complete notes and stats in pdf

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PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (7-11, 3-4) vs. IDAHO VANDALS (12-9, 4-4)
Saturday, January 30, 7 p.m. • Cowan Spectrum (5,000), Moscow, ID
Live Video and Audio: www.GoViks.com
Live Stats: www.ViksLive.com

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THE OPENING TIP
Portland State will try to bounce back from a rough night in Cheney, WA when the Vikings travel to the University of Idaho for a Saturday night game.
     
The Vikings took a 112-83 loss at Eastern Washington on Thursday, stopping their recent road mojo in a big way. The defeat dropped the Vikings to 3-4 and ninth place in the Big Sky Conference, 7-11 overall. Still, PSU is only one game out of fourth place, so a win at Idaho would go a long way toward improving the Vikings' situation in the Big Sky standings.
     
PSU meets Idaho on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Cowan Spectrum. Live video, audio and stats are available at www.GoViks.com.
     
The Vandals go into the game at 12-9 overall, 4-4 in the Big Sky. Losers of their last two, they have also faced the misfortune of injuries to their top two players, Victor Sanders (16.4 ppg) and Perrion Callandret (14.4 ppg). Both players are expected to miss Saturday's game.
     
Idaho is 5-4 at home on the season while PSU is 3-7 on the road.
 
COMING UP
Beginning next week, six of Portland State's final 10 Big Sky games will be played at home. The Vikings host Montana State on Feb. 4 and Montana on Feb. 6. Thursday's game with MSU is sponsored by Papa John's and includes a pre-game Victor's Party for PSU students. Saturday's game with Montana will be Coaches vs. Cancer night with the American Cancer Society taking part in promotional activities.
 
GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. IDAHO
• ALL-TIME SERIES: The all-time series between the schools is tied at 12-12. They became Big Sky Conference foes last year and split the season series, 1-1. PSU is 3-9 all-time at Idaho, including an 87-76 loss last year.
• LAST SEASON: Each team won their home court to split the season series. JAN. 17 IN PORTLAND: PSU 85, UI 73: Portland State made a 21-8 run in the first half to take control, then led for the final 20 minutes.  The Vikings did not commit a turnover until the final minute of the first half and only six all night. DaShaun Wiggins and Tiegbe Bamba each had 19 points to lead the Vikings. Gary Winston added 14 points and seven assists. Mike Scott scored 15 points with 10 assists and eight rebounds for the Vandals. FEB. 12 IN MOSCOW: UI 87, PSU 76: Connor Hill made seven straight three-point field goals in the second half to lead a comeback win for Idaho. Hill finished with a game-high 28 points as the Vandals shot .577 from the field, .647 from three-point range and .842 at the free throw line. Gary Winston scored 23 points with four assists for PSU. Tiegbe Bamba added 18 points and seven rebounds.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Tyler Geving (91-110, 7th season) is 1-3 all-time against Idaho. Vandals Head Coach Don Verlin (122-122/8th season) is 3-1 all-time against the Vikings.
 
IDAHO VANDALS
• Idaho was 13-17 last season, 8-10 and tied for seventh in the Big Sky Conference.
• The Vandals were original members of the Big Sky Conference in 1963 before leaving the league in 1996. They returned to the Big Sky in 2014-15. Idaho has won four Big Sky Conference titles, four Big Sky Tournament titles and made five appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
• Idaho started the year at 10-5, but has lost four of its last six games, including the last two. The Vandals are 5-4 at home this year.
• Idaho leads the Big Sky in defense, allowing only 66.5 points per game and .414 shooting from the field. The Vandals also have a +7.7 rebounding margin. All three number leads the Big Sky.
• The Vandals' weakness has been ball-handling as they average a league-high 16.0 turnovers per game.
• Victor Sanders (16.4 ppg, 49 3-pt FG) and Perrion Callandret (14.4 ppg, 32 3-pt FG) have been the top players for Idaho this year. But both have suffered recent injuries and are not expected to play on Saturday.
• Chad Sherwood is the Vandals next leading scorer at 8.1 points per game. He has made 45-102 three-pointers this season (.441). Sherwood stepped up with 22 points, hitting 6-9 threes against Sacramento State on Thursday.
• Point guard Chris Sarbaugh is the only Vandal to start every game this year and he leads the team with 59 assists and 28 steals.
 
SUSTAINABLE AND RECYCLABLE VIKING QUICK NOTES
WINNING LINES
• Portland State is 7-11 this season, 4-4 at home, 3-7 on the road.
• The Vikings are 3-4 in the Big Sky Conference, 1-2 at home, 2-2 on the road.
• Portland State has had back-to-back winning seasons (17-15 in 2013-14, 15-14 in 2014-15) and will try to make it three straight winning seasons for the first time since 2006-09.
Big Sky Battles
• Portland State is 161-169 all-time in all Big Sky Conference games, including the Big Sky Tournament (9-10).
• PSU is 106-53 in home games, 52-110 in road games and 3-7 in neutral site games.
• PSU is 74-71 in Big Sky games since the start of the 2007-08 season, 81-74 including tournament games.
 
BIG NUMBERS IN CHENEY       
      There were some big number in Cheney, WA on Thursday night, though some of them were to the Vikings' detriment.
• Cameron Forte scored 37 points for the Vikings, the most by a PSU player in four years and the most in the Big Sky Conference this season.
• Forte made 13-24 field goals and 11-20 free throws. The 20 free throw attempts are a new school record.
• PSU allowed 112 points - the most ever in a Big Sky game.
• PSU allowed 20 three-point field goals - the most ever by an opponent.
 
WHO IS HOT?
• GR F Cameron Forte has made 50-77 shots in the last five games (.647) while averaging 23.4 points and 10.0 rebounds. He has averaged 29.7 points and 12.0 rebounds in the last three road games.
• SR C Collin Spickerman was 5-5 from the field at Eastern Washington.
• JR G Zach Gengler has made 22-24 free throws this year (.917), while JR G Khari Holloway is 9-9 (1.000).
• GR G Donivine Stewart had a season-high eight assists at Eastern Washington.
 
WHO IS NOT?
• Portland State is shooting .318 from three-point range and .646 from the free throw line (both are last in the Big Sky Conference).
• PSU allowed 112 points at Eastern Washington, the most ever allowed in a Big Sky game by the Vikings.
• SO F Isaiah Pineiro streak of nine straight double figure scoring games came to an end at Eastern Washington.
• PSU's top returning scorer from last season, JR F Braxton Tucker, will redshirt the season due to injury.
 
BIG SKY CONFERENCE LEADERS
• Portland State leads the Big Sky in assists per game (17.6).
• Portland State leads the Big Sky in steals per game (8.1).
• Portland State leads the Big Sky in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.4).
• GR G Donivine Stewart leads the Big Sky in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.2).
• SR C Collin Spickerman leads the Big Sky in blocked shots in conference games (2.0).
 
AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS:
• The Vikings rank 13th in the nation in assists per game (17.6)
• GR G Donivine Stewart ranks 21st in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.22).
 
20-10: GR F Cameron Forte has had three 20-10 games in the Vikings' last three road contests.
• Forte went for 37 points (13-24 FG, 11-20 FT) and 13 rebounds at Eastern Washington (1/28).
• Forte scored 26 points (12-15 FG) with 12 rebounds in an 81-63 win at Sacramento State (1/23).
• In PSU's 77-70 win at Montana State (1/9), Forte went for 26 points (12-18 FG) and 11 rebounds.
• For the season, Forte has six double-doubles.
 
TRENDING:
• Portland State lost its first game when scoring over 80 points this season (4-1). The Vikings are winless when scoring less than 70 (0-5).
• PSU is 7-2 when leading at halftime, but 0-9 when trailing at halftime.
• The Vikings are 6-3 when out-shooting opponents, 1-8 when being out-shot.
• PSU is 5-3 when out-rebounding an opponent, 2-7 when being out-rebounded.