Vikings Open Final Home Stand Thursday Against Thunderbirds

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OPENING TIP
Portland State returns home for its final two home games of the regular season this week beginning with the Southern Utah Thunderbirds on Thursday, Feb. 22. Tip is slated for 8 p.m. PT at the Pamplin Sports Center at Lewis and Clark College.
The Vikings split their two games on the road last week. They started the week with a 62-60 win over Weber State to sweep the season series. After a slow start against Idaho State, both teams picked it up in the second half but the Vikings were unable to counter the Bengals' third-quarter run, falling 72-64.
With its loss to Idaho State, Portland State dropped out of a four-way tie for third in the Big Sky Conference standings and is now in a tie for fifth with Eastern Washington. If the season ended today, the Eagles would be the fifth seed and the Vikings would be the sixth seed in next month's 2018 Big Sky Women's Tournament in Reno, Nev.
The top of the Big Sky standings remains the same this week with Northern Colorado (12-3) holding the top spot. Idaho (11-3) is just a half-game back with Weber State and Idaho State tied for third at 9-5.
Portland State has another opportunity this week to make a move in the conference standings. The Vikings host two of the bottom teams in the league in Southern Utah (2-12) and Northern Arizona (3-11) for their final two home games of the year.
Despite not actually having a home court of their own, the Vikings have had a tremendous season playing all of their home games at the Pamplin Sports Center at Lewis and Clark College. Portland State is 8-2 at home on the year and 5-2 at home during league play. The Vikings are scoring 72.4 points per game at home, while shooting 47.1 percent from the floor and 36.8 percent from three. They have won their last three home games with wins over Weber State, Montana, and Montana State.

STORY LINES

A win would give the Vikings a .500 record in Big Sky play for the first time since the 2010-11 season.
Portland State is 12-8 all-time against Southern Utah and 2-7 in Big Sky play.
Portland State has won its last two home games in the series, averaging 80.5 ppg.

UP NEXT: Portland State closes out its home slate Saturday, Feb. 24 against Northern Arizona. The Vikings conclude the regular season at first-place Northern Colorado (Feb. 28) before finishing at North Dakota (March 2). The 2018 Big Sky Women's Basketball Tournament opens Monday, March 5 at the Reno Events Center in Reno, Nev. The top four teams in the league will earn a first round bye.

SOUTHERN UTAH THUNDERBIRDS

Southern Utah went 7-23 overall and 2-17 to finish 12th in the Big Sky Conference.
Southern Utah fell to No. 5 Idaho, 83-68, in the first round of the Big Sky Tournament.
Southern Utah returns five letterwinners and three starters from last year's squad.
Southern Utah is 3-22 overall this season and last in the Big Sky with a 2-12 record.
Southern Utah is scoring a league-worst 58.6 points per game and its -12.1 scoring margin is also last in the Big Sky. The Thunderbirds have lost each of their last nine games.
Southern Utah shooting a league-worst .343 from the floor, while allowing opponents to shoot .434.
Breanu Reid leads the team with 10.4 points per game. She is the only player scoring in double-figures on the year. She is shooting just .305 from the floor.
Natalie Sanchez is second on the team with 9.4 points per game. She has started just three games and is coming off a 20-point game against first-place Northern Colorado.

GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. SOUTHERN UTAH
ALL-TIME SERIES: Portland State leads the all-time series 12-8 and is 4-6 all-time at home. Since Southern Utah joined the Big Sky for the 2012-13 season, Southern Utah is 7-2. The Big Sky series is tied at 2-2 in Portland. The Vikings have won each of the last two home games. Southern Utah took the last meeting a year ago.
LAST YEAR: January 14, 2017 in Portland, OR, PSU 81, SUU 74: Portland State evened its record at 8-8 overall and 2-2 in league play with its win over Southern Utah. The Vikings shot 50.0 percent from the floor, while the Thunderbirds shot 41.2 percent. Ashley Bolston and Sidney Rielly each scored 28 points to lead all scorers. Rielly went 11-for-16 from the floor with a three-pointer and 5-for-7 from the line. She came off the bench for the first time in her career after returning from an injury. Bolston went 9-for-17, with a three, and 9-for-11 at the line with eight assists and five blocks. Darri Frandsen led the T-Birds with 17 points off the bench.
February 23, 2017 in Cedar City, Utah, SUU 82, PSU 64: Southern Utah earned its first league win against Portland State in Cedar City. The Thunderbirds shot 47.8 percent, while Portland State shot 36.8 percent from the floor. Rielly scored a team-high 15 points but turned the ball over seven times as the Vikings turned it over 28 times, which led to 34 points for the T-Birds. Southern Utah had three players score in double-figures, led by Jessica Richardson's game-high 25 points.

QUICK HITS
BY THE NUMBERS

Portland State is 14-11 overall this season and 8-6 in Big Sky Conference play.
Portland State is 8-2 at home with all of its home games being played at the Pamplin Sports Center.
Portland State is 3-2 in its last five and 5-5 in its last 10 games. PSU is 1-1 in overtime games.
Portland State is averaging 71.4 ppg and allowing 70.3 ppg on the year.
Portland State is shooting .433 from the floor, .349 from three-point range, and .777 at the line.

BIG SKY BATTLES

PSU is 152-202 all-time in Big Sky games.
PSU is 95-82 in home games and 57-120 in road games.
PSU is 9-10 all-time at the Big Sky Tournament.

WHO'S HOT?

JR G Ashley Bolston has scored in double-figures in each of her last six games. She is coming off a team-high 18 points at Idaho State (2/17) her highest total over that stretch. She went 8-for-13 from the floor against the Bengals.
JR F Courtney West is coming off her third double-double of the season at Idaho State (2/17). She scored 12 points with 14 rebounds and five blocks against the Bengals. After going 14 games to start the season without a double-digit rebound game, she has six over the last 11 games.
SO F Tatiana Streun has given the Vikings great minutes over the last three games. She is averaging 6.3 points and 6.3 rebounds in 17.5 minutes per game. She scored eight points, including her first career three-pointer at Idaho State (2/17).
Free throw shooting. Portland State is shooting .777 from the free-throw line on the year, fifth-best in the country.

WHO'S NOT?

JR G Sidney Rielly has been inconsistent over her last five games. She scored a combined 13 points against Eastern Washington and Montana before posing 19 points in a win over Montana State and 11 in a win at Weber State. She is coming off her worst shooting game of her career. She scored just three points, going 0-for-5 from the floor in a loss at Idaho State.
The Portland State offense. The Vikings are allowing just 60.5 points per game over the last six games but they are 3-3 over that stretch because they are averaging just 62.5 ppg on the offensive end.

NEWS AND NOTES
ABOUT THE WINS: With 14 wins already in the book, the Vikings how rank eight in the win column in 22 seasons as a Big Sky member (with at least five games remaining). A couple more wins would guarantee the Vikings a winning season for the first time since going 15-14 in 2011-12. The Vikings' eight conference wins is seventh-best over the last 22 years. A win against Southern Utah on Thursday will give the Vikings their first season at .500-or-better in league play since the 2010-11 season.

SEASON SWEEPS: Portland State took the season series from three Big Sky Conference opponents this season. It is the most since the Vikings swept four series during the 2010-11 season. The Vikings went 12-4 in league play that year and made it to the WNIT. This season, the Vikings swept:

Sacramento State for the first time since the 2010-11 season.
Montana State for the first time since the 2010-11 season.
Weber State for the first time since the 2013-14 season.

TAMING THE BOBCATS: Portland State completed the season sweep of the Montana State Bobcats for just the first time since the 2010-11 season. The Vikings defeated the Bobcats, 69-60, on the road before winning 62-53 at home on Feb. 10. Portland State has now won three straight against MSU after dropping four straight.

THE TREASURE STATE: Portland State went 3-1 against Montana and Montana State for the second-straight season after its season-sweeping win over Montana State on Feb. 10. It was also the second-straight season in which the Vikings defeated the Lady Griz and Bobcats at home.

D-FENCE: Over the last four games, the Vikings' defense has taken center stage, going 3-1. Their 2-3 zone has had tremendous success holding opponents to 59.5 points per game, while shooting .366 from the floor and .287 from three-point range. PSU is averaging 14.5 turnovers forced, 7.3 steals, and 4.3 blocks per game.

HALFTIME ADJUSTMENTS: Portland State has made great second-half adjustments over the past eight games, en route to a 5-3 record over that span. Over the last eight games, the Vikings are averaging 8.1 more points per game in the second half. Field goal percentage, three-point field goal percentage, and three-pointers made are all up for the Vikings and down for opponents in the second half. Portland State is holding opponents to just 28.7 percent from distance in the second half.

TALE OF TWO SECOND HALVES: The Vikings have played two completely different second halves this season against Idaho. In the first meeting on Jan. 6 the Vikings gave up a season-high 51 points in the second half, going 20-for-31 (59.0 percent) from the floor. In the second meeting on Feb. 1, Portland State held Idaho to just 18 points, an opponent season low. Idaho went just 8-for-31 from the floor and 2-for-17 from distance in the second meeting. Unfortunately for the Vikings, they came up short on both occasions.

THE CLOSERS: Portland State closed out back-to-back wins on double-digit scoring runs. The Vikings closed out their 77-64 win over Weber State (1/20) on a 15-0 run after holding the Wildcats scoreless over the final 7:04. Portland State closed out its 81-72 win at Sacramento State (1/27) with an 11-0 run, holding the Hornets scoreless for the final 3:39.

LOCKED IN AT THE LINE: RS-JR G Kiana Brown has been almost automatic at the free-throw line this season. She is shooting .884 at the line this season, which leads the Big Sky and is 14th overall in the country. She went a perfect 14-for-14 at the line against Idaho State (1/18) matching a 26-year-old Portland State record for most free throws made in a game without a miss. She has also hit 35-consecutive free throws, surpassing the previous school record of 31 set by Jameela Magee during the 2004-05 season.

UNSELFISH BASKETBALL: The Vikings have played great team basketball for most of the season. They have posted 20-plus assists eight times. Portland State had a run of five-straight games with 20-plus assists, capped by a season-high 29 assists against Idaho (1/6). FR G Kylie Jimenez is fifth in the Big Sky with 4.3 assists per game on the year.

PROGRESS REPORT: One of the biggest indicators of Portland State's improvement over the last three seasons has been the Vikings assist-to-turnover ratio. Two years ago, in their first year under Head Coach Lynn Kennedy, the Vikings had a 0.6 A/TO ratio. Last season it improved to 0.9. The Vikings are averaging 1.01 assists per turnover this season. If the trend holds, and the Vikings finish the season with a 1.0-or-better ratio, it would be the first time since the 2009-10 season in which the Vikings would have more assists than turnovers.

MILESTONE WATCH: JR G Sidney Rielly is well on her way to becoming the 17th member of the Portland State 1,000 point club. Through just 56 games, Rielly has tallied 943 career points, bringing her just 57 points away from reaching the 1,000-point milestone. She surpassed the 800-point mark with 18 points at Montana State (1/11). She is currently averaging 17.8 points per game, well within range of reaching the milestone this season. She would be just the third Viking to surpass the milestone in just her first two seasons.

DOUBLE-DIGIT WINS: The win over Weber State (1/20) was the 10th of the year for Portland State. The Vikings went 16-17 overall a year ago, giving them back-to-back double-digit win season for the first time since the 2011-12 (15 wins) and 2012-13 (12 wins) seasons.

WINS vs. LOSSES: The Vikings are 14-11 overall this season. There is a stark contrast on the box score between wins and losses. In wins, Portland State is averaging 76.5 points per game is shooting .466 from the floor and .799 from the free-throw line. In losses, those numbers drop to 64.9 ppg, .392 from the floor, and .743 at the line. The Vikings are holding their opponents to 15.8 fewer points per game in wins. Rebounds per game and assists per game are also all up in Portland State wins this season.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: JR G Ashley Bolston earned her first Big Sky Player of the Week honor of the season, second of her career, after dropping a career-high 32 points on Ole Miss to close out non-conference play. Bolston went 10-for-20 from the floor with a pair of three-pointers and a perfect 10-for-10 from the free-throw line to lead the Vikings to a 94-79 win over the Rebels.

NATIONAL HONORS: Not only did JR G Ashley Bolston earn Big Sky Player of the Week honors for her career-high 32 points in the Vikings' win over Ole Miss, Bolston was named the College Sports Madness Big Sky Conference and National Mid-Major Player of the Week as well.

BACK-TO-BACK 30-POINT GAMES: JR G Sidney Rielly posted her first 30-point performance of the season, second of her career, with 30 points in the Vikings' comeback win at UC Irvine on Dec. 16. Not to be outdone, JR G Ashley Bolston posted a career-high 32 points in the Vikings' next game, a win over the Ole Miss Rebels on Dec. 19. It was the first time that the Vikings had back-to-back 30-point scorers since Kelly Marchant and Claire Faucher posted 30 points in consecutive games in Dec. of 2009.

90-POINT MARK: Portland State is third in the Big Sky Conference with 72.7 points per game on the year. The Vikings have already surpassed the 90-point mark four times, going 3-1. Over the past 12 seasons the Vikings have only hit the 90-point mark 19 times.

COMEBACK KIDS: Portland State has come back from a double-digit deficit to win three times this season, two were second-half deficits.

The Vikings trailed by 11 points early in the third quarter against Northwest University (12/9) before winning 63-60.
Portland State trailed UC Irvine (12/16) by 16 points midway through the first half before coming back to force overtime on a last-second shot. The Vikings then outscored the Anteaters 18-8 in overtime to win 82-72.
The Vikings trailed by 11 points midway through the third quarter at Sacramento State (1/27). Portland State came back to tie it in the fourth before closing out the game on an 11-0 run to defeat the Hornets 81-72.

COMEBACK WIN: Portland State trailed UC Irvine by 16 points midway through the first half before coming back to win 82-72 in overtime on Dec. 16. It was the largest deficit overcome in a win under third-year Head Coach Lynn Kennedy and the largest overcome by Portland State since it came back from down 19 to defeat Eastern Washington, 77-70, in January of 2011.

FINAL MINUTE HEROICS: Twice this season the Vikings have come back from a two possession deficit over the final 30 seconds of regulation to win. In both cases, FR G Kylie Jimenez hit a big three-pointer to cut into the lead. In the Vikings' win at UC Irvine, Jimenez cut the lead from six to three points with a three-pointer with 19 seconds left. The Vikings went on to tie the game before winning in overtime. In Portland State's Big Sky opener win over Sacramento State, the Vikings trailed by four with 18 seconds left. Jimenez hit another big three-pointer with 6.8 seconds left to make it a one-point game. JR G Ashley Bolston then hit a pair of free throws with 0.8 seconds left to give the Vikings a one-point win.

COMING UP CLUTCH: Over the final minute of regulation and including overtime, both Sidney Rielly and Ashley Bolston have come up clutch for the Vikings. Rielly is shooting .556 (5-for-9) from the floor and .833 (12-for-14) at the line. Bolston is 1-for-2 from the floor and 15-for-18 at the line.

30-POINT GAME: JR G Sidney Rielly posted the second 30-point game of her career with a season-high 30 points in the Vikings' comeback win over UC Irvine (12/16). She is the first player since Kelly Marchant (2007-11) to record multiple 30-point games for a career. Rielly, Marchant, and Kelsey Kahle are the only Vikings to record multiple 30-point games since the Vikings joined the Big Sky Conference prior to the 1996-97 season.

IN THE RECORD BOOK: After setting the Portland State single-season blocks record in just her first year with the Vikings, JR F Courtney West quickly turned her sights on the PSU career blocks mark. West surpassed the nearly 20-year-old record with five blocks against UC Irvine (12/16). She entered the game with 115 blocks before surpassing Kellie Chander-Read's (1994-97) record of 118 in the first half. She ended the game with 120 career blocks. She has increased her record to 162, which is 12th all-time in Big Sky Conference history.

BLOCKS TRIPLE CROWN: JR G Courtney West, in just 43 career games at Portland State, set the PSU single-game, single-season, and career blocks record. She set the single-season record twice last season with 8 blocks against both Sacramento State and North Dakota. She also set the single-season blocks record with 94 a year ago. She now holds the career blocks mark with 162 blocks and counting.

FROM DOWNTOWN: The Vikings are shooting the ball from downtown at a higher clip than they did a year ago. Portland State is shooting .349 from distance with 6.4 three-pointers made per game this season. In 2016-17, the Vikings shot .300 from three-point range with 5.6 made per game. A large reason why is the addition of guards Kylie Jimenez and Kiana Brown. They have combined for 78 of the team's 159 three-pointers on the year. Additionally, JR G Sidney Rielly had just three games a year ago in which she hit three or more triples, this season she has eight such games. Brown has also hit at least one three-pointer in all but two games this season.

SPREADING IT AROUND: Portland State had a season-high five players score in double-figures in its win over Portland (11/28). JR G Sidney Rielly led the team with a game-high 18 points, while JR G Kiana Brown and JR F Courtney West each added 13 points. FR G Kylie Jimenez and JR G Corey James added 11 and 10 points respectively.

20-POINT GAMES: Portland State has had four different players post 12 combined 20-point games on the season.

JR G Sidney Rielly recorded the team's first 20-point game of the year at Nevada (11/12). She has scored at least 20 points a team-high seven times this season, including a season-high 30-point performance at UC Irvine. Rielly's 18 career 20-point games are tied for seventh all-time at Portland State.
JR G Kiana Brown recorded her first 20-point game with a career-high 27 points at Seattle U (11/22).
FR F Savannah Dhaliwal added her first 20-point game with a career-high 26 points in a win over Multnomah (11/25).
JR G Ashley Bolston recorded her first 20-point game of the season with a career-high 32 points against Ole Miss (12/19). Bolston followed that with a game-high 25 points in the Vikings' win over Sacramento State (12/30) and 22 points against Idaho (1/6).

FRESHMAN PHENOM: FR G Kylie Jimenez has quickly made her mark on the Portland State team. She has started every game so far as the Vikings' point guard and opened her career with three-straight games of at least 13 points and two three-pointers. She is fourth in the Big Sky with 4.3 assists per game. Her league-best 3.0 assist-to-turnover ratio is 11th-best in the nation.

BENCH HELP: Over the first eight games of the season, the Vikings had just five players coming off the bench, and only two who averaged more than 10 minutes per game. The PSU bench was outscored by 9.4 points per game, while starters accounted for roughly 80-percent of the Vikings' points. The Vikings' bench got deeper with the return of JR G Ashley Bolston from injury for the game against Northwest University. Since Bolston's return, the Portland State bench is averaging 19.0 points per game. JR G Kiana Brown is averaging 11.1 points per game and is 53-for-56 at the free-throw line off the bench this season.

NATIONAL LETTERS OF INTENT: Portland State has signed three student-athletes to National Letters of Intent. Desirae Hansen, Jordan Stotler, and Ana Tainta will join the Vikings for the 2018-19 academic year.

Hansen, a 6-foot guard from Rainier, Ore. is a three-time All-Lewis & Clark League first team honoree at Rainier High School and is coming off league MVP season. She led the Columbians to a 25-5 overall record and a league championship with a 16-2 mark.
Stotler, in just her first year at Umpqua Community College, was named the Northwest Athletic Conference Southern Region Most Valuable Player, Defensive Player of the Year, and Freshman of the Year. She was second in the NWAC averaging 22.4 points per game and third with 13.4 rebounds per game. Stotler recorded a league-record 150 blocks and 4.84 blocks per game, 2.00 blocks per game better than second place. She is just 29 blocks away from the conference's career blocks record. She shot .484 from the floor and .345 from three-point range, hitting 39 triples.
Tainta, a 5-foot-10 guard from Zaragoza, Spain, averaged 19.4 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game while leading the U16 and U17 teams to three-straight Regional League Championships.

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