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Grand Forks, ND - Quinton Hooker scored 29 points as North Dakota captured the Big Sky Conference regular season championship, beating Portland State, 83-72.
 
It marks UND's first-ever Big Sky basketball title as the Fighting Hawks head into the post-season tournament at 19-9 overall, 14-4 in the Big Sky. Going into the game tied for first place with Eastern Washington but holding the tiebreaker advantage, North Dakota knew they would capture the title with a win.
 
The Vikings were already set in the number-eight seed for the Big Sky Tournament but sought a chance to get above .500 for the season. However, the loss set them at 14-15 on the year, 7-11 in Big Sky games. Still, they get a first-round game next Tuesday against number-nine seed Northern Arizona. If the Vikings can win that one, they will get a rematch with top-seeded North Dakota in the quarterfinals.
 
In front of a near-sellout crowd, the Fighting Hawks shot well early to take control of the game. North Dakota made 14-22 shots (.636) in the first half and were leading 42-32 with a little over three minutes to play. The Vikings scored the final eight points of the half to pull within 42-40.
 
PSU had nine steals and had forced 14 turnovers in the first half to keep in touch with the Fighting Hawks.
 
Portland State led briefly on two occasions in the second half and never trailed by more than seven points until the closing seconds when the Fighting Hawks made three straight free throws.
 
The Vikings were down 69-68 with 3:51 left in the game. But Hooker scored five points in an 8-2 run over the next two minutes to give North Dakota the space it needed to win the game.
 
The backcourt of Hooker and Geno Crandall combined for 50 points and always made a key play when needed. In addition to Hooker's 29, he had six steals and five rebounds. Crandall scored 21 points in the game, dished off eight assists and grabbed seven rebounds.
 
Traylin Farris scored a game-high 17 points for the Vikings, making 7-9 from the field and 3-4 at the line. Calaen Robinson added 15 points.
 
North Dakota shot .519 from the field for the game while also out-rebounding the Vikings, 35-22. The Fighting Hawks made 21-23 from the free throw line (.913).
 
PSU shot 27-55 from the field (.491) and 10-13 at the line (.769). The Vikings forced 22 turnovers and made 13 steals.
 
GAME NOTES: PSU was 4-12 on the road this season, losing their last eight road games… after starting 11-6 this season, the Vikings have gone 3-9 in their last 12 games… the Vikings beat North Dakota, 99-62, in Portland on Dec. 29. They made 15 steals and forced 26 turnovers for 51 points in that game… Portland State will play a first-round Big Sky Conference Tournament game on Mar. 7 in Reno. The Vikings will face Northern Arizona at 2:35 p.m. A live stream will be available at www.GoViks.com/Live.