BOX SCORE - PDF | HTML

PORTLAND, Ore. — The Portland State women's basketball team wasn't facing the Monstars Thursday, but the Vikings still needed some of "Michael's Secret Stuff" at halftime against Weber State.
 
The Vikings made just 1-of-11 shots in the second quarter, and were shooting just .259 (7-of-27) from the field at halftime – well below their worst field goal percentage in a game this season, which came against Montana State when the Vikings shot .345 from the floor. The Vikings found their Bugs Bunny-Michael Jordan groove in the second half, however, as they went 8-of-12 in the third quarter and 15-of-28 after halftime while running away from the Wildcats, 65-38.
 
""I thought we were a little hesitant at first. It was a physical game. It's a Big Sky Conference game and that's what we talked about [at halftime]," PSU head coach Lynn Kennedy said afterwards. "Our posts have got to be able to finish and our guards have got to be able to shoot from the outside and when we have the combination, we're tough to beat. You saw it in that third quarter, outscoring them 24-9."
 
Defense helped the Vikings (15-3, 7-2 Big Sky) stay in front of the Wildcats (4-16, 1-9 Big Sky), even during their cold spell in the second quarter. The Wildcats went just 13-of-67 from the field for a .194 field goal percentage Thursday – the worst field goal percentage by a Viking opponent since game-by-game records go back through the 2006-07 season.
 
It had been just over eight years since the Vikings held a Division I opponent to under 25 percent from the floor, let alone below 20 percent. Loyola Marymount was the last Division I team to shoot less than 25 percent from the floor against the Vikings when they shot .242 on Dec. 11, 2010.
 
The Wildcats were still only one point down at halftime despite all their shooting struggles, and would have stayed with the Vikings if the Vikings didn't pick up their own offense in the second half.
 
Familiar faces helped lead the resurgent play in the second half for the Vikings, as seniors Ashley Bolston and Sidney Rielly – held to just three points combined at halftime – accounted for 16 of the Vikings' 24 points in the third quarter. Rielly had only taken one shot in the first half, but came out of the break firing and led all players with 10 points in the third quarter while going 2-of-2 from beyond the arc.
 
Bolston and Rielly hit back-to-back shots from distance in the middle of the third quarter, stretching the Vikings' lead from five points to 11 at 36-25 with 4:49 remaining. Considering how both teams had been shooting, an 11-point lead could have proven insurmountable, but the Vikings kept pushing and went up 16 two different times late in the third.
 
Rielly gave the Vikings' their first 16-point lead with her second three-pointer of the third quarter at the 2:25 mark, while sophomore point guard Kylie Jimenez fed junior forward Jordan Stotler for a fast-break layup right at the end of the period that made it 47-31 Vikings going into the fourth.
 
Jimenez came back with back-to-back buckets in the middle of the fourth quarter, the second of which gave the Vikings their first 20-point lead of the game at 56-36 with 5:23 remaining.
 
The Wildcats responded with a jumper from Dominique Williams to make it 56-38, but the Vikings held the Wildcats scoreless from there. Weber State went the final four minutes, 50 seconds of game time without scoring a point while the Vikings tacked on the final nine points of the game.
 
Rielly and Jimenez led all scorers with 13 points each, while Stotler and Bolston were each a point or a rebound away from a double-double. Bolston finished with 12 points and nine rebounds, while Stotler was a point away from her second straight double-double with nine points to go with a career-high 13 rebounds. Freshman guard Desirae Hansen also chipped in nine points on 3-of-6 shooting from the field.
 
Rielly made all three of her three-point attempts Thursday, and is now 24-of-46 (.522) from beyond the arc in Big Sky play. Rielly's three three-pointers Thursday also gave her 124 career makes from distance at Portland State, moving her into a tie with Katie Rose (1992-96) for ninth all time at the school. Additionally, Rielly passed Kelli Valentine (2007-11) for eighth all time in scoring with her 1,303rd career point Thursday, and took over 10th place all time from Michele Hughes (1987-91) with her 63rd-career 10-point game.
 
Bolston, meanwhile, moved into the all-time top 10 for career assists with her 320th assist in the game. Jimenez led all players with six assists against the Wildcats, which were her most assists in a game since she had nine against Montana on Jan. 5.
 
The Vikings now turn their attention to Idaho State, which beat Sacramento State 56-42 in Sacramento Thursday. The Bengals are one of four two-loss teams at the top of the Big Sky standings along with Portland State, Northern Colorado and Idaho. The Bengals moved into a tie with Northern Colorado for the conference lead at 8-2 with their win over the Hornets, while Idaho and the Vikings sit a half-game behind at 7-2.
 
The Vikings and Bengals will tip off at 2 p.m. Saturday.
 
Game Notes: The Vikings leveled the overall series between them and the Wildcats, 28-28, with the win Thursday…The Vikings increased their lead in the Big Sky series between the two teams, 25-19, with the win…The 27-point victory was the Vikings' largest over a Big Sky opponent since they beat Northern Arizona 87-58 on Jan. 4, 2009...Thursday's game was part of a PledgeIt Campaign for cancer research with the Vikings contributing a certain amount of money for every made three-pointer combined with the PSU men's team's makes against Idaho last Saturday…The Viking women made six three-pointers against the Wildcats, upping the total made three-pointers between the two game to 16 after the men made 10 against Idaho…Senior forward Pia Jurhar moved into fifth place on her own with her 99th career block Thursday.