Boxscore - HTM | PDF
Cedar City, UT - Starting guards and Oregon high school products Zach Gengler and Bryce Canda each scored a game-high 16 points as Portland State picked up an 88-77 Big Sky Conference road win at Southern Utah. Gengler's defense also made a big difference as the Vikings won for the seventh time in eight games.
Gengler, from Silverton High School, made seven of 11 shots from the field, including a pair of three-pointers. But the defensive job he did on high-scoring Randy Onwuasor of the Thunderbirds was just as important. Onwuasor entered the game averaging 23.6 points, 28.8 in Big Sky games. Gengler's defensive assignment for most of the night, Onwuasor made only 6-21 shots, scoring 15 points.
Canda, from Portland's Grant High School, also scored 16 on 5-10 from the field, 5-8 at the line, adding five rebounds and four assists. Portland State had its usual five players scoring in double figures as a balanced attacked proved effective again.
A good bench performance was key with Deontae North scoring 15 and Brandon Hollins getting 10 points. De'Sean Parsons scored 13 points and tied his career-high with 13 rebounds.
The victory was the second in a row for the Vikings, seventh in eight games and ninth out of 11. Portland State is now 10-5 on the season, marking its best mid-season record since the 2008-09 season. The Vikings are 3-1 in the Big Sky.
Portland State is also 4-4 on the road, having won their last three away from home.
PSU held Southern Utah without a field goal for the opening 6:24 of the game. The Vikings forced five turnovers and led 9-1. But the Thunderbirds soon warmed up with a 15-6 run and took a 16-15 lead.
From there it was a back-and-forth affair with five ties and 10 lead changes over the remainder of the half. The T-Birds got hot from outside late. Their last five field goals of the half were threes and they made nine overall in the half. Still, the Vikings were able to get the game tied at intermission, 41-41.
Portland State got back-to-back three-pointers from Canda and Gengler out of halftime for a quick 47-41 advantage. The lead grew to 11 at the 16:03 mark and PSU led by double-digits for most of the remainder of the game. The largest lead was 16 with 2:52 remaining.
PSU shot 30-63 from the field (.476), compared to 26-63 for the Thunderbirds (.413). The Vikings were the aggressors all night, winning the rebound battle, 46-35, forcing 19 turnovers, and getting to the free throw line for 38 attempts.
Portland State's win marked the seventh straight over Southern Utah. The Vikings are 3-1 all-time in Big Sky games in Cedar City.
Matthew Johnson led the Thunderbirds with 18 points. Onwuasor and John Marshall each had 15 points and nine rebounds.
SUU is now 4-14 on the season, 2-3 in the Big Sky.
GAME NOTES: The Vikings, who rank in the top 10 in the nation in steals, had 12 more against the Thunderbirds…. Gengler's 16 points was one off his career high… Southern Utah guard Randy Onwuasor is the brother of former Viking football star and current Baltimore Raven Patrick Onwuasor… the Vikings will play at Northern Arizona on Monday afternoon in a 2:30 p.m. PT game. The contest can be seen on Fox College Sports, Fox Sports Arizona, or on a live stream at www.GoViks.com/Live.
