PORTLAND, Ore. — The last 20 minutes of basketball that the Portland State women's basketball played in 2022 was something to be proud of. The Vikings outshot Sacramento State .500-to-.233 in the second half Saturday at Viking Pavilion, while outscoring the Hornets 33-22. The issue was that basketball games in 2022, as they will be in 2023, are 40 minutes long instead of 20.
 
Sure enough, the Hornets used a 20-point halftime lead to hang on for a 65-56 victory over the Vikings.
 
Slow starts are something the Vikings would like to leave behind in 2022, as they've plagued them over their last four games. On Saturday, the Vikings (5-6, 0-1 Big Sky) found themselves down 17-4 just over six minutes into the first quarter. The Vikings would close the quarter on an 8-2 run to get back within seven, but they were still shooting just 4-of-14 (.286) by the end of the opening 10 minutes.
 
"That was the tale of the game, really. We won the second half, and so we just have to be better earlier. Taking care of our business and just not backing down. We'll continue to work on it," Portland State head coach Chelsey Gregg said of the team's slow start.
 
The Vikings eventually got back within five at 21-16 with 8:16 to go in the second quarter, but the Hornets (10-2, 1-0 Big Sky) outscored the Vikings 22-7 over the rest of the half. Two free throws from the Hornets then opened the third quarter, giving Sacramento State its largest lead of the game at 45-23.
 
But that's when the Vikings' fight – something they would like to carry into 2023 – kicked in. Esmeralda Morales opened things with a three-pointer after Syd Schultz gave the Vikings a second chance with an offensive rebound.
 
Alaya Fitzgerald then added two points off a jumper, while Cinco McCartney converted a three-point play after taking it coast-to-coast to cap an 8-0 PSU run.
 
Another 10-2 run over the end of the third and start of the fourth quarters saw the Vikings get back within 10. Morales sparked the run with back-to-back buckets, while Mia 'Uhila, Rhema Ogele and Nakia Boston all added buckets of their own.
 
The Viking defense held the Hornets to only two points over a nearly eight-minute stretch in the fourth quarter. The Hornets scored on their opening possession of the period to make it 57-43, but then scored only once more as the Vikings got back within seven after Boston banked in a three-pointer to make it 59-52 with 3:06 remaining.
 
PSU went a bit cold from there, however. The Hornets held them to just two field goals the rest of the way as the Vikings never got closer than seven in the fourth quarter.
 
"I get a little tired of saying how hard we fought, but it's true," Gregg said of how her team never folded against the Hornets. "We could have gone away when we were down 20, but we decided to fight back. We've got to continue to find that confidence early. Why it takes a second half to find it, or down 20 before we respond, who knows? We've got to, as coaches, find a way to get that out of our team earlier."
 
The Hornets out-rebounded the Vikings 33-to-29 Saturday. Given the Hornets' size advantage, however, that margin may have amounted to a win for the Vikings. The Hornets' Isnelle Natabou came into Saturday leading the Big Sky with over 10 rebounds a game, but the Vikings held her to just eight boards. Natabou still made per presence felt in the paint, however, as the Hornets outscored the Vikings 32-18 at the rim.
 
Natabou and Kahlaijah Dean led the Hornets with 17 and 19 points, respectively. Morales led the Vikings with 13 points, while McCartney finished with a career-high 12 points to go with six rebounds and three assists. No other Viking went into double figures.
 
So, the Vikings know what they'll want to leave behind in 2022. The job now becomes to kick off 2023 with the good parts of what they showed Saturday and during non-conference play.
 
"I think this group is continuing to find its identity," Gregg said of her team. "We keep fighting for who we want to be and where we want to go, and we just need to get there more consistently. We've seen flashes of it, which is probably more infuriating than anything else. We know we can do it, we've seen it. We've shown some flashes of really good basketball, but right now we're not able to put it together consistently."
 
The Vikings remain home for the start of 2023, as they host Eastern Washington and Idaho next weekend on Jan. 5 and 7, respectively.
 
Game Notes: The Vikings still lead the all-time series between them and the Hornets, 33-22, despite Saturday's loss…The Vikings committed 18 turnovers, 11 of which came in the first half…Jada Lewis had a streak of eight straight games with at least 10 points snapped, as the Hornets held her to just five points…The Vikings hit just five three-pointers Saturday, tying their second-lowest total this season.