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Big Sky Conference Tournament Quarterfinal Round Game
#5 PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (16-15, 11-9) vs.
                     #4 WEBER STATE WILDCATS (17-14, 11-9)
Thursday, March 14, 2019, 2:30 p.m. MT/1:30 p.m. PT • CenturyLink Arena, Boise, ID
Television: Eleven Sports
Live Stream: Pluto TV Channel 231, pluto.tv, WatchBigSky.com • Play-by-play: Jon Oglesby • Analyst: Joe Cravens
Live Stats: www.statbroadcast.com/events/central.php?gid=bsc
Complete notes and stats in pdf

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THE OPENING TIP
An impressive late-season run has the Portland State Vikings headed to the Big Sky Conference Tournament red hot and ready to make some noise. The Vikings will open tournament play in a quarterfinal round game against Weber State on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. MT/1:30 pm. PT in Boise's CenturyLink Arena.
     
PSU ended its regular season on Saturday night with an 84-80 home win in front of a season-high 2,077 fans at the Viking Pavilion. It was the Vikings' seventh win in the last eight games, including a Thursday victory over first-place Montana (81-69 for a season sweep of the Griz). The only loss in that run came on the road on Mar. 2 when the Eastern Washington buried a buzzer-beating three-point shot for a 68-66 win.
     
The result of the run has moved the Vikings from a tie for ninth place going into a Valentine's Day game to a tie for fourth place in the final Big Sky standings. For the record, Portland State completes the regular season at 16-15, 11-9 in the Big Sky. In a Big Sky Tournament tiebreaker with Weber State (17-14, 11-9) and Montana State (14-16, 11-9), the Wildcats take the fourth seed (3-1 on the season vs. PSU and MSU), the Vikings take the fifth seed (2-2 against WSU and MSU), and the Bobcats take the sixth seed (1-3 against WSU and PSU).
     
So, PSU meets the Wildcats on Thursday in a Big Sky quarterfinal. The winner of that game will take on the winner of Montana vs. Northern Arizona/Sacramento State in a Friday night semifinal at 5:30 p.m. MT/4:30 p.m. PT. The Big Sky Championship is Saturday at 6 p.m. MT/5 p.m. PT at CenturyLink Arena. That game will be televised on ESPNU.
     
The Vikings and Wildcats split the season series in a pair of thrillers with each team winning on the others' home court. Weber State topped the Vikings, 95-88 in overtime, on Jan. 12 in Portland. PSU came back to beat the Wildcats, 76-75 in Ogden, on Jan. 31.
     
Weber State, a traditional Big Sky power, has been Portland State's nemesis in the Big Sky Tournament. The Wildcats are 6-0 all-time in tournament games against the Vikings. However, the last meeting came in 2016, a 78-74 quarterfinal round loss by PSU. None of the current Vikings were on that team, so there should be little meaning to that history.
     
Portland State is 12-13 all-time in Big Sky Tournament games. The Vikings won Big Sky Tournament titles in 2008 and 2009, advancing to the NCAA Tournament. The last three years in a row PSU has gone 1-1 in the tournament, and not advanced past the quarterfinal round. Portland State is 5-7 all-time in quarterfinal round games. PSU's last appearance in the semifinals was 2014. The Vikings only appearances in the finals were the 2008 and 2009 title games.
     
PSU is 1-1 in neutral site games this season (3-10 in road games) with both of those games coming at CenturyLink Arena last November in the Vandal Holiday Hoops Classic.
     
Weber State is 2-2 in neutral site games this season, 5-7 in true road games.
     
The Vikings are led by sophomore guard Holland "Boo Boo" Woods, who averages 14.9 points, 5.3 assists and 1.6 steals per game. Woods was the Big Sky Freshman of the Year in 2017-18 and is a strong candidate for All-Big Sky Conference honors this season.
     
Junior guard Michael Nuga (10.8 ppg) and senior guard Deante Strickland (13.3 ppg and 3.5 apg in the last eight) have been sparks off the bench for the Vikings.
     
Junior center Sal Nuhu has been a force in the middle and is a candidate for Big Sky Conference Newcomer of the Year. Nuhu averages 9.7 points, a team-high 6.9 rebounds and a Big Sky-leading 2.0 blocked shots per game.
     
Weber State features a group of Big Sky stars: guard Jerrick Harding ranks second in the Big Sky in scoring (21.9 ppg) and leads in free throw percentage (.871), forward Brekkot Chapman is second in the league in rebounding (8.6 rpg), and center Zach Braxton leads the league in shooting (.635 FG%). Add in guard Cody John's 15.0 ppg, and the Wildcats have a formidable starting lineup.
     
Portland State's game against Weber State on Thursday will be televised on Eleven Sports and live streamed on Pluto TV Channel 231, www.pluto.tv and www.WatchBigSky.com. Live stats are available at http://www.statbroadcast.com/events/central.php?gid=bsc.
 
2019 Big Sky Conference Basketball Tournament Schedule
(all times listed are Mountain)
 
Wednesday, March 13, 2019, live streamed on Pluto TV, WatchBigSky.com
Game 1 – No. 8 Northern Arizona (10-20, 8-12) vs. No. 9 Sacramento State (14-15, 8-12), 9:35 a.m.
Game 2 – No. 7 Southern Utah (14-15, 9-11) vs. No. 10 Idaho State (11-18, 7-13), approx. 12:05 p.m.
Game 3 – No. 6 Montana State (14-16, 11-9) vs. No. 11 Idaho (5-26, 2-18), approx. 2:35 p.m.
 
Thursday, March 14, 2019, TV: Eleven Sports, live streamed on Pluto TV, WatchBigSky.com
Game 4 – No. 1 Montana (23-8, 16-4) vs. Game 1 Winner, 12:05 p.m.
Game 5 – No. 4 Weber State (17-14, 11-9) vs. No. 5 Portland State (16-15, 11-9), 2:35 p.m.
Game 6 – No. 2 Northern Colorado (21-10, 15-5) vs. Game 2 Winner, 5:35 p.m.
Game 7 – No. 3 Eastern Washington (14-17, 12-8) vs. Game 3 Winner, 8:05 p.m.
 
Friday, March 15, 2019, televised on Eleven Sports, live streamed on Pluto TV
Game 8 – Game 4 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner, 5:35 p.m.
Game 9 – Game 6 Winner vs. Game 7 Winner, 8:05 p.m.
 
Saturday, March 16, 2019, televised on ESPNU
Game 10 – Championship Game, 5 p.m. PT, televised on ESPNU, 6:05 p.m.
 
PORTLAND STATE vs. THE BIG SKY FIELD THIS SEASON
• vs. #1 Montana (2-0) - W, 77-74 (ot) at UM; W, 81-69 at PSU
• vs. #2 Northern Colorado (0-2) - L, 73-60 at PSU; L, 80-62 at UNC
• vs. #3 Eastern Washington (1-1) - W, 78-65 at PSU; L, 68-66 at EWU
• vs. #4 Weber State (1-1) - L, 95-88 (ot) at PSU; W, 76-75 at WSU
• vs. #6 Montana State (1-1) - L, 98-88 at MSU; W, 84-80 at PSU
• vs. #7 Southern Utah (1-1) - L, 83-69 at SUU; W, 78-69 at PSU
• vs. #8 Northern Arizona (1-1) - L, 82-75 at NAU; W, 103-94 at PSU
• vs. #9 Sacramento State (1-1) - L, 67-78 at SAC; W, 65-57 at PSU
• vs. #10 Idaho State (1-1) - L, 69-67 at ISU; W, 99-93 at PSU
• vs. #11 Idaho (2-0) - W, 69-53 at PSU; W, 67-65 at UI
 
GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. WEBER STATE
• ALL-TIME SERIES: Weber State leads the all-time series, 40-14, and the Big Sky Conference series, 36-14... the teams split the season series with each winning on the others' home court... prior to PSU's Jan. 31 win in Ogden, WSU had won seven straight in the series and 14 of the last 16... Weber State holds a 6-0 advantage in Big Sky Tournament games.
• Jan. 12, WSU 95, PSU 88 (ot) at Viking Pavilion: The game was a draw for 44 minutes, but Weber State pulled away in the final minute of overtime to hand the Vikings their fourth straight home loss. Brekkot Chapman's three-pointer with 41 seconds left in the OT broke an 88-88 tie... 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... Chapman had 19 points and 11 rebounds. Jerrick Harding scored a game-high 23 points. Jan. 31, PSU 76, WSU 75 at Ogden, UT: Deante Strickland buried an NBA-quality three-point shot with 18.5 seconds left to cap off a big Viking comeback and wipe away years of frustration for Portland State at Dee Events Center. Derek Brown followed with clutch free throws in the closing seconds as Portland State pulled out a 76-75 win over Weber State... the Vikings had lost seven straight games to Weber State, including three of the previous four in overtime. And, PSU had won only twice at Dee Events Center since joining the Big Sky Conference in 1996. Throw on top of that a 12-point deficit with 9:15 to play and Portland State didn't appear to have much going for it... Jamie Orme led Portland State with 18 points and three blocked shots. He hit 8-10 shots from the field. Woods added 16 points and matched a career-high with eight rebounds... Harding finished with 28 points to lead all scorers. He made 11-18 shots from the field... A 44-27 rebounding advantage for the Vikings proved to be key. The Vikings grabbed 19 off the offensive glass.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Barret Peery (Southern Utah, 1996) is in his second season on the Park Blocks and has a 36-29 career record. Peery is 1-3 against Weber State... 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 Wildcats are coached by Randy Rahe (Buena Vista, 1982) in his 13th season. He has a 265-152 career record with the Weber State, including 21-6 against the Vikings.
 
WEBER STATE WILDCATS
• Weber State, located in Ogden, UT, is an original member of the Big Sky Conference. The Wildcats have won 22 Big Sky Conference regular season championships, 10 Big Sky Tournament championships and made 16 appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
• Last year, Weber State was 20-11 overall, 13-5 in the Big Sky Conference, tieing for third. Four starters and eight letterwinners return from that team.
• The Wildcats went 17-14 this season, 11-9 and tied for fourth in the Big Sky with Portland State and Montana State. Weber State closed out the season losing four of five games and eight of its last 12.
• Weber State leads the Big Sky in scoring (80.2), free throw percentage (.743), field goal percentage defense (.430), three-point field goal percentage (.317) and blocked shots (4.1).
• Junior guard Jerrick Harding ranks second in the Big Sky Conference with 21.9 points per game, leads in free throw percentage (.871) and ranks second in steals (1.7).
• Junior forward Brekkot Chapman ranks second the Big Sky in rebounding at 8.6 per game. He averages 12.6 points and 1.7 blocked shots per game.
• Senior center Zach Braxton lead the Big Sky in field goal percentage (.635) and is fifth in the Big Sky with 6.8 rebounds per game. He averages 9.9 points per game.
• Junior guard Cody John averages 15.0 points per game (6th in the Big Sky).
 
SUSTAINABLE AND RECYCLABLE VIKING QUICK NOTES
WINNING LINES
• Portland State is 16-15 on the season, 12-4 at home, 3-10 on the road, 1-1 at neutral sites.
• PSU's 11-9 conference record is its best since going 11-9 in 2013-14.
• The Vikings have won two in a row and seven of the last eight games.
• PSU has won eight in a row at home.
• PSU is 11-9 in Big Sky Conference play, 8-2 at home, 3-7 on the road.
• The Vikings are 1-1 in overtime... Head Coach Barret Peery is 3-2 all-time in overtime.
Big Sky Battles
• Portland State is 196-207 all-time in all Big Sky Conference games, including the Big Sky Tournament (12-13).
• PSU is 128-65 in home games, 62-132 in road games and 6-10 in neutral-site games.
 
WHO IS HOT
• In the Vikings' eight-game run, SR G Deante Strickland has averaged 13.3 points and 3.5 assists... he has shot .521 (37-71) from the field and .522 (24-46) from three-point range... Strickland scored a career-high 20 points (7-10 FG, 5-6 3-pt) with six assists in the win over Idaho State... he matched that with 20 points (8-13 FG, 4-6 3-pt) and four assists against Eastern Washington, then had 19 against Montana (5-10 FG, 4-8 3-pt, 5-6 FT) and 19 against Montana State (7-15 FG, 5-11 3-pt).
• SO G Holland Woods is averaging 16.9 points, 5.9 assists and shooting 49% in the Vikings' last eight games.
• JR C Sal Nuhu leads the Big Sky Conference with 2.0 blocks per game. His 62 total blocks are fourth-most in school history... he is also averaging 10.0 rebounds over the last seven games and a team-leading 6.9 for the season... Nuhu has made 21 free throws in a row and is shooting .808 at the line in Big Sky games.
• SO C Brendan Rumel has made 12 of his last 16 field goal attempts (.750).
• In Big Sky Conference games, PSU has shot .737 from the free throw line. During the 11 non-conference games, PSU shot .647 as a team.
• Portland State continues to lead the nation in offensive rebounding (15.4 pg).
 
YOU'VE GOT TO PUT THE BISCUIT IN THE BASKET: There is no question that shooting efficiency is the most important element in basketball. Portland State's shooting was erratic early in the season, but has leveled off, and recently improved dramatically. Still there are distinct differences in shooting between wins and losses, and home and road games. The Vikings shoot nearly 10% better at home than they do on the road. Here is a breakdown:
• The Vikings are 11-1 when out-shooting their opponents, 5-14 when they don't.
• In 11 of PSU's 15 losses, they have shot 39% or less.
• Field goal percentage: .427 (10th in Big Sky)
• Three-point percentage: .314 (11th in Big Sky)
• Shooting in wins: .476/.357
• Shooting in losses: .373/.270
• Shooting in home games: .473/.360
• Shooting in road/neutral site games: .379/.268
 
ON THE OTHER (HOT SHOOTING) HAND: Portland State has had some challenging shooting nights this season, but as Big Sky Conference play has progressed, things have changed. Look at these numbers in Big Sky games:
• PSU shot 29-48 from the field in a win over Eastern Washington (.604)
• The Vikings shot 39-66 from the field in a win over Northern Arizona (.591).
• The Vikings shot a season-best 15-28 from three-point range in a win over Idaho State (.538).
• JR C Sal Nuhu ranks 10th in the Big Sky in free throw shooting (.808)
• SR F Jamie Orme ranks 7th in the Big Sky in three-point percentage (.429)
• SR G Deante Strickland ranks 7th in three-point percentage (.429)
• SR G Michael Mayhew ranks 15th in three-point percentage (.403)
 
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 15.1 turnovers per game and have a +1.2 turnover margin. PSU has scored 481 points off turnovers compared to 465 for opponents.
• The Vikings average 15.4 offensive rebounds per game while opponents average 9.2. PSU has a huge advantage on its opponents in second-chance points this season (477-295).
• In all, the difference in total turnovers (36) and total offensive rebounds (188) is 224 extra possessions compared to opponents (7.4 per game).
• As a result, PSU has 234 more field goal attempts than the opponents. Opponents have 16 more free throw attempts.
 
CHEERING FOR BOO BOO: SO G Holland "Boo Boo" Woods leads the Vikings' in scoring (14.9) and assists (5.3). He ranks eighth in the Big Sky in scoring, second in assists (1st in league games) and is third in steals (1.6).
• He has led the team in scoring 15 times and assists 26 times this season, and has three double-doubles.
• Woods, the Big Sky leader in assists last season (5.6), has led the Vikings in assists in 51 of 64 career games. He ranks fourth all-time at Portland State with 351 career assists in less than two seasons.
• Scored in double figures 24 times with seven 20+ point games.
 
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 10.8 points per game in 20 minutes per night.
• He leads the team with 49 3-pt FG.
• Has scored in double figures 17 times with three 20+ point games.
Yahoo For Nuhu:
• Nuhu averages 9.7 points in 23 minutes per game.
• He averages 6.9 rebounds to lead the Vikings and ranks fourth in the Big Sky. He ranks eighth in the Big Sky in field goal percentage (.500) while leading in blocked shots (2.0).
• Shooting .808 from the free throw line in Big Sky games.
• Has scored in double figures 16 times, led the team in rebounding 13 times and has four double-doubles.
 
STRICK-LY BUSINESS: Since Jan. 12, SR G Deante Strickland has been on a tear. He has averaged 10.8 points and 3.1 assists per game while coming off the bench. Strickland has made 63-133 from the field (.474) and 40-90 from three-point range (.444) in those 17 games. He averaged 2.3 points and 1.8 assists prior to that, shooting a mere .192/.143.
• In the last eight games, Strickland is averaging 13.3 points and 3.5 assists while shooting .521 from the field and three-point range.
 
FINDING HIS F-ORME: SR F Jamie Orme has been looked to for a big step forward in 2018-19. Last season he averaged 4.0 points and 3.1 rebounds in 13 minutes per game. This year he is averaging 8.1 points and 4.1 rebounds in 19 minutes per game.
• Shooting .429 in three-point shooting percentage in league games.
• Scored in double figures 13 times and has two double-doubles this season.
 
THE REAL McCOY: In his first season as a Viking, JR F Robert McCoy has stepped into a key role as a starter. He averages 22.2 minutes, ranking third on the team.
• McCoy averages 7.4 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, ranking 16th in the Big Sky Conference. He also has 17 blocked shots.
• He has led the Vikings in scoring twice, rebounding six times and has two double-doubles.
• Has season-highs of 26 points, 12 rebounds and five steals.
 
DUNK YOU VERY MUCH  
• JR C Sal Nuhu has a new school record of 40 dunks on the season.
• Portland State has a total of 84 dunks this season in 31 games which ranks as the most ever as a team (PSU had 50 all of last year).
• The Vikings had a season-high of 11 dunks against Portland Bible (12/1). They had seven slams in a win over Eastern Washington (1/24), including four by Nuhu... Nuhu also had four against Northern Arizona (2/14).
 
IF YOU BUILD IT: The crowd of 2,077 that attended the game against Montana State (3/9) in the Viking Pavilion was the largest crowd of the season and was the third over the 2,000 mark (also vs. Portland and Montana).
• PSU averaged 1,238 fans in 16 home games - the best regular season attendance since 2002-03.
• Last year at Lewis and Clark College, Portland State averaged 607 fans per game. In 2016-17 - the last year in the old Stott Center - PSU averaged 538 fans. The last time PSU averaged as many as 1,000 fans in attendance was 2009-10 (1,009).
• The largest recent crowd, prior to the opening of the Pavilion, was a sellout of that 1,500 attended the Portland State/Oregon State game in the old Stott Center gym on Dec. 12, 2012.