OPENING TIP: After playing its last three games at home, the Portland State women's basketball team once again hits the road this week for a pair of Big Sky Conference games at Idaho State and Weber State. The Vikings open the week Thursday, Feb. 9 against the Bengals. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m. PT. 
     Portland State is 10-12 overall and tied for sixth in the Big Sky with Weber State and Sacramento State at 4-6. A loss to Idaho State Thursday would make the Vikings potential climb up the conference standings that much harder as they would have lost the season series with three teams (Eastern Washington, Idaho, and potentially Idaho State) sitting directly above them in the standings. 
     After starting the conference season 4-2, the Vikings have struggled, dropping their last four, three coming at home. Portland State has played well in each game but in each there has been one quarter that has given the Vikings problems and put them too far behind to mount a comeback. 
     Portland State's last game against Eastern Washington was a perfect example of how one quarter can put you behind the eight-ball the rest of the game. The Vikings fell behind 14-7 at the end of the first quarter and were only able to cut into the Eagles' lead by one point, falling 68-62. 
     The Vikings' Big 3 once again led the way against the Eagles. SO G Ashley Bolston led the Vikings with 18 points on 6-of-15 shooting. She pulled down five rebounds, and tallied four assists and four steals in a career-high 40 minutes. 
     SO G Sidney Rielly added 17 points on 7-of-16 shooting in 36 minutes of action. SO F Courtney West added 13 points and a team-high 10 rebounds for her third double-double of the season. She went 5-for-8 from the floor and 3-for-4 at the line but tallied only one block in the game. 

COMING UP: Portland State heads into this week with eight games left in regular season action, four on the road and four at home. After Thursday's game at Idaho State, the Vikings head to Ogden, Utah to take on Weber State on Saturday. It will be the only meeting of the year between PSU and WSU. 
     The Vikings return home to host Montana and Montana State the following weekend before hitting the road again for games at Southern Utah and Northern Arizona. Portland State closes out the regular season with two tough games at the Stott Center against the top two teams in the league, Northern Colorado and North Dakota. 

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TEAM NOTES: Here are some quick-hitters about 2016-17 Portland State Vikings:
• Portland State has exceeded its win total from each of the last three seasons. 
• Portland State has matched its league win total from each of the last two seasons, combined. 
• Portland State has double-digit wins for the first time since the 2012-13 season. 
• Portland State won four-straight league games for the first time since the 2011-12 season. 
• Portland State leads the league in field goal percentage (.453) and is second in assists per game (17.1) and blocks per game (5.0).

BY THE NUMBERS 
• Portland State is 10-12 overall and 4-6 in Big Sky play.
• Portland State is 5-3 at home, 3-7 on the road, and 2-2 at a neutral site. 
• Portland State is 1-4 in its last five games and 4-6 in its last 10 games. 
• Portland State is averaging 69.9 ppg, while allowing 73.6 ppg. 
• Portland State is shooting a league-best .453 from the floor, .308 from distance, and .700 at the line. 
• Portland State has 111 blocks as a team, the most since 2010-11 (114). 

BIG SKY BATTLES
• PSU is 140-191 all-time in Big Sky Conference games.
• PSU is 87-78 in home games and 53-113 in road games.
• PSU is 6-7 all-time at the Big Sky Tournament.

STOTT STUFF
• Portland State has gone 147-126 in 273 games at the Stott Center since the 1996-96 season. Including home games at Memorial Coliseum (1-0), the Rose Garden (2-0), and Concordia (1-0), the Vikings are 152-126 at home over 22 seasons. 
• Portland State is 8-15 at home in two seasons under Lynn Kennedy.
• Portland State is 87-79 in home games during Big Sky Conference play. 

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BLOCK PARTY: Portland State tallied a season-high 12 blocks against Sacramento State (1/28). Leading the way was sophomore F Courtney West who set the Portland State single-game record with 8 blocks against the Hornets. She matched the previous record of 7 in the first half before surpassing the 26-year-old record in the second half. West jumped all the way from sixth to second all-time at Portland State for a single-season with her performance. She now has 53 blocks on the year. 

D-FENCE: The Vikings put together its best defensive game in years in a 64-44 rout of the Montana Lady Griz (1/19). Portland State held Montana to just 44 points, the lowest total by an opponent since holding George Fox to 35 points in 2012. The Vikings also held the Lady Griz to just .274 from the floor, the first time holding a team under .300 since holding Navy to .279 in 2014. 

WINNING STREAK: Portland State won four-straight games for the first time since the 2011-12 season. The Vikings won the first three games by a combined 10 points before blowing out Montana by 20. 

B2B POTW HONORS: For the first time since the 2010-11 season, Portland State players have garnered back-to-back Big Sky Player of the Week honors. Ashley Bolston picked up her first career honor on January 10, one week before Sidney Rielly picked up her first carer honor on January 17. The last duo to achieve the feat was Lexi Bishop and Eryn Jones in 2011. 

#POTW: Sophomore G Ashley Bolston earned her first Big Sky Conference Player of the Week honor after leading the Vikings to an 88-86 win at Sacramento State (1/7). Bolston scored a career-high 29 points, going 12-for-18 (.667) from the floor, with six rebounds, six assists, and four steals against the Hornets. Her 12 field goals were also a career high and tied for the most by a Viking this season. It was the first honor by a Viking since Kate Lanz in 2013-14. 

#POTW PART DEUX: Sophomore G Sidney Rielly picked up her first career Big Sky Conference Player of the Week honor after leading the Vikings to wins over Southern Utah (1/14) and Northern Arizona (1/16). She averaged 24.0 points per game, while shooting .731 from the floor over the two games. She opened the week with a career-high 28 points (11-16 FG, 1-3 3FG, 5-7 FT) with four rebounds in just 24 minutes. She followed that up with a game-high 20 points, going 8-for-10 from the floor and 2-for-4 from distance. 

COMING UP CLUTCH: Sophomore G Ashley Bolston has proved to be at her best late in games this season. In the final two minutes of games, she is 5-for-8 from the floor, with a three-pointer, and is 26-for-30 (.867) at the free-throw line. She showed her clutch shooting, going 4-for-4 at the line over the final minute against Southern Utah (1/14). 

DEFENDING HOME COURT: Portland State is 5-3 at home this season. The Vikings started the season 5-0, their best start at home since going 5-0 to start the 2011-12 season. Portland State is averaging 73.2ppg, while allowing 69.1 ppg (+4.1) at home for the year. The Vikings are shooting .485 (234-for-482) from the floor and .299 from distance at home. 

COMEBACK WINS: Portland State's win against Sacramento State (1/7) marked the second time that the Vikings have come back from a double-digit deficit to win this season, both coming on the road. The Vikings trailed by 12 points late in the first half at Seattle (11/23) before they came back to win 79-71. Against the Hornets, the Vikings trailed by 11 points early in the third quarter but were able to tie the game heading in to the fourth quarter before winning 88-86. In both comeback wins, both Ashley Bolston and Sidney Rielly recorded 20-point games. 

20-POINT GAMES: Portland State has had players scored 20-or-more points 19 times this season, compared to just eight times a year ago. Sophomore guard Sidney Rielly leads the team with nine, while Ashley Bolston has tallied eight 20-point games. Rielly became the first Viking since Kate Lanz in 2011-12 to record three-straight 20-point games, she has done it twice this year. Bolston followed suite with her own three-game stretch of 20-point performances. Sophomore G Michaela Kay added her first 20-point game of the season, third of her career, against UC Irvine (12/3). Portland State has had two players score 20 points in a game four times this season. Rielly and Bolston have done it three times, while Bolston and Kay have done it once.  

WINS vs. LOSSES: The Vikings are 10-12 overall this season and 4-6 in Big Sky Conference play. There is a stark contrast on the box score between wins and losses. In wins, Portland State is averaging 76.9 points per game is shooting .493 from the floor and .727 from the free-throw line. In losses, those numbers drop to 64.1 ppg, .418 from the floor, and .677 at the line. The Vikings are holding their opponents to 15.4 fewer points per game in wins. Three-point field goal percentage, rebounds per game, and assists per game are also all up in Portland State wins this season. 

SHOOTING DIFFERENCE: Portland State has seen a considerable improvement in shooting compared to last year. The Vikings shot .358 from the floor and .300 from three-point range in Head Coach Lynn Kennedy's first season. This year, the Vikings have improved those numbers to .453 (+.095) from the floor and .308 (+.008) from distance. One of the more noticeable differences has been from inside the arc. In two-point shooting, the Vikings are shooting .504 this season compared to .382 last year (+.122).

LEADING THE LEAGUE: The Vikings lead the Big Sky Conference in field goal percentage, shooting .453 as a team. The Vikings are second in the league in assists per game (17.1), blocks per game (5.0), and defensive rebounds per game (29.0). Individually, Ashley Bolston leads the league in assists per game (5.2) and Courtney West leads the league in blocks (55) and blocks per game (2.5). 

BALL MOVEMENT: The Vikings are second in Big Sky Conference with 17.1 assists per game after averaging 13.6 per game a year ago (+3.7). The Vikings recorded assists on 56.7 percent of field goals in 2015-16. Portland State is recording assists on 65.3 percent this season. Portland State recorded assists on 22-of-27 (81.5 percent) field goals against UC Irvine (12/3).  

BIG NUMBERS: The Vikings tallied some big numbers in their 93-61 win over Pacific Union on Nov. 20. The Vikings' 93 points were the most scored since they posted 97 in a win over Sacramento State in 2011. Portland State recorded 43 field goals in the game, the most since recording a program record 61 against Pacific (Ore.) in Nov. 1993. Individually, sophomore G Sidney Rielly's 11 field goals were the most by a Viking since 2014. Portland State pulled down 65 rebounds, six shy of a program record 71 also set against Pacific (Ore.) in Nov. 1993.

BIG SKY OPENERS: After losing at North Dakota to open league play, the Vikings are 4-6 in their last 10 Big Sky openers, and 0-2 under Head Coach Lynn Kennedy. The Vikings are also 2-5 in Big Sky road openers during that stretch. 

#RoadToReno: For the second year in a row the Big Sky Conference tournament will consist of all 12 conference teams and will be held at a neutral site. The tournament will take place at the Reno Events Center in Reno, Nev. The women's tournament will begin on Monday, March 6 with the men's tournament beginning the next day, Tuesday, March 7. For more information visit RoadtoReno.com.

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IDAHO STATE QUICK HITS
• Head Coach Seton Sobolewski is 131-117 overall in nine seasons leading the Bengals. 
• Idaho State is 12-9 overall and 6-4 in Big Sky play. The Bengals are 7-2 at home this season. 
• Idaho State opened league play with wins over Montana and Montana State before losing four if its next five games. The Bengals have won each of the last three, including a 71-68 double-overtime win at Southern Utah last Saturday. 
• Idaho State has struggled to score this season but its defense has kept it in games. The Bengals are 11th in the league in both points per game (59.8) and field goal percentage (.360) but lead the league in both opponent scoring (61.3) and opponent field goal percentage (.365). 
• Idaho State boasts the league's best rebounding margin at +6.6 and is first in both defensive and offensive rebound percentages. The Bengals are averaging 14.4 offensive rebounds per game, third in the league. 
• Saylair Grandon leads the team with 11.4 points per game. She is shooting .420 from the floor and .441 from three-point range. She leads the team with 26 three-pointers on the year. 
• Grace Kenyon is averaging 10.7 points and a team-high 6.9 rebounds per game. 

PORTLAND STATE vs. IDAHO STATE
• ALL-TIME: Idaho State has dominated the all-time series with Portland State over the past few years. The Bengals have won each of the last nine games, dating back to the 2011 season and now lead the all-time series 30-22 overall and 25-14 in Big Sky play. The Vikings are 5-14 on the road in league action.   
• LAST SEASON: Idaho State took both meetings against the Vikings last year. January 16, 2016 in Pocatello: ISU 71, PSU 70: The Bengals held on for a one-point win in the first meeting last year. The Vikings put up the potential game-winning three-pointer but it just rimmed out. Pia Jurhar led the Vikings with 18 points and 10 rebounds. She went 7-for-13 from the floor in 27 minutes. Corey James scored just three points but pulled down a career-high 15 rebounds in the loss. February 11, 2016 in Portland: ISU 64, PSU 42: The next game was not nearly as close as the Vikings were held to just 42 points and shot just 21.7 percent from the floor. Cici West was the only Viking in double-figures with 10 points and 14 rebounds. 

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#0 | ASHLEY BOLSTON  //  RS-Sophomore  //  Guard  //  6-2  //  Medford, OR 
• She is second on the team with 15.5 points per game. She has scored in double-figures 16 times with seven 20-point performances.
• She leads the Big Sky Conference with 5.2 assists per game.
• She scored a team-high 18 points (6-15 FG, 1-4 3FG, 5-6 FT) with five rebounds, four assists and four steals in a career-high 40 minutes against Eastern Washington (2/4). 
• She scored a game-high 23 points in a loss to Idaho (2/2). 
• She matched her career high with 29 points, going 12-for-22 from the floor, at Montana State (1/21).
• She scored 28 points (9-17 FG, 1-3 3FG, 9-11 FT) with eight assists and five steals against Southern Utah (1/14). 
• She was named College Sports Madness Big Sky Player of the Week (1/16). 
• She was named Big Sky Player of the Week following her performance at Sacramento State (1/7).
• She improved her career high to 29 points (12-18 FG, 1-3 3FG, 4-7 FT) with six rebounds, six assists, and four steals at Sacramento State (1/7). She made a career-high 12 field goals, matching the team individual season high. 
• She matched her previous career high with 26 points, going 5-for-13 from the floor and 16-for-18 at the line in a win over Kennesaw State (12/20). Both free throw marks are the second most all time. She added eight assists, six rebounds, two blocks, and two steals in the win. 
• She led the Vikings with 20 points (5-12 FG, 10-10 FT) in a win over UC Irvine (12/3).
• She scored a then-career-high 26 points, going 9-for-17 from the floor with a pair of three-pointers at Portland (11/30). She went 6-for-7 at the line and added six rebounds and five assists.
• She posted her first 20-point game with 20 points (5-8 FG, 1-2 3FT, 9-11 FT) four rebounds, six assists, and four steals at Seattle U. (11/23). 
• She scored four points with five rebounds and a team-high nine assists in the Vikings' win over Pacific Union (CA) (11/20). 
• She scored 18 points (5-10 FG, 2-5 3FG, 6-7 FT) with two rebounds and four assists in 29 minutes at Boise State (11/16). 
• She scored 10 points (3-6 FG, 4-6 FT) with three rebounds, four assists, and two steals in 19 minutes of action in her Portland State debut at CSUN (11/11). 
• She sat out the 2015-16 season due to NCAA Transfer Rules.

#2 | SIDNEY RIELLY  //  RS-Sophomore  //  Guard  //  6-0  //  Everett, WA 
• She is fourth in the Big Sky Conference with 16.7 points per game. She has scored double-digit points 16 times, including nine 20-point games. 
• She has scored 20 points in three straight games twice this season. 
• She became the first Viking to post back-to-back 20-pt games since Emily Easom in 2014. 
• She became the first Viking to post three-straight 20-pt games since Kate Lanz in 2011-12.
• She was named Big Sky Conference Player of the Week (1/17). 
• She Scored 17 points, going 7-for-16 from the floor, with two rebounds and two assists against Eastern Washington (2/4). 
• She scored 19 points (9-16 FG) with three steals against Idaho (2/2). 
• She scored a game-high 20 points, going 8-for-10 from the floor, in a win over Northern Arizona (1/16). 
• She improved her career high to 28 points (11-16 FG, 1-3 3FG, 5-7 FT) with four rebounds against Southern Utah (1/14). 
• She scored 25 points (10-15 FG, 2-3 3FG, 3-3 FT) with a career-high seven rebounds in a win at Sacramento State (1/7). 
• She scored a then-career high to 27 points on 12-of-21 shooting, both career highs, at UND (12/29).
• She scored a team-high 23 points (10-16 FG, 2-4 3FG, 1-1 FT) with three rebounds in a win over Northern Kentucky (12/19). 
• She posted her fourth 20-point game with 21 points (8-11 FG, 4-4 FT) with three blocks in a win over Cal State Fullerton (12/10).
• She scored 23 points (9-18 FG, 1-4 3FG, 4-5 FT) in a win at Seattle U. (11/23).
• She scored 24 points (11-18 FG, 2-3 FT) with three rebounds and four assists in the Vikings' win against Pacific Union (CA) (11/20). Her 11 field goals against Pacific Union were the most by a Viking since Emily Easom in 2014. 
• She scored a career-high 25 points (9-16 FG, 5-7 3FG, 2-2 FT) at Boise State (11/16). She added two rebounds and two steals in 33 minutes. 
• She scored a team-high 12 points (3-12 FG, 1-3 3-pt FG, 5-6 FT) in her Portland State debut at CSUN (11/11). She pulled down a team-high five rebounds an recorded a pair of assists in 24 minutes.
• She sat out the 2015-16 season due to NCAA Transfer Rules

#10 | COURTNEY WEST  //  RS-Sophomore  //  Forward  //  6-4  //  Sydney, Australia 
• She is averaging 10.0 points and 7.1 rebounds per game this season. She has scored in double-digits 12 times this season with one 20-point game. 
• She leads the Big Sky Conference with 55 blocks and 2.5 blocks per game.
• She has 55 blocks on the season, second most at PSU for a single-season. 
• She scored 13 points with 10 rebounds for her third double-double. 
• She scored a career-high 20 points, with a career-high 10 field goals, against Sacramento State (1/28). 
• She set the Portland State single-game record with 8 blocks against the Hornets. She matched the previous record with 7 blocks in the first half. 
• She scored 18 points, 9-for-14 from the floor, with nine rebounds at Montana State (1/21). 
• She scored a then-career-high 18 points with a career-high 13 rebounds for second career double-double at Montana (1/19). 
• She scored 10 points with six rebounds and four blocks in a win over Northern Arizona (1/16). 
• She recorded her first career double-double with 12 points and a career-high 12 rebounds, along with three blocks, in a win at Sacramento State (1/7). 
• She scored 14 points with seven rebounds and four blocks at North Dakota (12/29).
• She scored 11 points with eight rebounds, four blocks, and four steals in a win over Kennesaw State (12/20). 
• She scored 12 points (6-12 FG) with six rebounds and a career-high four assists in a win over UC Irvine (12/3).
• She scored five points with seven rebounds and a career-high six blocks in a win over Seattle U (11/23). Her six blocks were tied for the second most all-time at Portland State. 
• She scored 16 points (8-15 FG) with eight rebounds in 14 minutes in the Vikings' win over  Pacific Union (11/20).
• She scored eight points (4-8 FG) with five rebounds and three blocks at Boise State (11/16).
• She scored a team-high 12 points with a team-high five rebounds in Portland State debut at CSUN (11/11). Shot .600 (6-for-10) from the floor. 
• She sat out the 2015-16 season due to NCAA Transfer Rules.

#45 | MICHAELA KAY  //  Sophomore  //  Guard  //  5-6  //  Spokane, WA 
• She is averaging 6.2 points and 2.7 assists this season.
• She scored 10 points (4-8 FG, 2-6 3FG) with three rebounds and two steals against Idaho (2/2). 
• She scored 14 points (5-8 FG, 4-7 3FG) in a win over Montana (1/19).
• She posted her third career 20-point game with 20 points (6-11 FG, 5-9 3FG, 3-4 FT) in a win over UC Irvine (12/3). She matched her career high with five three-pointers.
• She scored eight points (1-5 3FT, 5-6 FT) with five rebounds and five assists in a win at Seattle U. (11/23).
• She came off the bench for 14 points (4-6 3FG, 2-2 FT) with five assists at Boise State (11/16).
• She averaged 8.4 ppg and led the team with 82 assists (2.9 apg) in 2015-16.