving, a 10-year veteran of the Viking basketball program, is in his sixth season as head coach. He will talk Viking basketball, Big Sky basketball and review and preview games. Greg Crawford hosts the show.