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PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (19-12, 9-9) vs.
SACRAMENTO STATE HORNETS (7-24, 4-14)
Big Sky Conference Tournament First Round Game
Tuesday, March 6, 2018, 8:05 p.m. • Reno Events Center, Reno, NV
Live Video and Audio: www.WatchBigSky.com, www.Pluto.tv (channel 231) • Play-by-Play: Jon Oglesby • Analyst: Joe Cravens
Live Stats: www.BigSkyStats.com
Complete notes and stats in pdf

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THE OPENING TIP
The madness of March begins this week with the Big Sky Conference Tournament as Portland State will face Sacramento State on Tuesday night in Reno, NV in a first-round game. The Vikings and Hornets meet in an 8:05 p.m. game that will be live streamed at www.WatchBigSky.com and www.Pluto.tv (channel 231).
           
The Vikings (19-12, 9-9) enter the tournament as the number-six seed in the 12-team Big Sky Conference. Sacramento State (7-24, 4-14) is the number-11 seed. The winner of Tuesday night's game advances to play number three-seed Eastern Washington (18-13, 13-5) on Thursday night at 8:05 p.m. Portland State split with the Eagles this season, losing 81-74 in Cheney and winning 94-81 in Portland. 
           
Portland State enters the post-season on an upswing. PSU has won four of its last five games. And, the Vikings are comfortable playing in foreign environments. They were 10-5 in road games this year, setting a PSU record for road wins in a season. The Vikings also played three neutral site games (as they will in Reno), going 1-2 at the PK80 Invitational. Those games included a very competitive matchup with then-number-one ranked Duke, a narrow three-point loss to Butler, and a win over Stanford.
           
Portland State features a mature team led by seniors Bryce Canda (14.2 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.8 spg), Brandon Hollins (10.0 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 58% FG) and Ryan Edwards (9.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 55 blocks). Upstart freshman point guard Holland "Boo Boo" Woods (10.5 ppg, 5.8 apg) led the Big Sky Conference in assists.
           
On paper, Portland State would be the favorite over Sacramento State, but in two conference meetings earlier this season, things played out differently. Although the Hornets won only four Big Sky games, two of those victories came against the Vikings. It would seem to be the worst possible matchup for Portland State as the Vikings were 7-0 against the other five teams below them in the standings.
           
Sacramento State won the league opener against PSU, 80-75, in Sacramento on Dec. 31. Then, the Hornets took a 71-61 win in Portland on Jan. 27. How did they do it? First, the Hornets slowed the pace on both occasions, a style the Vikings do not prefer. Second, they held PSU to poor shooting nights (.417 in game one, .344 in game two). Third, they got big games from key players: Justin Strings scored 34 points on 16-18 shooting in game one; and Jordan Tolbert came off the bench for 26 points (8-14 FG, 8-8 FT) in game two.
           
PSU is 2-0 in Big Sky Conference Tournament first-round games since the league went to a 12-team tournament format. The Vikings are 0-1 all-time in tournament games against Sacramento State (70-60 loss in 2014-15).
           
The Vikings' 19 wins this season are the most since back-to-back 23 win seasons by Portland State's NCAA Tournament teams in 2007-08 and 2008-09. The 19 wins tie for third-most in PSU's 22-season Big Sky Conference history. And for Head Coach Barret Peery they are the most ever by a first-year Viking coach, and best winning percentage for a first-year coach at the Division I level (.613). PSU's 9-9 conference record was its best since going 11-9 in 2013-14. 
 
PORTLAND STATE IN THE BIG SKY CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT
Portland State is making its 15th appearance in the Big Sky Conference Tournament. Prior to 2015-16, Big Sky teams had to qualify for the tournament. This is the third year that all 12 teams automatically qualify. 
           
The Vikings are 11-12 all-time in Big Sky Conference Tournament games with titles in 2008 and 2009. PSU is 2-0 in first-round games, 5-6 in quarterfinals, 2-6 in semifinals and 2-0 in the championship. The Vikings are 6-8 all-time in neutral site games (also 4-1 in Portland, 1-3 at away sites).
           
Portland State is 0-1 all-time against Sacramento State in the Big Sky Tournament.
Mar. 12, 2015: Sacramento State 70, Portland State 60 (quarterfinal) in Missoula, MT
 
THE BIG SKY CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT
RENO, NV | Reno Events Center | Mar. 6-10, 2018
 
Tuesday, March 6, 2018 • First Round | Session 1
Game 1 - #8 North Dakota (11-19, 6-12) vs. #9 Montana State (13-18, 6-12) - 12:05 p.m. (WatchBigSky.com/Pluto TV)
Game 2 - #5 Northern Colorado (20-11, 11-7) vs. #12 Northern Arizona (5-25, 2-15) - 2:35 p.m. (WatchBigSky.com/Pluto TV)
 
Tuesday, March 6, 2018 • First Round | Session 2
Game 3 - #7 Idaho State (14-15, 9-9) vs. #10 Southern Utah (11-18, 5-13) - 5:35 p.m. (WatchBigSky.com/Pluto TV)
Game 4 - #6 Portland State (19-12, 9-9) vs. #11 Sacramento State (7-24, 4-14) - 8:05 p.m. (WatchBigSky.com/Pluto TV)
 
Thursday, March 8, 2018 • Quarterfinal Round | Session 1
Game 5 - #1 Montana (23-7, 16-2) vs. Winner of Game 1 - 12:05 p.m. (Eleven Sports/WatchBigSky.com/Pluto TV)
Game 6 - #4 Weber State (20-10, 13-5) vs. Winner of Game 2 - 2:35 p.m. (Eleven Sports/WatchBigSky.com/Pluto TV)
 
Thursday, March 8, 2018 • Quarterfinal Round | Session 2
Game 7 - #2 Idaho (22-8, 14-4) vs. Winner of Game 3 - 5:35 p.m. (Eleven Sports/WatchBigSky.com/Pluto TV)
Game 8 - #3 Eastern Washington (18-13, 13-5) vs. Winner of Game 4 - 8:05 p.m. (Eleven Sports/WatchBigSky.com/Pluto TV)
 
Friday, March 9, 2018 • Semifinal Round
Game 9 - Winner of Game 5 vs. Winner of Game 6 - 5:35 p.m. (Eleven Sports/WatchBigSky.com/Pluto TV)
Game 10 - Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 8 - 8:05 p.m. (Eleven Sports/WatchBigSky.com/Pluto TV)
 
Saturday, March 10, 2018 • Championship Game
Game 11 - Winner of Game 9 vs. Winner of Game 10 - 5:05 p.m. (ESPNU)
 
GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. SACRAMENTO STATE 
• ALL-TIME SERIES: Portland State leads the all-time series, 29-18, and the Big State Conference series, 28-17. However, the Hornets swept the season series against the Vikings and have won three straight overall... Sacramento State is 1-0 against Portland State in the Big Sky Conference Tournament.
• Dec. 31 in Sacramento, SAC 80, PSU 75: The Vikings led 39-33 at halftime, but the Hornets' Justin Strings took over in the second half. Sacramento State shot 68% from the field in the second half and 60% for the game. Strings made 16-18 shots from the field on his way to 34 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Jordan Tolbert had 19 points and four assists off the bench. Deontae North scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds for the Vikings. Bryce Canda had 11 points and 10 rebounds. Ryan Edwards scored 16 points. Jan. 27 in Portland, SAC 71, PSU 61: Portland State suffered through an anemic shooting performance, hitting only 34% from the field. Still the Vikings led, 33-26 at halftime. Sacramento State shot 57% in the second half to pull away for the win. Jordan Tolbert scored 26 points off the bench. Justin Strings and Joshua Patton each had 15 points and eight rebounds. For the Vikings, Bryce Canda led the way with 19 points.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Barret Peery is in his first season on the Park Blocks. Peery's 19 wins are the most ever by a first-year coach at Portland State. His only other head coaching experience is at the junior college level where he was 178-30 in six seasons (2005-08, College of Southern Idaho;  2011-14, Indian Hills (IA) CC)... the Hornets are coached by Brian Katz in his 10th season. Katz is 111-189 all-time, including 8-12 against the Vikings.
 
SACRAMENTO STATE HORNETS
• Sacramento State joined the Big Sky Conference in the same season as Portland State: 1996-97. The Hornets have never won a Big Sky Championship.
• This season, the Hornets are 7-24 overall and went 4-14 in the Big Sky Conference. They average 67.4 points per game and allow 73.8 points per game. 
• Forward Justin Strings averages 18.3 points and 7.0 rebounds to lead Sacramento State in both categories. 
• Forward Joshua Patton averages 10.9 points, 5.3 rebounds and a team-leading 56 blocked shots.
• Guard Jordan Tolbert averages 9.9 points while coming off the bench. Guard Izayah Mauriohooho-Le'afa leads the team with 3.7 assists per game and 34 steals.
 
PORTLAND STATE vs. THE BIG SKY FIELD THIS SEASON
• vs. #1 Montana (0-2) - L, 89-92 @ PSU; L, 60-80 @ UM
• vs. #2 Idaho (1-1) - W, 73-72 @ UI; L, 88-97 @ PSU
• vs. #3 Weber State (0-2) - L, 79-84 @ WSU; L, 86-95 @ PSU (ot)
• vs. #4 Eastern Washington (1-1) - L, 74-81 @ EWU; W, 94-81 @ PSU
• vs. #5 Northern Colorado (0-1) - L, 78-85 @ PSU
• vs. #6 Idaho State (2-0) - W, 87-83 @ ISU; W, 91-77 @ PSU
• vs. #8 Montana State (2-0) - W, 93-74 @ PSU; W, 80-77 @ MSU
• vs. #9 North Dakota (1-0) - W, 97-90 @ PSU (ot)
• vs. #10 Southern Utah (1-0) - W, 96-91 @ SUU (ot)
• vs. #11 Sacramento State (0-2) - L, 75-80 @ SAC; L, 61-71 @ PSU
• vs. #12 Northern Arizona (1-0) - W, 72-66 @ NAU
 
WHAT THEY HAVE ACCOMPLISHED
With the most important part of the season just ahead, it is time to look at the memorable moments and milestones (so far) for the Portland State Vikings in the 2017-18 season. 
• 19 wins - the most by a Viking team since 2008-09 when it reached the NCAA Tournament... also the third-most wins in the Big Sky era (22 seasons).
• 10-5 road record - Portland State has the most road wins in school history and best road winning percentage. Including neutral site games (11-7), the Vikings match most "away from home wins" in school history (11-9 in 2008-09).
• Head Coach Barret Peery has the most wins (19) and best winning percentage (.613) by a first-year coach at the Division I level in Portland State history.
• The Vikings beat two Pac-12 schools (Stanford, Cal) in the same season for the first time in school history.
• PSU's 10-3 non-conference record was its best in school history. The Vikings three losses came against prominent programs (Duke, Butler, Oregon).
• Comeback wins - Portland State has nine second-half come-from-behind victories (four by double digits). Six of those have been on the road, two at Memorial Coliseum. 
• Portland State was 7-1 against teams from other Division I basketball conferences in the west (3-0 vs. West Coast Conference; 2-1 vs Pac-12; 1-0 against vs. Big West; 1-0 vs. Mountain West). 
• Scoring - Portland State is averaging 86.8 points per game this season, the most since 1976-77 (91.0).
• PSU is nationally-ranked in scoring (86.8, 3rd), steals (9.9, 2nd), turnover margin (+5.5, 1st) and turnovers forced (18.2, 2nd) and offensive rebounds (14.6, 2nd).
 
WINNING LINES 
• Portland State is 19-12 this season, 8-5 at home, 10-5 on the road, 1-2 at neutral sites.
• In Big Sky Conference games, PSU was 9-9 (4-5 at home, 5-4 on the road). 
• PSU is 8-5 in games decided by five points or less or overtime.
• The Vikings are 2-1 in overtime.
 
WHO IS HOT
• SR F Brandon Hollins had five double-doubles in the Vikings' last seven games. Over that span, he has averaged 14.0 points and 12.3 rebounds. Hollins scored a career-high 22 points (10-12 FG, 1-2 3-pt, 1-1 FT) against Weber State. He followed with a career-high 16 rebounds against Idaho State... Hollins has a team-high seven double-doubles this season.
• SR G Bryce Canda had his best game of the conference season with 24 points (6-11 FG, 4-8 3-pt, 8-10 FT), eight rebounds, four assists and three steals in the win over Northern Colorado. Canda scored seven straight points in overtime to seal the win for the Vikings.
• SR C Ryan Edwards has averaged 15.2 points and shot .564 from the field over the last five games.
 
WHO IS NOT
• Portland State averages 22.3 fouls per game, ranking 350th in the nation (among 351).
• The Vikings have allowed opponents to shoot .478 from the field, which ranks 11th in the conference.
 
BIG SKY LEADERS: The Vikings lead the Big Sky Conference in:
• Scoring, 86.8
• Steals, 9.9
• Assists, 16.8
• Turnover Margin, +5.5
• Assist-to-Turnover Ratio, 1.3
• Offensive Rebounds, 14.6
• Assists, Holland Woods, 5.8
• Blocked Shots, Ryan Edwards, 1.8
• Rebounds, Brandon Hollins, 9.7 (conference games only)