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Portland, OR - A full court press, a big contribution from the bench and a balanced scoring attack added up to an important win for the Portland State Vikings as they beat Southern Utah, 93-86, at the Stott Center.
 
Six Vikings scored in double figures, including three off the bench as PSU got a season-high 15 points from Khari Holloway, 12 points and six rebounds from Brandon Hollins and 11 points and four assists from Bryce Canda. Those three combined to hit 13-20 shots from the field and 6-9 three-pointers.
 
De'Sean Parsons led all Viking scorers with 16 points, adding nine rebounds, four blocked shots and three assists.
 
The Thunderbirds' Randy Onwuasor, the Big Sky's leading scorer, punished the Vikings with 30 points and 12 rebounds. However, PSU was able to force him into nine of the Southern Utah's 18 turnovers, with several coming on the press.
 
Southern Utah got off to a fast start. Guard James McGee scored 14 points in the opening five minutes, staking the Thunderbirds to a 20-8 lead. McGee was 5-5 on three-pointers in the first half as Southern Utah hit their first nine shots from long range.
 
Portland State answered by putting on a full-court press and slowly worked their way back into the game.
The Vikings rallied back to tie at 26-26 with 8:30 left in the half. They got 11 points off the bench in that span from Holloway and Hollins.
 
The game was tight from there as the lead changed hands 10 times through the rest of the half. Portland State forced 11 Thunderbird turnovers and eventually took a 49-45 lead into halftime. McGee had 17 points and Onwuasor had 13 at the half. Holloway led a balanced Viking attack with nine points in 3-4 three-pointers.
 
"Credit to them, they hit shots early but we got the tempo in our favor," said Viking Coach Tyler Geving. "We would rather play up-and-down than a half-court game."
 
Portland State was able to push its lead to nine at 73-64 but the Thunderbirds had a run in them. The Vikings were outscored 18-7 over the next five minutes and trailed 82-80 with four minutes to go.
 
PSU was strong down the stretch though. Parsons scored four quick points to get the lead back. The game was tied briefly at 84-84 but the Vikings made 7-8 free throws in the last 1:21 of the game.
 
"We have been in a bunch of crunch-time games lately and been battle-tested. So now we are used to being in them and we finally finished one," said Geving.
 
The Vikings, losers of seven of their last eight games, had lost four in overtime and six by six points or less. They needed to the right the ship coming down the stretch of the season as they approach the Big Sky Conference Tournament beginning Mar. 7. The win over Southern Utah was a big first step.
 
PSU shot .443 from the field, making 12 three-pointers in the game. The Vikings took advantage at the line, making 27-38 attempts. Southern Utah shot .409 from the field. After hitting their first nine three-pointers, the Thunderbirds made only 3-14 the rest of the way.
 
The win improved PSU's record to 13-13 overall, 6-9 in the Big Sky Conference. Portland State has beaten Southern Utah eight straight times.
 
The Thunderbirds dropped to 5-23, 3-12 in the Big Sky.
 
GAME NOTES: Deontae North scored 14 points and had four assists for the Vikings. Calaen Robinson added 13 points and three assists… PSU is now 9-3 at home this season… the Vikings also beat the Thunderbirds, 88-77, on Jan. 14 in Cedar City... Portland State's final home game is this Saturday at 7:05 p.m. against Northern Arizona. Live video and audio can be found at GoViks.com and live stats will be available at ViksLive.com.