PORTLAND – Ashley Bolston and Sidney Rielly each scored 28 points to keep the Vikings perfect at home with an 81-74 win over the Southern Utah Thunderbirds Saturday afternoon at the Peter W. Stott Center.
 
Portland State (8-8 overall, 2-2 Big Sky Conference) improved to 4-0 at home this season after defeating Southern Utah (5-11, 0-5) for their first home league win of the year. The win also evened the Vikings Big Sky record at 2-2.
 
The Vikings trailed by three at the break but came out with on a roll to start the second half. They opened the third quarter on a 16-2 run, which included a 13-0 run, to go up 51-38. The T-Birds went on an 11-5 run to cut the lead to just five points at 56-51 late in the third quarter.
 
Portland State fended off the Southern Utah pressure throughout the second half and held on for the seven-point win after Bolston hit four-straight free throws over the final 12 seconds to clinch the win.
 
Bolston, the reigning co-Big Sky Player of the Week, came one point of matching her career high with 28 points. She went 9-for-17 from the floor and 9-for-11 from the line. She led the team with eight assists and five steals, while pulling down four rebounds.
 
Bolston has proved to be at her best late in games this season. In the final two minutes of games, she is 2-for-2 from the floor, with a three-pointer, and is 23-for-26 (.885) at the free-throw line. She showed her clutch shooting once again, going 4-for-4 at the line over the final minute against Southern Utah.
 
Rielly, who tweaked an ankle in practice earlier in the week, came off the bench for the first time this season and did not miss a beat. She scored a career-high 28 points, going 11-for-16 from the floor with a three-pointer. It was her team-best eighth 20-point performance and the fifth time that she post double-digit field goals.
 
Rielly scored 18 of her 28 points in the second half with several of those coming off fast breaks as the Vikings were able to beat the T-Birds press. She pulled down four rebounds with an assist, a block, and a steal, in just 24 minutes of action.
 
Bolston and Rielly have each scored 20-or-more points in the same game three times this season, including each of the last two. Portland State is 3-0 when they both score 20 points.
 
Portland State shot .500 from the floor, going 28-for-56, while holding Southern Utah to .412 shooting for the game. In the fourth quarter, the Vikings went 7-for-10 (.700), while holding the T-Birds to 8-of-21 (.381). Portland State is now 4-1 when it shoots .500-or-better from the floor.
 
The game played extremely close through much of the first quarter. The Vikings trailed 17-14 with under a minute left in the first before Rielly hit four-straight free throws to tie the game at 17-17.
 
Portland State scored the first four points to open the second quarter. With the Vikings up 23-21, Southern Utah went on a 6-0 run to take a four point lead a 27-24. The Vikings cut the lead to one point, 31-30, after a pair of free throws but the Thunderbirds took a three-point lead, 36-33, into the break.
 
Bolston led all scorers with 15 points in the first half, while Rielly added 10. Bolston and Rielly combined for 25 of the Vikings 33 first-half points. They went 8-for-17 from the floor, while the rest of the team went 3-for-13 for eight points.
 
The Vikings came out hot in the second half and went up by as much as 13 points at 51-38. The Thunderbirds pulled within five at 54-49 after an 11-3 run of their own. A pair of late SUU free throws made it a five-point game, 58-53, in favor of PSU heading to the fourth.
 
Both teams battled throughout the fourth quarter but the Vikings maintained their advantage. The Thunderbirds pulled the game within three points after a three-pointer with 15 seconds left. The Vikings were able to get the ball to Bolston who hit four free throws down the stretch to secure the win.
 
Southern Utah had three players score in double figures, led by Darri Frandsen's 17 points. She was one of two players to pull down seven rebounds to lead the team.
 
Portland State will host Northern Arizona Monday, Jan. 16 at 2 p.m. at the Stott Center. The teams were scheduled to play last Thursday but the game was moved due to weather issues in the Portland Area. NAU lost at Sacramento State, 82-76, Saturday afternoon to fall to 5-10 overall and 1-3 in league play.
 
NOTES:
• Sophomore G Sidney Rielly did not start due to injury.
• Rielly scored a career-high 28 points, going 11-for16 from the floor, in 24 minutes.
• Rielly has a team-high eight 20-point games and five games with 10-plus field goals.
• Rielly leads the Big Sky Conference with 22.0 ppg during conference play.
• Sophomore G Ashley Bolston recorded her sixth 20-point game with 28 points.
• Bolston and Rielly each scored 20 points for the second straight game, third time this season.
• Freshman G Elizajane Loader earned her first career start.
• Portland State is 4-1 when shooting .500-or-better from the floor.