Complete Game Notes (PDF)

TIPOFF
One of the earliest highlights in the Portland State women's basketball team's championship season last year came in a 65-50 home win over UC Davis. It was only the third counting game of the season for the Vikings, and came over a team that would go on to sweep the Big West Conference regular-season and tournament titles.
 
Then-senior Ashley Bolston led the Vikings to the victory with the first of two triple-doubles for her last season. It was an early indicator of what both Bolston and the Vikings would have in store at the end of the season, when the Vikings won the Big Sky tournament title while Bolston was named the tournament MVP.
 
Last year's win was also an intersection of two teams that had a number of things in common. Both teams went on to win 25 games last season, while both teams advanced to the NCAA tournament for only the second time in their program's Division I history.
 
The Vikings and Aggies also share characteristics this season, as both teams lost three starters off their championship-winning teams from last season. The Vikings lost Bolston, who is now the Vikings' Video Coordinator, while the Aggies lost leading scorer Morgan Bertsch who averaged 23.6 points per game last season. Bertsch, who the Vikings held without a field goal for the first quarter and a half last season, went on to be named the Big West Conference Player of the Year. Bertsch was also selected in the third round of the WNBA draft, going to the Dallas Wings as the 29th overall pick.
 
The loss of Bertsch has meant the Aggies, like the Vikings, have been figuring out new roles for their current players during the early part of their non-conference schedule. Both teams may have started to turn a corner of late, however. The Vikings handed Nevada its first loss of the season with an 80-75 win over the Wolf Pack Saturday, while the Aggies snapped a four-game losing streak to open the season with two wins in the past week.
 
The Aggies beat another Big Sky school Tuesday, as they topped their regional rival, Sacramento State, in double overtime. The Aggies didn't lead until the 2:11 mark of the second overtime period, but still beat the Hornets 77-75. The Aggies opened their season against another Big Sky team in Montana State, but lost that game, 77-65, on the road on Nov. 8.
 
The Vikings, meanwhile, showed off their balanced scoring in their win over Nevada last Saturday. Four different players scored in double figures for the Vikings, while six players finished with eight or more points.
 
Saturday's balanced effort showed off the Vikings' efficient attack, which leads the Big Sky Conference in three-point field goal percentage (.419), free throw percentage (.813) and assists per game (18.6).
 
Sophomore guard Desirae Hansen led the Vikings with 17 points against Nevada, and stuffed the stat sheet in other categories as well between five rebounds, five assists and five steals. Hansen ranks second to redshirt junior Tatiana Streun in scoring this season, while Streun and Hansen rank seventh and eighth, respectively, in the Big Sky with 14.0 and 13.6 points per game. Streun also leads both the team and the Big Sky Conference with 8.6 rebounds per game, and ranks in the top five of the conference for offensive rebounds per game (2nd, 3.0), defensive rebounds per game (3rd, 5.6) and free throw percentage (5th, .424).
 
For the Aggies, fifth-year senior guard Katie Toole leads the team with 19.5 points per game, while Kayla Konrad and Nina Bessolo follow with 11.2 and 10.7 points per game, respectively. Konrad also leads the team with 6.7 rebounds per game, with Cierra Hall second at 5.3 rebounds to go with 8.3 points per game.
 
Mackenzie Trpcic, who sat out last season after transferring from the University of Albany, leads the Aggies with 5.5 assists per game, and had a season-high 10 assists in the Aggies' win over Sacramento State Tuesday. Sophia Song, one of two returning starters off last year's team along with Hall, hit the game-winning shot with 30 seconds left in the Aggies' win over the Hornets.
 
The Aggies' win over the Hornets sets up a good measuring stick for the Vikings. Nevada also beat the Hornets, after all, and the Vikings beat them last weekend.
 
Saturday's game also represents a chance for the Vikings to solve their road woes, as they are 0-3 away from Viking Pavilion so far this season. If the Vikings can solve them against the Aggies, then they'll head into a Monday night game at UC Irvine with some momentum before returning to Portland for their final three non-conference games of the season.
 
Tipoff for Saturday's game is scheduled for 2 p.m. (PT).
 
GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE (2-3) vs. UC DAVIS (2-4)
LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
DETAILS: Saturday, Nov. 30, 2 p.m. (PT), Davis, Calif. (The Pavilion)
SCOUTING UC DAVIS: The UC Davis Aggies snapped a four-game losing streak to open the season with a 79-67 home win over San Francisco on Nov. 22. The Aggies followed that win with a 77-75 double-overtime win over Sacramento State Tuesday, despite not leading until the 2:11 mark of the second overtime period. The Aggies opened their season against another Big Sky team in Montana State, losing 77-65 on the road on Nov. 8. The Aggies went 25-7 overall and 15-1 in conference play while sweeping the Big West regular-season and tournament titles. The Aggies made only their second NCAA tournament appearance as a result, where they lost 79-54 to Stanford in the first round. The Aggies lost three starters and six letterwinners off that team, including leading scorer Morgan Bertsch, who was named the Big West Conference Player of the Year and selected in the WNBA draft after last season. Fifth-year senior guard Katie Toole leads the Aggies with 19.5 points per game so far this season, while Kayla Konrad and Nina Bessolo follow with 11.2 and 10.7 points per game, respectively. Konrad also leads the team with 6.7 rebounds per game, with Cierra Hall second at 5.3 rebounds to go with 8.3 points per game. Mackenzie Trpcic, who sat out last season after transferring from the University of Albany, leads the Aggies with 5.5 assists per game, and had a season-high 10 assists in the Aggies' win over Sacramento State Tuesday. Sophia Song, one of two returning starters off last year's team along with Hall, hit the game-winning shot with 30 seconds left in the Aggies' win over the Hornets.
ALL-TIME SERIES: The Vikings lead the all-time series between them and the Aggies, 10-5. The Vikings beat the Aggies 65-50 on Nov. 16 last season, with then-senior Ashley Bolston recording the first of two eventual triple-doubles during the season. The Aggies have won the last two games when the teams have played at home, however, including a 79-67 win over the Vikings on Nov. 17, 2017.
 
STORYLINES/STREAKS/RECORDS
• The Vikings snapped a three-game losing streak with an 80-75 home win over Nevada last Saturday. The Vikings handed the Wolf Pack its first loss of the season, after Nevada started the season 3-0 for the first time since the 2010-11 campaign.
• The Vikings lead the Big Sky in three different statistical categories, as they top the conference in three-point field goal percentage (.419), free throw percentage (.813) and assists per game (18.6). The Vikings rank second in the conference in four more categories between scoring offense (77.0), three-point field goals made per game (7.8), offensive rebounds per game (13.8) and steals per game (9.6).
• Five different Vikings average at least one three-pointer made per game in Belle Frazier (2.2), Kylie Jimenez (1.8), Cassidy Gardner (1.5), Desirae Hansen (1.4) and Jada Lewis (1.0). Frazier ranks fifth in the Big Sky for three-pointers made per game, while Jimenez ranks 13th in the conference. 
• The Vikings rank fifth in the nation with an .813 free throw percentage. Tatiana Streun ranks fourth in the Big Sky individually while shooting .786 from the line.
• The Vikings rank 11th in the nation with a .419 three-point field goal percentage. The Vikings tied a program record with 13 three-pointers in their season opener against Multnomah, and hit 10 more against UC Irvine on Nov. 16.
• The Vikings rank 18th in the nation with 18.6 assists per game. Jimenez leads the Big Sky and ranks 23rd in the NCAA with 6.0 assists per game individually. Hansen gives the Vikings another distributor on the floor, as she ranks third in the Big Sky and 78th in the nation with 4.8 assists per game.
• Streun is making her return to the court this season, after suffering an ACL tear that kept her out of the Vikings' 2018-19 season. In her first year back from injury, Streun leads the Big Sky with 8.6 rebounds per game, and ranks second in the conference in offensive rebounds per game (3.0), third in defensive rebounds per game (5.6), fourth in free throw percentage (.786) and seventh in points per game (14.0). 
• Senior forward Jordan Stotler leads the Big Sky and ranks 26th in the nation with 2.4 blocks per game.
• Jimenez needs only 12 assists, 18 steals and 11 three-pointers made to enter the all-time top 10 in each category at Portland State.
• Four different Vikings average over 10 points per game while Stotler nearly adds a fifth with 9.8 points per game. Streun leads the team with 14.0 points per game, while Hansen (13.6), Frazier (11.0) and Jimenez (10.8) follow behind her.
• The Vikings are in their fifth year under head coach Lynn Kennedy. The Vikings went from winning only four games in Kennedy's first season at the helm in 2015-16 to Big Sky champs last season.
 
DEPTH FROM DEEP
Through five games this season, the Vikings have emerged as one of the best teams in the Big Sky from beyond the arc. The Vikings lead the Big Sky and rank 11th in the nation with a .419 three-point field goal percentage. Additionally, the Vikings rank second in the Big Sky and 58th in the nation with 7.8 three-point field goals made per game. Five different Vikings average at least one three-pointer made per game in Belle Frazier (2.2), Kylie Jimenez (1.8), Cassidy Gardner (1.5), Desirae Hansen (1.4) and Jada Lewis (1.0). Frazier and Jimenez both rank in the top 15 of the Big Sky for three-pointers made per game, as they rank fifth and 13th, respectively. The Vikings tied a program record with 13 three-pointers in their season opener against Multnomah, and hit 10 more three-pointers against UC Irvine on Nov. 16.
 
PASSING THE ROCK
The Vikings set a Big Sky-era program record with 569 assists last season, but that mark may be under threat again this season. The Vikings lead the Big Sky and rank 18th in the nation with 18.6 assists per game through five games this season. That's a higher average than the Vikings recorded last season, when they broke the single-season record while averaging 17.2 assists per game. Kylie Jimenez leads the Big Sky and ranks 23rd in the nation with 6.0 assists per game. Desirae Hansen, meanwhile, gives the Vikings' a second distributor on the court, as she ranks third in the Big Sky and 78th in the nation with 4.8 assists per game. 
 
BALANCED SCORING
Four different Vikings average over 10 points per game, as the Vikings have a balanced scoring attack through five games this season. Redshirt junior forward Tatiana Streun leads the team with 14.0 points per game, while Desirae Hansen (13.6), Belle Frazier (11.0) and Kylie Jimenez (10.8) follow behind her. Jordan Stotler nearly gives the Vikings a fifth player in double figures with 9.8 points per game. 
 
MONEY FROM THE LINE
The Vikings hit 22-of-24 shots from the free-throw line Saturday against Nevada, and now lead the Big Sky and rank fifth in the nation with a .813 free-throw percentage. The Vikings have been a strong free-throw shooting team each of the past two seasons, as they shot .786 from the line during the 2017-18 season, and .790 during the 2018-19 season. The Vikings set the single-season school record for free throw percentage while shooting .792 from the line in 2011-12. The Vikings would break that record if the season ended today.
 
GET YOUR OWN TOTS!
Redshirt junior Tatiana Streun – nicknamed tots – has made a triumphant return to the court this season after an ACL tear kept her out of the Vikings' entire 2018-19 season. Streun has two double-doubles through five games this season, and leads the Big Sky with 8.6 rebounds per game. Streun also ranks in the top 10 of four other statistical categories, as she ranks second in offensive rebounds per game (3.0), third in defensive rebounds per game (5.6), fourth in free throw percentage (.786) and seventh in points per game (14.0). Streun record the first double-double of her career with 19 points and 13 rebounds in the Vikings' season opener against Multnomah on Nov. 5. Streun followed with a second double-double against UC Irvine on Nov. 16, recording 16 points and 11 rebounds against the Anteaters.
 
JIMENEZ CHASING EXCLUSIVE COMPANY AS A JUNIOR
Junior guard Kylie Jimenez leads the Big Sky and ranks 23rd in the nation with 6.0 assists per game so far this season. Jimenez also ranks third in the conference in both assist-to-turnover ratio (2.7) and steals per game (2.2), and ranks 13th in the Big Sky with 1.8 three-pointers made per game. The hot start has Jimenez on the verge of entering the PSU records books in a number of categories. Jimenez needs only 12 assists, 18 steals and 11 three-pointers made to join the all-time top 10 in all three categories. Additionally, Jimenez remains on pace to become the 19th member of the Vikings' 1,000-point club by season's end, when she could also become only the third player in program history to record 1,000-career points and 450-career assists. Jimenez will join Claire Faucher and Kim Manifesto, both PSU Hall of Famers, in the exclusive 1,000-point, 450-assist club whenever it happens.
 
BIG-SHOT DES TURNING INTO ALL-AROUND DES AS A SOPHOMORE
Sophomore guard Desirae Hansen has stepped up all phases of her game after a freshman season that ended on a high note with the game-winning shot against Eastern Washington in the Big Sky championship game. Hansen stuffed the stat sheet against Nevada last Saturday, when she led the Vikings with 17 points while recording five rebounds, five assists and five steals. For the season, Hansen ranks eighth in the Big Sky with 13.6 points per game while also ranking in the top 10 of the Big Sky for assists per game (3rd, 4.8), steals per game (T-4th, 2.0), field goal percentage (5th, .424) and assist-to-turnover ratio (7th, 1.8).
 
THE PAINT BELONGS TO JORDAN STOTLER
Senior forward Jordan Stotler was named to the KC Site Preseason WNIT Consolation All-Tournament Team after averaging 14.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game in the Vikings' two consolation games on Nov. 15 and 16 in Kansas City. Foul trouble has kept Stotler from having an even bigger impact for the Vikings this season, but she still leads the Big Sky and ranks 26th in the nation with 2.4 blocks per game. Stotler recorded the ninth-best single-season block total with 46 last season despite sharing the paint with the Vikings' all-time blocks leader in Courtney West. Stotler steps into West's old role in the middle of the Viking defense this season, when she should move up the career rankings for blocked shots. Stotler now has 58 blocked shots at Portland State, putting her 24 blocks from entering the all-time top 10 in the category.
 
GROWTH UNDER KENNEDY
The Vikings improved their win total in each of their first four seasons under head coach Lynn Kennedy. The Vikings won just four games during their first year under Kennedy in 2015-16, but then jumped up to 16 wins in 2016-17. The Vikings improved on that total with 19 wins in 2017-18, and then set a Division I program record with 25 wins last season.
 

Record	Season	Kennedy's Year at PSU
4-26	2015-16	1st
16-17	2016-17	2nd
19-13	2017-18	3rd
25-8	2018-19	4th

 
NEWCOMERS
The Vikings added a talented class of six newcomers over the offseason that they'll try and mesh with their seven returners. The newcomers are split evenly between the front and back courts, as Erika Brumfield, Marina Canzobre and Syd Schultz add depth at forward while Belle Frazier, Cassidy Gardner and Jada Lewis will contribute at guard. Frazier and Lewis were each named McDonald's All-American nominees while in high school, while Gardner led her team to a 3A Washington state title as an all-state honorable mention as a senior. Schultz, meanwhile, recorded 1,000-career points and 1,000-career rebounds in high school, and led the entire state of Wisconsin in rebounds as a high school senior. Canzobre was also part of the invited players pool for the Spain U-15 team.
 
VIKINGS IN THE PRESEASON WNIT
The Vikings made their first-ever appearance in the Preseason WNIT this season. The Vikings lost their first-round game against Boise State, 82-57, on Nov. 8, then lost two consolation games to Kansas City (87-69 on Nov. 15) and UC Irvine (83-75 on Nov. 16). Jordan Stotler was named to the KC Site Preseason WNIT Consolation All-Tournament Team after averaging 14.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game in the Vikings' two consolation games in Kansas City. The Vikings are the third Big Sky team to participate in the Preseason WNIT in the past four seasons, joining Montana State in 2018 and Eastern Washington in 2016.
 
VIKINGS PICKED FOR THIRD IN PRESEASON COACHES, MEDIA POLL
Big Sky media and coaches picked the Vikings to finish third in the conference this season in the preseason polls. Montana State, Idaho and Portland State went 1-2-3 in both the media and coaches polls, but the major takeaway from both polls was uncertainty. Seven of the 11 teams in the Big Sky received at least one first-place vote in the preseason media poll, while five of those seven teams received multiple votes. Additionally, four different teams received first-place votes in the preseason coaches poll, three of which received two or more.
 
JIMENEZ NAMED TO PRESEASON ALL-BIG SKY TEAM
Junior guard Kylie Jimenez was named to the preseason All-Big Sky team, voted on by the Big Sky's media members. Jimenez was one of seven players named to the preseason all-conference team. Fallyn Freije, a two-time All-Big Sky honorable mention while at North Dakota but now with Montana State, was named the conference's preseason MVP. Sacramento State's Kennedy Nicholas, Idaho State's Estefania Ors, Montana State's Oliana Squires, Montana's McKenzie Johnston and Idaho's Gina Marxen were the other preseason all-conference selections. The preseason honor was just the latest in what has already been a decorated career for Jimenez at Portland State. Jimenez was named the Big Sky Freshman of the Year following the 2017-18 season, and was an All-Big Sky honorable mention last season. Additionally, Jimenez made the All-Big Sky tournament team as the Vikings won the tournament last season.
 
VIKINGS PLAN INTERNATIONAL TRIP TO SPAIN IN AUGUST 2020
The Vikings will make what is believed to be the women's basketball program's first-ever international trip when they head to Spain in August 2020. The Vikings will visit Madrid, Valencia and Barcelona on a 10-day trip that will see them play three different exhibition games against local Spanish teams.
 
The Vikings are currently fundraising for the trip, which will cost around $4,000 per person. Anyone who would like to donate towards the team's travel fund can visit GoViks.com and click on the "Spain 2020 Trip Donations" link under the "Donate" drop-down menu.
 
SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
Nov. 5, Portland State 104, Multnomah 48: The Vikings hit the century mark in their season opener for the second straight season. Before last season, the Vikings hadn't scored over 100 points in a game since Dec. 2, 1995. The Vikings also tied a program record with 13 three-pointers in the game, and assisted on 28 of their 37 field goals.
Nov. 23, Portland State 80, Nevada 75: The Vikings handed Nevada its first loss of the season, while junior guard Kylie Jimenez beat her sister, Alyssa Jimenez, who's a freshman guard for the Wolf Pack.