TIPOFF

Fans looking for signs of progress from the Portland State women's basketball team got a double dose of it Thursday. Not only did the Vikings win on the road for the first time since the end of the 2020-21 season, they pulled out a late-game situation behind a last-second four-point play by Jada Lewis that forced overtime.
 
Now it's time to get greedy as the Vikings look for more signs of progress Sunday when they face Boise State in another road game at ExtraMile Arena. Tipoff is at 1 p.m. PT / 2 p.m. MT.
 
Late-game situations always went against the Vikings last year. The Vikings led or were tied with their opponent in the fourth quarter of three of their last five regular-season games only to lose all three games. That included a 60-55 lead with 3:09 remaining in the Vikings' game at eventual Big Sky regular-season champ Idaho State, a game they'd end up losing 67-64.
 
But Thursday night, it was the Vikings down five – with even less time on the clock than Idaho State had – and it was the Vikings who ended up pulling out the win. The Vikings trailed by five with 38 seconds left, and were still down four with Seattle U inbounding the ball with 32 seconds left. A turnover on the in-bounds gave the ball back to the Vikings, and Esmeralda Morales found Lewis for a corner three that turned into a four-point play to tie it.
 
The Vikings also answered Seattle U's challenge in overtime. Trailing 73-72 after the Redhawks hit back-to-back three-pointers, the Vikings shut them out the rest of the way, scoring the last eight points to win 80-73.
 
The Redhawks missed their last five shots from the field as the Viking defense – a strength throughout the team's first three games of the season – shut the door. The Vikings held the Redhawks to only 33.8 percent (26-of-77) from the floor Thursday, while grabbing 10 steals on 18 turnovers from Seattle U.
 
The Vikings now rank in the top three of the Big Sky in four different defensive categories. They lead the conference while ranking 33rd in the nation with 13.0 steals per game. They also rank tied for the Big Sky lead in scoring defense, giving up only 56.7 points per game. In terms of shooting numbers, the Vikings stand second in three-point field goal percentage defense (.224) and third in field goal percentage defense (.384).
 
Boise State will challenge the Vikings' defensive abilities. They lead the Mountain West in rebounds per game (44.8) while ranking second in the conference and 47th in the NCAA in rebounding margin (+11.2). Seattle U's advantage on the boards nearly gave the Redhawks the win over the Vikings Thursday. They out-rebounded the Vikings 18-to-7 on the offensive glass, which led to a 22-to-5 advantage on second-chance points.
 
Of course, the Vikings overcame both of those statistical deficiencies to win Thursday night. But they won't want to make a habit of it.
 
The Broncos will also give the Vikings a good benchmark for what they might expect within Big Sky play. Boise State has already played two Big Sky teams in Eastern Washington and Weber State last week. They split those two games, losing 83-74 to Eastern Washington on Nov. 11 before beating Weber State 63-52 two days later.
 
Individually, the Broncos feature two freshmen averaging in double figures. Natalie Pasco, a 5-10 freshman guard, leads the team with 14.8 points per game, while Dani Bayes averages an even 10.0. Juniors Elodie Lalotte and Abby Muse, meanwhile, have chipped in 14.3 and 13.3 points per game, respectively. Muse is averaging a double-double this season, as she also leads the Mountain West and ranks 43rd in the NCAA with 10.3 rebounds per game. Additionally, Muse leads the conference and ranks 13th in the NCAA with 3.25 blocks per game.
 
Containing Muse will be key to the Vikings' efforts, then, as will be limiting the Broncos' advantages on the boards.
 
Do that, and the signs of progress for the Vikings will continue to grow.
 

GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE (2-1) vs. BOISE STATE (2-2)

GAME DETAILS: Sunday, Nov. 20, 1 p.m. PT / 2 p.m. MT, Boise, Idaho (ExtraMile Arena)
LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
SCOUTING BOISE STATE: The Boise State Broncos have split their four games so far this season, which includes two games already against Big Sky opponents. The Broncos lost 83-74 to Eastern Washington on Nov. 11, then beat Weber State 63-52 two days later. Both games came on the Broncos' home floor, where they've played three of their four games so far. The Broncos' lone road game so far this season came Thursday, when they lost 69-62 at UC Davis. Coming into the season, the Broncos were coming off a 2021-22 season in which they went 8-21 overall and 4-13 within the Mountain West Conference. Mountain West coaches and select media picked the Broncos to finish seventh in the conference this season. The Broncos lost last year's leading scorer in Dominique Leonidas to graduation, but they returned their next four leading scorers in Abby Muse (10.2 ppg last season), Elodie Lalotte (9.7 ppg), Mary Kay Naro (8.8 ppg) and Anna Ostlie (7.4). Despite all those returners, it's been a freshman who has led the Broncos in the early part of this season. Natalie Pasco, a 5-10 freshman guard, leads the team with 14.8 points per game so far this season. Lalotte follows her with 14.3 points per game, while Muse is averaging a double-double of 13.3 points and 10.3 rebounds per game. Dani Bayes, another freshman guard, is also in double figures with 10.0 points per game so far this season. As a team, the Broncos are a strong rebounding squad as they lead the Mountain West in rebounds per game (44.8) while ranking second in the conference and 47th in the NCAA in rebounding margin (+11.2). The Broncos also lead the Mountain West in blocks per game (4.8) and free throws made (17.8) and attempted (22.5) per game. The biggest hot-and-cold element of the Broncos' game has been their three-point shooting. They opened the season by going 26-of-51 (.510) combined across their games against Multnomah and Eastern Washington, but since then they've gone just 3-of-30 (.100) combined against Weber State and UC Davis. Pasco and Bayes, the team's two high-scoring freshmen, have led the team's three-point shooting. Pasco ranks second in the conference and 67th in the in the NCAA with 2.75 three-pointers made per game, while Bayes has averaged 1.75 makes per game. Muse, meanwhile, leads the team's efforts down low. Her 10.3 rebounds per game lead the Mountain West and rank her 43rd in the NCAA. She also leads the Mountain West and ranks 13th in the NCAA with 3.25 blocks per game.
ALL-TIME SERIES: The Broncos lead the all-time series between them and the Vikings, 27-12. They've won four in a row in the series and 10 of the last 11, though the teams have only met twice in the last decade. The last meeting between the two teams came in the Preseason WNIT on Nov. 8, 2019, with the Broncos winning 82-57 in Boise.
 

STORYLINES/STREAKS/RECORDS

• The Vikings erased a five-point deficit with 38 seconds remaining to record their first overtime win since Jan. 7, 2021, as well as their first road win since March 5, 2021, with an 80-73 victory at Seattle U Thursday.
• The Vikings split their two games on the first week of the season, beating Warner Pacific 67-40 in their season opener on Nov. 7, before losing 57-47 to San Diego on Nov. 12.
• The Vikings rank among the top three teams of the Big Sky in four different defensive categories. They lead the conference in steals per game (13.0) while also standing tied for the Big Sky lead in scoring defense (56.7). Additionally, they rank second in the Big Sky in three-point field goal percentage defense (.224) and third in overall field goal percentage defense (.384).
• Esmeralda Morales has led the Vikings in scoring in all three games so far this season. She scored a game-high 21 points Thursday night against Seattle U, and now ranks sixth in the Big Sky with 17.7 points per game.
• Mia 'Uhila has also scored in double figures in all three games so far this season. She ranks second on the team with 11.3 points per game. Jada Lewis ranks third with 11.0 points per game after she scored 11 of her 15 points Thursday night after halftime.
• Four Vikings scored in double figures in Thursday night's win over Seattle U, the first time the Vikings have had that many double-digit scorers in a game this season. Esmeralda Morales led the way with 21 points, while Jada Lewis followed with 15. Mia 'Uhila and Rhema Ogele finished with 14 and 13 points, respectively.
• Esmeralda Morales leads the Big Sky and ranks 42nd in the nation with 3.33 steals per game. Cinco McCartney and Mia 'Uhila both rank tied for fourth in the Big Sky with 2.67 steals per game.
• Esmeralda Morales ranks in the top 15 of the Big Sky in nine different statistical categories so far this season. Besides leading the conference in steals per game, she also leads the conference while ranking sixth in the NCAA in minutes played per game. She's averaging 40.4 minutes per game after playing all 45 minutes of Thursday night's overtime win.
• Esmeralda Morales hit four three-pointers in Thursday night's win over Seattle U, the second time out of three games this season that she's hit at least four shots from beyond the arc. She now ranks third in the Big Sky and 21st in the nation with 3.33 makes per game.
• Jada Lewis' seven three-pointers so far this season have moved her up to ninth all time in program history. With 133 career makes now, Lewis needs only four more to pass Emily Easom (2012-15) for eighth all time.
• The Vikings chose "competitive," "hungry," and "family" as the three words to define their 2022-23 season. The players voted on the words at their team retreat in September.
• The Vikings are coming off a 2021-22 season in which they went 5-24 overall and 0-20 in Big Sky play. The Vikings started three freshmen in all but one game last season, while four of the team's top six scorers were freshmen. Esmeralda Morales, then a freshman, led the Vikings while ranking 11th in the Big Sky with 12.5 points per game last season. Her classmates Alaya Fitzgerald, Mia 'Uhila and Rhema Ogele followed with 9.3, 6.0 and 5.2 points per game, respectively.
• The Vikings had two breaks of 10 days or more last season. The Vikings went on a 27-day hiatus from Dec. 19 to Jan. 15 last season due to COVID-related cancellations or postponements. They also went 10 days without a game between Feb. 7 and 17. As a result, the Vikings only once had more than two days off between games from Jan. 15 to the end of the season. They played 10 games in 24 days following their 27-day hiatus and finished the season with nine games over 19 days from Feb. 17 to March 7.
• Head coach Chelsey Gregg enters her second year at the helm for the Vikings. Before becoming head coach, she spent the previous six seasons as first an assistant then an associate head coach for the Vikings.
• A season after they started three freshmen, the Vikings will still be young this season as they sport 10 underclassmen between three freshmen and seven sophomores (includes redshirts).

 

SWIPING LEFT AND RIGHT

Gen Z knows how to swipe. Not just on their phones it turns out, as the Vikings have proven over their first three games of the season. The Vikings opened their season with 22 steals against Warner Pacific on Nov. 7, the program's most steals in a single game since they also had 22 in a 77-48 win over Idaho on Dec. 20, 2006. They followed with seven steals against San Diego on Nov. 12, and then had 10 Thursday night in their overtime win at Seattle U. The Vikings now lead the Big Sky while ranking 33rd in the nation with 13.0 steals per game. Esmeralda Morales leads the conference individually while ranking 42nd in the NCAA with 3.33 steals per game. Cinco McCartney and Mia 'Uhila, meanwhile, each rank tied for fourth in the Big Sky with 2.67 steals per game.
 

DE-FENSE, DE-FENSE

A season after the Vikings ranked last in the Big Sky and 322nd in the NCAA for scoring defense, they suddenly find themselves tied atop the conference this season as they're giving up only 56.7 points per game on average. Seattle U became the first team to crack 60 points on the Vikings, but they did so in spite of an off-shooting night. The Vikings held Seattle U to 33.8 percent from the floor (26-of-77) while the Vikings shot 44.2 percent (23-of-52) on the other end. The Vikings now rank third in the Big Sky in field goal percentage defense at .384, while they also rank second in three-point field goal percentage defense at .224. Seattle U went 11-of-34 (.324) from three-point range Thursday night, but the Vikings' other two opponents were a combined 2-of-24 (.083) from deep.
 

THREE-POINT SHOOTING

If not for Jada Lewis' four-point play with 25 seconds remaining Thursday night against Seattle U, then the Vikings would have lost that game. That's how critical three-point shooting has been for the Viking offense. The Vikings went 8-of-22 (.364) from beyond the arc against the Redhawks, the second time this season that they've hit at least eight shots from deep. The Vikings also went 10-of-33 from deep in their season-opening win over Warner Pacific on Nov. 7. The Vikings now rank fifth in the Big Sky with 7.67 makes per game. Esmeralda Morales has 10 makes from deep already, as she ranks third in the Big Sky and 21st in the NCAA with 3.33 makes per game. Lewis, meanwhile, ranks ninth in the Big Sky with 2.33 makes per game after her late heroics Thursday night. Outside of those two, Alaya Fitzgerald ranks third on the team with 1.0 makes per game.
 

DROPPING DIMES

Through 36 of the 40 minutes in the Vikings' season opener against Warner Pacific on Nov. 7, they had assisted on every single one of their field goals. It was 19 assists on 19 field goals until a rebound basket by Marina Canzobre with 3:53 left in the game broke the streak. Still, the Vikings finished with 20 assists on 22 field goals, giving them a higher percentage of assisted field goals than any game last season. The Vikings again assisted on over 50 percent of their field goals Thursday night, as they finished with 13 assists on 23 field goals against Seattle U. Overall, the Vikings rank sixth in the Big Sky with 13.7 assists per game, while three different players rank in the top 15 of the conference individually. Esmeralda Morales leads the way with 3.67 assists per game, ranking her tied for seventh in the conference. Alaya Fitzgerald and Jada Lewis, meanwhile, rank tied for 10th and tied for 13th, respectively, with 3.00 and 2.67 assists per game.
 

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN…THE FAB FOUR

Ed Sullivan introduced The Beatles – the original Fab Four – to America in 1964. The Vikings' Fab Four – a self-proclaimed title that Alaya Fitzgerald, Esmeralda Morales, Rheme Ogele and Mia 'Uhila adopted last season when they were freshmen – didn't quite get as grand of an introduction last year, but they did make a splash. The foursome all ranked among the Vikings' top six scorers last season, as they accounted for 52.8 percent of the team's scoring. Their roles have only expanded as sophomores, especially Morales who is now a co-captain with senior Syd Schultz. Morales has led the Vikings in scoring in the team's first three games of the season, including a season-high 21 points in Thursday night's overtime win over Seattle U. 'Uhila has also scored in double figures in all three games so far this season, as she ranks second to Morales with 11.3 points per game. Fitzgerald led all players with six assists Thursday to go with eight points and three rebounds. She ranks fourth on the team with 7.0 points per game, while her 3.00 assists per game rank her tied for 10th in the Big Sky. Ogele, meanwhile, scored a season-high 13 points against Seattle U while going 5-of-7 from the field.
 

MORE OF MORALES, PLEASE

Esmeralda Morales was a captain in stature if not in name last season when she led the Vikings in scoring as a freshman. Now also a captain in name, Morales has continued to play like one as she's led the Vikings in scoring in all three games so far this season. Morales scored big bucket after big bucket Thursday night against Seattle U. The first six times she scored in the game, it was always to give the Vikings the lead. That streak only stopped late in overtime when the Vikings were icing away the game from the free throw line. Morales opened her season with a similarly big game. She led the Vikings in points (19), assists (7), steals (6) and three-point field goals (5) in the team's win over Warner Pacific on Nov. 7. It's still early, but through two games of the season, Morales already ranks in the top 15 of the Big Sky in nine different statistical categories. She leads the conference and ranks sixth in the NCAA with 40.4 minutes per game after playing all 45 minutes against Seattle U. She also ranks tied for the conference lead with 3.33 steals per game. Outside of those two categories, Morales ranks sixth in scoring (17.7 ppg), tied for eighth in field goal percentage (.455), tied for seventh in assists per game (3.67), 12th in free throw percentage (.765), seventh in three-point field goal percentage (.435), third in three-pointers made per game (3.33) and 10th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.00).
 

JADA CAN KNOCK DOWN THE J's, DUH

Jada Lewis lived up to her reputation as a sharpshooter Thursday night, converting a four-point play with 25 seconds left that forced overtime. Lewis scored 11 of her 15 points after halftime against Seattle U, including nine points in the fourth quarter alone. Lewis now ranks third on the team with 11.0 points per game through the first three games of the season. She also now ranks ninth in the Big Sky with 2.33 three-pointers made per game while she also ranks 12th in the conference in terms of three-point field goal percentage (.389). Her seven makes from deep so far this season have moved her up to ninth all time in program history. She needs three more to pass Emily Easom (2012-15) for eighth all time at Portland State.
 

OOOOO-HEE-LUH

The Pizza Planet aliens in the Toy Story franchise don't say "ooooooooh" about Buzz Lightyear. They're actually talking about Mia 'Uhila. 'Uhila has scored in double figures in all three games so far this season, as she now ranks second on the team with 11.3 points per game. She also ranks second on the team and tied for fourth in the Big Sky Conference with 2.67 steals per game. She had 14 points Thursday night while going 4-of-7 from the field and 5-of-10 from the free throw line.
 

YOUTHFUL ROSTER

A season after the Vikings started three freshmen in all but one game, the Vikings will again have a youth-heavy roster this season. Ten of the team's 15 players enter the year as underclassmen between three freshmen and seven sophomores (including redshirts). Last year's freshmen – Alaya Fitzgerald, Esmeralda Morales, Rhema Ogele and Mia 'Uhila – got plenty of experience last season, but they'll still only be sophomores this season. Sophomore transfers Sofía Llanos and Paige Winter-Blanchard will join them as underclassmen this season, while Nakia Boston also returns as a redshirt sophomore after sitting all of last season with an ankle injury. Additionally, the Vikings brought in three freshmen in Alani Encinas, Brooklyn Strandy and Kiana Yesiki, all of whom could see time for the Vikings this season.
 

PRESEASON PREDICTIONS

Last season's struggles shaped the preseason expectations for the Vikings among Big Sky coaches and media members. The Vikings were picked to finish last in the conference by both groups, while last year's tournament champion Montana State was picked to finish first in both polls. The Vikings returned five of their top six scorers from a year ago, however, between Esmeralda Morales (12.5 points per game), Jada Lewis (10.0 ppg), Alaya Fitzgerald (9.3 ppg), Mia 'Uhila (6.0 ppg) and Rhema Ogele (5.2 ppg). This year's roster also features a full 15 players, including six newcomers between three freshmen – Alani Encinas, Brooklyn Strandy and Kiana Yesiki – and three transfers – Sofía Llanos (from Marshall), Cinco McCartney (from Northeastern) and Paige Winter-Blanchard (from Centralia/William Jessup).
 

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

Nov. 17, 2022, Portland State 80, Seattle U 73: The Vikings erased a five-point deficit with 38 seconds remaining thanks in part of a four-point play by Jada Lewis that tied the game with 25 seconds remaining. It was the Vikings' first road win since the end of the 2020-21 regular season, and their first overtime win since Jan. 7, 2021.
Nov. 7, 2022, Portland State 67, Warner Pacific 40: The Vikings recorded 22 steals for their most steals in a single game since Dec. 20, 2006. They also assisted on their first 19 field goals in the game, while finishing with 20 assists on 22 field goals.