PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (12-14, 6-8) at IDAHO VANDALS (7-17, 3-10)
Monday, February 17, 2020, 7:05 p.m. • Viking Pavilion (3,094), Portland, OR
Live Stream: Pluto TV Channel 532, pluto.tv, WatchBigSky.com • Play-by-play: Matt Richert • Analyst: Devon Pouncey
Live Stats: www.ViksLive.com
Complete notes and stats in pdf

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THE OPENING TIP
Portland State's three-game home stand didn't start out as planned, but the Vikings have a chance to turn things around quickly as they host Idaho in a Big Sky Conference game on Monday night.
     
PSU (12-14, 6-8) was strong early against Eastern Washington, taking a first half lead on Saturday night. But the Eagles got hot in the second half, used good rebounding to their advantage, and overtook the Vikings, 89-81, at Viking Pavilion.
     
The loss ended a three-game home winning streak for Portland State, but PSU is still 7-3 overall at home this year. The Vikings host Idaho on Monday night, then Montana State on Thursday. After two road games, they come home for the final two regular season games. The four out of six remaining at home would figure to help their standing in the Big Sky as they approach the post-season tournament. PSU is currently in seventh place, but only two games out of fourth, and a game-and-a-half out of fifth place. Securing one of those spots would give the Vikings a first-round bye at the Big Sky Tournament.
     
Idaho (7-17, 3-10) sits near the bottom of the Big Sky Conference. However, the Vandals are coming off their biggest win of the year at second-place Eastern Washington on Thursday, 74-71. And, Idaho beat the Vikings, 72-61, in Moscow on Jan. 2. That should give the Vandals some momentum and confidence when they come to Portland.
     
The Vandals also have Trevon Allen, the Big Sky's second-leading scorer, on their side. Allen, a senior guard, carries the Vandals as the team-leader in scoring (21.5), three-point field goals (44) and steals (41), and ranks second in rebounding (4.8) and third in assists (34).
     
Despite Saturday's loss, Portland State can take away a few positives. The Vikings' patented pressure defense was effective early, forcing a multitude of Eagle turnovers that got PSU running and into a lead. The Vikings had a remarkable 18 steals and 29 points off Eagle turnovers.
     
Part of that success can be attributed to having a fully healthy team for one of the few times this season. SR G Matt Hauser, who had missed seven games and only recently returned, finally looked like his old self, scoring 24 points on 8-13 shots, 5-7 three-pointers and 3-4 at the line. Hauser added five assists and four steals in the game.
     
Monday's game with Idaho is a 7:05 p.m. tip-off at Viking Pavilion. The game will be live streamed on Pluto TV Channel 532, www.pluto.tv and www.WatchBigSky.com. Live statistics can be found at www.ViksLive.com.
 
COMING UP
The Vikings wrap up their three-game home stand against Montana State on Thursday. The Big Sky schedule continues with games at Idaho State (Feb. 27) and Weber State (Feb. 29). PSU wraps up the regular season at home hosting Northern Arizona (Mar. 5) and Sacramento State (Mar. 7). The Big Sky Conference Tournament takes place Mar. 11-14 in Boise, ID.
 
IF THE BIG SKY CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT STARTED TODAY...
The Big Sky Conference Tournament takes place Mar. 11-14 at CenturyLink Arena in Boise, ID. First-round games are on Wednesday, March 11. The top five teams in league play earn a bye into the quarterfinals on Thursday. Last season, the Vikings tied for fourth place and opened against Weber State in a quarterfinal game.
     
There are six games to go in the Big Sky regular season. The Vikings are currently in seventh place at 6-8. If the Big Sky Tournament began today, Portland State would be playing 10th-place Idaho (3-10) in a first-round game, making Monday's contest all the more interesting. A win in the first round would set up a quarterfinal round matchup with the second-place team (currently Eastern Washington).
     
The Vikings are one-and-half games behind fifth-place Northern Arizona (8-7) and a first-round bye.
 
GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. IDAHO
• THE SERIES: Idaho leads the all-time series, 15-14, and the Big Sky Conference series, 5-4... the Big Sky series is tied 2-2 in Portland... the Vikings swept the season series last year for the first time and have won three of the last four in the series.
• Jan. 2, 2020 at Moscow, Idaho 72, PSU 61: Portland State went cold from the field in the second half and Idaho was able to pull away for the win. The Vikings shot 50% in the first half, but only 30% after the break. PSU also committed 21 turnovers to 11 for the Vandals. Idaho's Trevon Allen led all scorers with 20 points. Matt Hauser scored 13 points and Alonzo Walker had 13 rebounds for the Vikings.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Barret Peery (Southern Utah, 1996) is in his third season on the Park Blocks and has a 48-44 career record. Peery is 3-2 all-time against Idaho... Peery's 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 Vandals are led by interim Head Coach Zac Claus (Eastern Washington, 1998) in his first season. Claus was a PSU assistant coach from 2000-02.
 
IDAHO VANDALS
• The University of Idaho is located in Moscow. Idaho was an original member of the Big Sky Conference, then left after the 1995-96 season. The program rejoined the Big Sky in 2014-15.
• The Vandals were 5-27 last season, 2-18 and 11th in the Big Sky Conference. Two starters and four letterwinners return from that team. Zac Claus, a former Vandal assistant, was installed as interim head coach in the off-season.
• This season the Vandals are 7-17 overall, 3-10 and 10th in the Big Sky Conference. Idaho averages 66.0 points and allows 70.5 points per game.
• Senior guard Trevon Allen leads the team and ranks second in the Big Sky with 21.5 points per game. He also averages 4.8 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game. Allen has made a team-high 44 three-point field goals made.
• Junior forward Scott Blakney averages 8.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. He shoots .572 from the field.
• Senior forward Quinton Forrest leads the team with 5.9 rebounds per game.
 
WHO IS HOT
• Portland State had its best shooting percentage of the season (32-56, .571) in the win at Northern Colorado, and its second-best free throw percentage (18-20, .900)... the Vikings followed with a strong shooting performance against Eastern Washington (28-57, .491, 8-16 3-pt, .500).
• SR G Matt Hauser had his second-best scoring game of the season with 24 points against Eastern Washington (8-13 FG, 5-7 3-pt, 3-4 FT). He added a season-high five assists with four steals.
• SR F Rashaad Goolsby is 17 of his last 28 from the field (.609) to improve his season shooting mark to .481.
• SR G Lamar Hamrick has made 7 of his last 10 three-pointers (.700) and 21 of his last 33 field goals (.636).
• With 10 steals in the last two games, JR G Holland Woods has moved into the Big Sky lead for steals with 53.
• The Vikings made 18 steals against Eastern Washington, second-most this season.
 
WHO IS NOT
• Portland State is allowing the most points (77.1) in Big Sky Conference games this season.
• The Vikings were out-rebounded by Eastern Washington, 43-24.