MISSOULA, Mont. — Two days after the Portland State women's basketball team mounted a late comeback to beat Montana, no such comeback materialized Saturday as the Lady Griz topped the Vikings, 76-63, at Dahlberg Arena.
 
The Lady Griz (8-6, 5-5 Big Sky) distanced themselves from the Vikings (6-7, 4-6 Big Sky) with a 24-11 third quarter that made it a 20-point game heading into the fourth. The Lady Griz shot 26-of-45 (.578) from the field through the first three quarters, and finished above 50 percent for the game (.516).
 
"Playing back-to-back games against the same opponent on the road is tough in the Big Sky," Portland State head coach Lynn Kennedy said afterward. "Defensively, we did some good things but missed some rotations and they hit those shots tonight. We also had some easy looks that didn't fall tonight."
 
The Vikings went 4-of-16 (.250) from the field in the third quarter as the Lady Griz stretched their lead. The Vikings caught fire in the fourth quarter, going 5-of-8 from three-point range (.625), but it was too little, too late by then.
 
The Vikings didn't get to the free-throw line as often as they did Thursday. The Vikings attempted only eight free throws Saturday, two days after they shot 28 in their win over Montana.
 
The Lady Griz went up 9-3 early in the game, but the Vikings answered with an 8-2 run to tie it up again behind a pair buckets from freshman Jenna Kilty. The Lady Griz instantly took the lead again with a 7-0 run, and stretched their lead to twelve at 30-18 midway through the second quarter. The Vikings cut it to a six-point deficit at 33-27 with 2:38 remaining before halftime with a 9-3 run during which five different players scored for the Vikings.
 
The Vikings wouldn't get closer than that rest of the way, however, as Montana stretched its lead in the third quarter. Back-to-back three-pointers from Montana's Hannah Thurmon with 3:51 left in the quarter gave the Lady Griz their largest lead of the game to that point at 50-35. A 7-0 Montana run to close the third then gave the Lady Griz their first 20-point lead, and the Vikings didn't get closer than 15 in the fourth until the final score of 76-63.
 
Kilty led the Vikings with 12 points, her second highest total in a game this season. Fifth-year senior Tatiana Streun finished a rebound away from a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds while also tying a career high with five steals. Streun's nine rebounds moved her past former teammate Pia Jurhar for 10th all-time at Portland State, as she now has 557 in her career.
 
Freshman Nakia Boston set a new career high with five assists while chipping in nine points. Desirae Hansen and Kylie Jimenez added eight and seven points, respectively, while Jimenez recorded six assists. Jimenez also became just the fourth player in program history to record 250 steals with one Saturday. Jimenez joined PSU Hall of Famers Kim Manifesto (525), Claire Faucher (282) and Kelsey Kahle (252) in reaching the milestone.
 
Ruchae Walton and Itziar Ugarte came on late and hit three of the Vikings' five three-pointers in the fourth quarter. Walton hit two of the three, giving her a career-high six points.
 
The Vikings had been scheduled for a quick turnaround against Simpson University Monday, but that game was canceled Friday due to scheduling issues on Simpson's side. The Vikings will now return to action on Feb. 11, when they host Northern Arizona for the first of two games at Viking Pavilion. Tipoff between the Vikings and Lumberjacks is scheduled for 7 p.m. (PT) this coming Thursday.
 
Game Notes: The Vikings fell to 21-51 all time against Montana after Saturday…With her six assists Saturday, Jimenez now needs only five more to become just the third Portland State player to record 500 in her career…Jimenez is also 31 assists from entering the career top 10 within the Big Sky Conference…Streun needs 55 more rebounds to match Hiedi Hatcher (1997-2001) for ninth all-time at Portland State.