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PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (6-11, 1-5) vs.
            EASTERN WASHINGTON EAGLES (5-12, 3-3)
Thursday, January 24, 2019, 7:05 p.m. • Viking Pavilion (3,094), Portland, OR
Live Stream: Pluto TV Channel 232, pluto.tv, WatchBigSky.com • Play-by-play: Matt Richert
Live Stats: www.ViksLive.com
Complete notes and stats in pdf

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THE OPENING TIP
Portland State will try to right the Viking ship on the only weekend at home over the span of one month of Big Sky Conference play. The Vikings (6-11, 1-5) host Eastern Washington (5-12, 3-3) on Thursday night, then Idaho (4-13, 1-5) on Saturday at the Viking Pavilion.
     
PSU wants to end a three-game losing streak and wipe away the memory of eight losses in the last nine games. Perhaps most concerning in that span is four straight home losses. The Vikings need to establish their new home court as a difficult place to play for visiting teams. Meanwhile, the Eagles will come to Portland, seeking their first road win of the season as they are 0-9 away from home.
     
The all-time series between the Vikings and the Eagles is as even as it can be with 23 wins on each side over the previous 22 seasons of Big Sky Conference games. PSU leads the all-time series, 26-24. The teams split the season series last year, with each winning on their home court. Eastern Washington, led by Big Sky Player of the Year Bogdan Bliznyuk, beat Portland State, 78-72, in the Big Sky Tournament on the way to reaching the championship game.
     
Portland State's struggles this year are mostly related to an inconsistent offense. Though the Vikings are averaging 78.9 points, they have shot only .409 from the field and .280 from three-point range.  Turnovers were a major bugaboo last week as the Vikings averaged 24.0 per game in a pair of losses at Southern Utah and Northern Arizona.
     
The Eagles can relate to those offensive challenges. This year, without Bliznyuk, EWU has struggled offensively, averaging 67.9 points and shooting only .404 from the field, both of which rank last in the Big Sky Conference.
     
Eastern has been better in six Big Sky games, going 3-3, averaging 72.3 points and shooting .449 from the field. Mason Peatling has led the way, averaging 17.8 points and shooting .592 from the field.
     
In Big Sky games, PSU has given up more than 84 points and allowing opponents to shoot .494 from the field.
     
The Thursday's game tips off at 7:05 p.m. The game will be live streamed on Pluto TV Channel 232, www.pluto.tv and www. WatchBigSky.com. Matt Richert will call the play-by-play. Live stats are available at www.ViksLive.com.
 
COMING UP
On Saturday night the Vikings will host the University of Idaho in a 7:05 p.m. game at the Viking Pavilion. Beginning next week, PSU is on the road for four straight facing Weber State, Idaho State, Northern Colorado and Sacramento State.
 
GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. EASTERN WASHINGTON
• ALL-TIME SERIES: Portland State leads the all-time series, 26-24... the Big Sky Conference series is tied 23-23... PSU leads 14-7 in Big Sky games played in Portland... the teams split the season series last year with each winning on its home court. Eastern Washington then knocked the Vikings out of the Big Sky Conference Tournament in a quarterfinal round game.
• LAST YEAR: Jan. 4, EWU 81, PSU 74 at EWU: The Eagles stopped a late comeback attempt by the Vikings, who trailed by 13 in the second half but whittled it down to two in the final minute. PSU shot only .368 from the field, but forced 20 EWU turnovers to stay close. Bogdan Bliznyuk scored 28 points with 12 rebounds to lead the Eagles. Deontae North scored 21 points. Brandon Hollins added 13 points and 11 rebounds. Feb. 3, PSU 94, EWU 81 at Lewis and Clark College: Portland State shot a lot better at home, hitting a season-best .576 from the field in a game it led wire-to-wire. Holland Woods set a PSU record by hitting 10-10 field goals for a career-high 29 points and nine assists. Cody Benzel scored 21 for the Eagles. Mar. 8, EWU 78, PSU 72 at Reno, NV, Big Sky Tournament Quarterfinal: A six-and-a-half minute scoring drought by PSU allowed Eastern Washington to build a 16-point halftime lead. Up 21 in the second half, the Eagles held on to advance in the Big Sky Tournament. League Player of the Year Bogdan Bliznyuk scored 35 points and had seven rebounds to lead the way. Derek Brown came off the bench to lead the Vikings with 14 points.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Barret Peery (Southern Utah, 1996) is in his second season on the Park Blocks and has a 26-25 career record. Peery is 1-2 against Eastern Washington... Peery's 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 Eagles are coached by Shantay Legans (Fresno State, 2004) in his second season. Legans has a 25-27 career record. He is 2-1 against the Vikings.
 
EASTERN WASHINGTON EAGLES
• Eastern Washington, located in Cheney, joined the Big Sky Conference in 1987. The Eagles have won two Big Sky regular season titles, two Big Sky Tournament titles, and made two appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
• Last year, Eastern Washington was 20-15 overall, 13-5 and tied for third in the Big Sky Conference. The Eagles reached the Big Sky Tournament Championship before losing to Montana. They were invited to play in the College Basketball Invitational, but lost in the first round to Utah Valley.
• This year, the Eagles are 5-12, 3-3 in the Big Sky Conference. Eastern averages 67.9 points and allows 76.7 points per game. The Eagles rank last in scoring, scoring margin (-8.0) and field goal percentage (.404) in the Big Sky.
• Junior forward Mason Peatling averages 15.9 points and 6.3 rebounds per game while shooting .571 from the field.
• Senior forward Jesse Hunt averages 14.4 points, 8.2 rebounds and a team-leading 2.9 assists per game. He ranks second in the Big Sky in rebounding.
 
SUSTAINABLE AND RECYCLABLE VIKING QUICK NOTES
WINNING LINES
• Portland State is 6-11 on the season, 4-4 at home, 1-6 on the road, 1-1 at neutral sites.
• PSU is 1-5 in Big Sky Conference play, 0-3 at home, 1-2 on the road.
• PSU has lost four straight home games and eight of the last nine overall.
• The Vikings are 1-1 in overtime... Head Coach Barret Peery is 3-2 all-time in overtime.
Home Court(s)
• Portland State opened the Viking Pavilion at the Peter W. Stott Center in 2018-19. The Stoller Family Court will be PSU's fifth (and hopefully final) home court since joining the Big Sky Conference in 1996-97. The main home court was the old Peter W. Stott Center. However, the Vikings also used the Rose Garden (now Moda Center) and Memorial Coliseum occasionally over the years. In 2017-18, PSU used Lewis & Clark College's Pamplin Sports Center as a home court while the Viking Pavilion was being completed. Here is the breakdown:
  - Viking Pavilion - 8 games, 4-4
  - Peter W. Stott Center - 233 games, 168-65
  - Rose Garden (Moda Center) - 28 games, 19-9
  - Memorial Coliseum - 19 games, 13-6
  - Lewis and Clark - 12 games, 7-5
  - 23rd season - 300 games, 211-89 at home overall
• Since the start of the 2006-07 season, PSU is 124-50 at home, including 71-40 in Big Sky Conference regular season and tournament games.
• Portland State has lost only 10 non-conference home games in the last 12 seasons (53-10). PSU is 28-10 against Division I schools, and 25-0 against lower division schools over that span.
Big Sky Battles
• Portland State is 186-203 all-time in all Big Sky Conference games, including the Big Sky Tournament (12-13).
• PSU is 120-65 in home games, 60-128 in road games and 6-10 in neutral-site games.
 
WHO IS HOT
• SR G Deante Strickland set a new career high with 19 points at Northern Arizona. After a slow start to the season, Strickland has warmed up, averaging 14.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists off the bench over the last three games.
• Coming off the bench, SR G Derek Brown tied his career high with 16 points (5-10 FG, 6-6 FT) against Southern Utah.
• The Vikings out-rebounded Southern Utah, 38-18, and did not allow the Thunderbirds a single offensive board. PSU out-rebounded Northern Arizona, 45-33.
 
WHO IS NOT
• PSU has lost four in a row at home and eight of nine overall.
• Portland State had a season-high 25 turnovers at Southern Utah, giving up 30 points. At Northern Arizona, they had 23 turnovers for 30 points.
• Portland State is shooting .280 from three-point range this season which ranks last in the Big Sky Conference.
 
YOU'VE GOT TO PUT THE BISCUIT IN THE BASKET: There is no question that shooting efficiency is the most important element in basketball. So far, the Vikings have been inconsistent when chucking the rock at the old peach basket, with distinct differences in shooting between wins and losses, and home and road games. Here is a breakdown:
• The Vikings are 5-0 when out-shooting their opponents, 1-11 when they don't.
• In nine of PSU's 11 losses, they have shot 39% or less.
• Field goal percentage: 461-1,126, .409 (10th in Big Sky)
• Three-point percentage: 116-415, .280 (11th in Big Sky)
• Shooting in wins: .479/.360
• Shooting in losses: .366/.239
• Shooting in home games: .456/.333
• Shooting in road/neutral site games: .368/.239
 
PEERY PRESSURE, PART II: Portland State Head Coach Barret Peery emphasizes a full-court pressure defense that forces turnovers and creates transition opportunities. Then, on the offensive end, his team relentlessly attacks the offensive glass. Here are the analytics of those two areas. In 2018-19:
• The Vikings have forced 17.5 turnovers per game and have a +1.7 turnover margin. PSU has scored 305 points off turnovers compared to 291 for opponents.
• The Vikings average 17.6 offensive rebounds per game while opponents average 8.8 (exactly twice as many, 300-150). PSU has almost doubled its opponents in second-chance points this season (297-151).
• In all, the difference in total turnovers (28) and total offensive rebounds (150) is 178 extra possessions compared to opponents (10.4 per game).
• As a result, PSU has 201 more field goal attempts than the opponents. Opponents have 36 more free throw attempts.
 
CHEERING FOR BOO BOO: SO G Holland "Boo Boo" Woods leads the Vikings' in scoring (14.9) and assists (4.9). He ranks eighth in the Big Sky in scoring, ranks second in assists and is fourth in steals (1.6).
• He has led the team in scoring nine times and assists 13 times this season.
• Woods, the Big Sky leader in assists last season (5.6), has led the Vikings in assists in 38 of 50 career games. He ranks ninth all-time at Portland State with 269 career assists in less than two seasons.
• Scored in double figures 11 times with five 20+ point games.
• Went for 20 points and five assists at Stanford.
• Had 27 points (8-14 FG, career-high 5-7 3-pt, 6-6 FT) and six assists in a win over Portland.
• Scored 17 points with seven rebounds and seven assists at Montana State, making 10-10 FTs.
• Posted a season-high 28 points (6-11 FG, 3-4 3-pt FG, 13-15 FT) in a win at Montana, adding four rebounds and three assists.
• Had a season-high 10 assists against Weber State.
• Posted 21 points with four steals at Northern Arizona.
 
NU-COMERS PLAYING WELL: Portland State newcomers JR G Michael Nuga and JR C Sal Nuhu are having a big impact for the Vikings.
Nuga Nuggets:
• Nuga ranks second on the team in scoring at 12.2 points per game in 21 minutes per night.
• He leads the team with 26 3-pt FG and a .361 3-pt FG%.
• Has scored in double figures 10 times with two 20+ point games.
• Went for 17 points and nine rebounds against Stanford.
• Scored a season-high 24 points against CSU Bakersfield.
Yahoo For Nuhu:
• Nuhu averages 10.2 points in 20.5 minutes per game.
• He averages 5.9 rebounds to rank second on the Vikings and 11th in the Big Sky. He leads the Vikings and ranks fifth in field goal percentage (.565) and third in blocked shots (1.7).
• Has scored in double figures 10 times.
• Posted a double-double against Stanford with 15 points and 14 rebounds.
• Went for 10 points, nine rebounds and a season-high six blocked shots against Portland.
• Scored 16 points (5-6 FG, 6-8 FT) at Montana State.
• Tallied a season-high 20 points (8-16 FG, 4-5 FT) with seven rebounds and four blocked shots against Weber State.
 
THE REAL McCOY: In his first season as a Viking, JR F Robert McCoy has stepped into a key role. He has started 14 games and averages 22.9 minutes, ranking third on the team.
• McCoy averages 8.5 points and leads the Vikings in rebounding at 6.5 per game, ranking sixth in the Big Sky Conference. He leads the Big Sky in offensive rebounds (3.0 pg).
• He has led the Vikings in scoring once, rebounding six times and has two double-doubles.
• Has season-highs of 26 points, 12 rebounds and five steals.
• Scored 17 points with six rebounds, two blocks, two assists and two steals against Weber State.
 
PARTICIPATION AWARDS ALL AROUND: Portland State Head Coach Barret Peery's style of aggressive full-court pressure requires fresh bodies at all times. The Vikings sub early and often and everybody plays.
• The core 11 players are all averaging at least 11 minutes per game or more. Only five average 20 minutes, and only SO G Holland Woods averages over 30.
• Portland State has had nine players start games, while none have started every game this season. Only Woods has started every game he has played (missed one due to injury).
• The Vikings have had six different starting lineups in 15 games.
 
IF YOU BUILD IT: The crowd of 2,020 that attended the game against Portland (12/5) in the Viking Pavilion is the largest crowd of the season so far. Portland State's home opener against UC Riverside had a crowd of 1,424. The largest recent crowd was a sellout of that 1,500 attended the Portland State/Oregon State game in the old Stott Center gym on Dec. 12, 2012... PSU is averaging 1,142 fans through eight home games - the most since the 2008-09 season (1,106).
 
Portland State leads the Big Sky Conference in:
Rebounds Per Game  42.7
Offensive Rebounds   17.6
Rebounding Margin    +8.9
Steals                            9.8
Robert McCoy, offensive rebounds          3.0
 
SEASON HIGHLIGHT REEL
• Nov. 6: #14 Oregon 84, PSU 57: The Vikings opened the season with their usual aggressive approach on defense and the glass, but suffered through a woeful shooting night in a loss to the 14th-ranked Ducks. PSU made only 21-73 shots from the field (.288) compared to 27-50 for Oregon (.540). SO G Holland Woods led the Vikings with 13 points and three assists.
• Nov. 10: PSU 71, UC Riverside 64: The Vikings held the Highlanders without a field goal for eight minutes late in the second half. PSU trailed by four with 8:24 to play but pulled away in the closing minutes leading by as many as 10. SR G Derek Brown scored 12 points with six rebounds and three assists.
• Nov. 16: PSU 125, Willamette 61: PSU needed little time to dispatch Division III Willamette, jumping to a 23-0 lead in the first five minutes and cruising to an easy win. SO G Holland Woods and JR G Michael Nuga each scored 22 points, while SR F Jamie Orme (19 pts, 13 reb) and JR F Robert McCoy (11 pts, 12 reb) each had double-doubles.
• Peery Wins 200th: Portland State Head Basketball Coach Barret Peery captured his 200th career victory on Saturday in a 125-61 win over Willamette. Peery, who is in his second season at Portland State, is currently 22-15 as Vikings' Head Coach. He also won 178 games in six seasons at the junior college level (93-11, Indian Hills CC (IA), 2011-14; College of Southern Idaho, 85-19, 2005-08). His composite record is 200-45.
• Nov. 23: UCSB 76, PSU 69: Portland State shoots .355 from the field, making only 3-23 three-pointers in the game. The Vikings also had 36 fouls, sending the Gauchos to the line 42 times. JR G Michael Nuga came off the bench to score 13 points for PSU.
• Nov. 24: PSU 91, Northwest Nazarene 75: Portland State jumped to a 23-5 lead in the first eight minutes and never looked back. The Vikings held the Nighthawks to .367 shooting and forced 20 turnovers. SR G Derek Brown scored 16 points with five rebounds. SO G Holland Woods had 16 points and nine assists.
• Nov. 28: Stanford 79, PSU 67: Another struggle in the shooting department cost the Vikings big as they out-rebounded Stanford 51-36 and forced 19 Cardinal turnovers. PSU made only 26-82 shots (.317) and 2-24 three-pointers (.083). SO G Holland Woods had 20 points and five assists, JR G Michael Nuga scored 17 points with nine rebounds, and JR C Sal Nuhu added 15 points and 14 rebounds.
• Dec. 1: PSU 123, Portland Bible 40: PSU took advantage of lower division Portland Bible setting new school records for margin of victory (83), turnovers forced (43) and steals (31). JR F Robert McCoy led seven Vikings in double figures with 26 points and eight rebounds. JR C Sal Nuhu had 17 points on 8-8 field goals in only 10 minutes of action. SR G Deante Strickland had eight assists and a school-record nine steals.
• Dec. 5: PSU 87, Portland 78: SO G Holland Woods had one of his best games as a Viking, hitting a career-high five three-pointers on the way to a 27-point, six-assist night. SR F Jamie Orme added a double-double (10 pts, 13 reb) and JR C Sal Nuhu came close (10 pts, 9 reb, 6 blk) as the Vikings outrebounded the Pilots, 55-29, winning their third straight over UP.
• Dec. 12: BYU 85, PSU 66: The Vikings suffered through another poor shooting performance on the road, hitting only .313 from the field and 5-24 from three-point range (.208), and committed 21 turnovers. That nullified a 56-32 rebounding advantage. SR G Derek Brown led the Vikings with 14 points.
• Dec. 15: Loyola Marymount 85, PSU 58: The Vikings shot only .347 from the field and had 18 turnovers in losing their first home game in the Viking Pavilion, and second in a row overall. PSU was also out-rebounded for the first time all season (37-36). JR F Rashaad Goolsby and SO G Holland Woods each had a game-high 12 points.
• Dec. 20: CSU Bakersfield 76, PSU 71: Portland State came back from a 19-point second-half deficit to get within one on two occasions, but couldn't quite get over the hump. PSU made only two field goals in the last two minutes as the Roadrunners hung on. PSU was out-shot from the field .473 to .386. JR G Michael scored a season-high 24 points, JR F Robert McCoy grabbed 12 rebounds and SO G Holland Woods handed off nine assists for the Vikings.
• Dec. 31: Northern Colorado 73, PSU 60: The Vikings lose their forth straight game with a familiar refrain: poor shooting. PSU makes only 19-51 from the field (.373). Jordan Davis (27 points) and Bodie Hume (19) lead the Bears to the win. SR G Derek Brown comes off the bench to match his season high with 16 points.
• Jan. 3: Montana State 98, PSU 88: Montana State's backcourt of Tyler Hall and Harald Frey combined for 57 points in leading the Bobcats to the win. MSU shot .536 from the field, .462 from three-point range and .743 at the line and led for the last 36 minutes of the game. SR G Michael Mayhew and SO G Holland Woods each scored 17 points to lead the Vikings. Wood added seven rebounds and seven assists in the loss.
• Jan. 5: PSU 79, Montana 74 (ot): Portland State removed several monkeys from its back with a road win in Missoula. The Vikings ended a five-game losing streak, picked up their first road win, and won at Montana for the first time since 2008. They also ended a 20-game home winning streak for the Griz. PSU came from seven points down with just over two minutes to play to send the game to OT. SO G Holland Woods hit a three-pointer to tie it with 40 seconds left. In the extra session, JR F Robert McCoy scored twice inside, then Woods hit a pair of free throws with 17 seconds left to decide the game. Woods scored a season-high 28 points (6-11/3-4/13-15) while McCoy added a double-double (10 pts, 11 reb).
• Jan. 12: Weber State 95, PSU 88 (ot): The game was a draw for 44 minutes, but Weber State pulled away in final minute of overtime to hand the Vikings their fourth straight home loss. The Wildcats shot .571 from the field and .857 at the free throw line. JR C Sal Nuhu led the Vikings with a season-high 20 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots. JR F Robert McCoy added 17 points, six rebounds and two blocks.
• Jan. 17: Southern Utah 83, PSU 69: The Vikings trailed for all but 37 seconds of the game. Still, it was tied with 6:17 to play. The Thunderbirds closed out the Vikings on a 20-6 run to end the game. PSU had 25 turnovers and shot .391 from the field. SR G Derek Brown matched his career high with 16 points.
• Jan. 19: Northern Arizona 82, PSU 75: Portland State had a strong start offensively but slipped back to recent form, shooting only .388 from the field and committing 23 turnovers. After taking the lead late in the first half, NAU led the rest of the way. SR G Deante Strickland scored a career-high 19 points. Holland Woods added 21 points.