TIPOFF

Eat your heart out Yogi Berra because it's literally déjà vu all over again for the Portland State women's basketball team.
 
For the second time in as many weeks, the Vikings will face the same team they played just four days earlier. Last week, it was two games against Southern Utah. This week, the Vikings travel to face Northern Colorado on the road Monday just four days after playing them at Viking Pavilion last Thursday.
 
The scheduling quirk is a result of earlier postponements due to COVID-19 protocols within the various programs. Monday's game will make up a game the Vikings would have originally played on Jan. 10.
 
The re-scheduling has made for a hectic few weeks for the Vikings ever since they re-started their season on Jan. 15 following a 27-day hiatus. Monday's game at Northern Colorado marks the sixth game in a 10-game stretch for the Vikings that spans only 22 days from Jan. 27 to Feb. 17.
 
But the Vikings have been competitive in just about every game of that recent stretch, including last Thursday against the Bears. A 9-0 run gave the Vikings a 43-40 lead with 4:46 remaining in that game, the third time in the Vikings' past four games that they had led in the fourth quarter at the time. The Bears responded with a 7-0 run to re-take the lead, but it was still a two-possession game until the final seconds.
 
Mia 'Uhila led the Vikings with a career-high 12 points against the Bears, while fellow freshman Alaya Fitzgerald added 11 points and a career-high seven rebounds.
 
Fitzgerald led the Vikings with 19 points Saturday against Sacramento State, as the freshman wing has been on a tear since the restart of the season. Fitzgerald averages a team-best 13.0 points per game in the nine games since the season restarted, and also averages 4.6 rebounds, 1.9 steals and 1.8 assists per game over that span.
 
Jada Lewis has also been in form recently, especially from three-point range. Lewis scored 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the field and 3-of-5 from three-point range Saturday while playing in front of a hometown crowd in the Vikings' game against the Hornets. That game as in line with how Lewis has been playing, as she's averaged 3.0 three-pointers made over the Vikings' past six games, while she's shooting 18-of-44 (.409) from beyond the arc during that stretch.
 
Northern Colorado countered with their dynamic duo of Hannah Simental and Kurstyn Harden the last time they played the Vikings. Harden led the Bears with a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds, while Simental chipped in 18 points of her own.
 
For the season, Harden leads the Bears and ranks sixth in the Big Sky with 13.6 points per game. Harden, meanwhile, ranks 13th in the conference with 12.3 points per game, and stands eighth with 7.16 rebounds per game. No other player averages more than seven points per game for the Bears.
 
The true hallmark of the Bears' season, however, has been the team's defense. Northern Arizona beat the Bears 77-71 Saturday, but that was the first time a Big Sky opponent had scored more than 70 points against the Bears all season. The Bears rank second in the Big Sky in scoring defense, as they're giving up only 60.2 points per game. They also rank fourth in the conference in field goal percentage defense (.390), while the Vikings and Bears stand 1-2 in three-point field goal percentage defense (both at .284).
 
The Bears held the Vikings to 3-of-21 (.143) shooting from three-point range in their first game against each other Thursday. If the Vikings can improve that mark Monday, then they could have the firepower to close out the Bears this time around.
 
A win Monday would certainly be a nice break from the Vikings' déjà vu. The Vikings just have to remember another one of Yogi Berra's sayings to make it happen: "It ain't over till it's over." 
 

GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE (5-14, 0-11) vs. NORTHERN COLORADO (8-11, 4-7)

LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
GAME DETAILS: Monday, Feb. 7, 4:30 p.m. PT / 5:30 p.m. MT, Greeley, Colo. (Bank of Colorado Arena)
SCOUTING NORTHERN COLORADO: In their first game back home after five straight on the road, the Northern Colorado Bears dropped a 77-71 decision to Northern Arizona Saturday. It was the Bears' second game against NAU in the past week, as the Bears beat the Lumberjacks 61-49 the previous Monday. This Monday will be the Bears' second game in the past week against the Vikings, as a scheduling quirk means the Bears will have played only two different teams in their past four games when Monday's game is over. The Bears won the first meeting between them and the Vikings, triumphing 59-51 in a tight game at Viking Pavilion last Thursday. Overall, the Bears have won four of their last seven games after starting Big Sky play 0-4. Defense has led the Bears throughout the season. NAU became the first team to score more than 70 points in a Big Sky game against the Bears in their game Saturday. Otherwise, the Bears have given up only 60.2 points per game on average to their opponents this season, ranking them second in the Big Sky this season. The Bears also rank fourth in the conference with a field goal percentage defense of .390, while the Vikings and Bears stand 1-2 in three-point field goal percentage defense with nearly identical marks of .284. Besides the defense, rebounding has helped spur the Bears this season, as they rank third in the conference with a rebounding margin of +4.79. The Bears out-rebounded the Vikings 41-35 last Thursday behind a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds for Kurstyn Harden. Hannah Simental chipped in 18 points of her own, as the two led the Bears against the Vikings as they have against all the Bears' opponents this season. Simental leads the Bears and ranks sixth in the Big Sky with 13.6 points per game, while Harden ranks 13th in the conference with 12.3 points per game. Harden also ranks eighth in the conference with 7.16 rebounds per game to lead the Bears. No other player averages more than seven points a game besides Simental and Harden.
ALL-TIME SERIES: The Bears lead the all-time series between them and the Bears, 21-10. The Bears have owned the series of late, as they've won five in a row against the Vikings, and 12 of the last 13 games between the teams. The Vikings' lone win in that stretch was an 85-66 home win on Feb. 9, 2019.
 

STORYLINES/STREAKS/RECORDS

• The Vikings went 27 days without a game earlier this season. They made their return against Sacramento State on Jan. 15, then followed with four straight road games. Monday's game against Northern Colorado will mark the sixth game in a 10-game stretch for the Vikings that spans only 22 days between Jan. 27 to Feb. 17.
• Esmeralda Morales (11.9 ppg), Alaya Fitzgerald (10.9), Jada Lewis (10.8) and Savannah Dhaliwal (10.5) all average in double figures. Fitzgerald leads the team with 13.0 points per game in the Vikings' nine games since their season restarted on Jan. 15.
• The Vikings went 17-of-23 (.739) from the free throw line Saturday, with the 23 attempts marking their third-highest total of the season. Free-throw shooting has been a strength for the Vikings this season, as they rank second in the Big Sky and 25th in the nation with a team free throw percentage of .765. Esmeralda Morales has gone 47-of-52 (.904) from the free throw line individually, good for second in the Big Sky.
• Jada Lewis leads the Big Sky with 2.42 three-pointers made per game, and also ranks fourth in the conference in three-point field goal percentage (.383). Lewis is averaging 3.0 makes per game in the Vikings' last six games when she's shooting 18-of-44 (.409) from beyond the arc.
• The Vikings lead the Big Sky with a three-point field goal percentage defense of .284. Ten of the Vikings' 19 opponents this season have failed to shoot better than 30.0 percent from beyond the arc against the Vikings, including the team's last two opponents in Northern Colorado, which went 3-of-13 (.231) from three-point range Thursday, and Sacramento State, which went 4-of-20 (.200) Saturday.
• The Vikings have recorded 10+ steals in 10 of their 19 games this season. Three different Vikings rank in the top 15 of the Big Sky for steals per game, while the Vikings rank fourth in the Big Sky with 8.63 steals per game. Esmeralda Morales and Mia 'Uhila rank fourth and fifth, respectively, with 2.00 and 1.89 steals per game individually. Alaya Fitzgerald ranks tied for 14th in the league with 1.32 steals per game.
• Reilly Kelty has 12 blocks in the Vikings' last five games and now ranks fifth in the Big Sky with 1.34 blocks per game.
• Alaya Fitzgerald has scored in double figures in eight of the Vikings' past 10 games, including seven of the team's nine games since their season re-started on Jan. 15. Fitzgerald has averaged 13.0 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.9 steals and 1.8 assists per game in the team's nine games since the re-start.
• Savannah Dhaliwal has scored in double figures in 13 of the Vikings' 19 games, and was within a bucket of double figures in three of the Vikings' other six games. Dhaliwal's production has provided a feel-good storyline for the Vikings this season after she missed the last two seasons due to back-to-back ACL tears. Dhaliwal played in her first counting game in 985 days when she started the team's season opener against Warner Pacific on Nov. 9.
• The Vikings have started three freshmen in Esmeralda Morales, Alaya Fitzgerald and Rhema Ogele in all but one game this season. Additionally, Mia 'Uhila averages 21.7 minutes per game off the bench, ranking her fifth on the team in minutes.
• Head coach Chelsey Gregg is in her first year at the helm of the Vikings after spending the previous six seasons as first an assistant then an associate head coach for the Vikings. The players dumped ice water over Gregg's head following the team's first win of the season on Nov. 9. A photo of the moment was shared by the @NCAAWBB accounts as their photo of the week that week.
• The Vikings have nine underclassmen out of the 14 players on their roster this season, while Savannah Dhaliwal represents the team's lone senior.

 

MONEY FROM THE LINE

The Vikings have been a bit up-and-down from the free throw line in their past four games, but still rank second in the Big Sky and 25th in the nation with a .765 free throw percentage. The Vikings went 17-of-23 (.739) from the line Saturday, with the 23 attempts marking their third-highest total in a game this season. But the Vikings also went 5-of-12 (.417) combined against Southern Utah and Northern Arizona between their games on Jan. 27 and 29. Esmeralda Morales is 47-of-52 (.904) from the line individually, as she ranks second in the conference in free throw percentage. Morales has a chance to break the single-season school record for free throw percentage as Eryn Jones set the current record at .911 during the 2011-12 season when she went 51-of-56 from the line.
 

STRONG PERIMETER DEFENSE

Seven of the Vikings' first 11 opponents of the season failed to shoot over 30.0 percent from three-point range, while the Vikings' last two opponents have also failed to hit the mark. Northern Colorado went 3-of-13 (.231) from three-point range against the Vikings Thursday, while Sacramento State went 4-of-20 (.200) in their game Saturday. That level of defense has been a return to form for the Vikings, after Northern Arizona and Southern Utah went a combined 20-of-38 (.526) in their games against Portland State on Jan. 29 and 31, respectively. All told, the Vikings lead the Big Sky with a three-point field goal percentage defense of .284, just ahead of their opponent Monday, Northern Colorado, which also holds opponents to .284 shooting from three-point range. The high point defensively came against cross-town rival University of Portland on Dec. 12, when the Vikings held the Pilots without a make from three-point range on 0-of-17 shooting from the outside. That game came as part of a three-game stretch in which the Vikings' opponents went a combined 4-of-50 (.080) from three-point range.
 

UP-AND-DOWN OFFENSE

The Vikings topped 50.0 percent from the field for only the third time this season while going 29-of-57 (.509) from the floor against Northern Arizona on Jan. 29. But the Vikings have been below 40 percent in all of their other recent games. So, the offense has been up-and-down for the Vikings this season, which is typical of life with a young team. The Vikings have shown the ability to light it up with five games in which they've scored 73 points or more, but they have also failed to score more than 60 points in 10 games this season. The team's three-point shooting – a key in all of the Vikings' wins this season – has been up-and-down recently. The Vikings have shot 33.3 percent or better in four of the Vikings' past six games, but they shot less than 20.0 percent in the other two games. Individually, Jada Lewis leads the Big Sky with 2.42 makes per game from the outside, and also ranks fourth in the conference in three-point field goal percentage (.383). Esmeralda Morales, meanwhile, ranks tied for 14th in the Big Sky with 1.47 three-pointers made per game.
 

THEFT ON THE WING

The Vikings have topped 10+ steals in 10 of their 19 games this season. The Vikings average 8.63 steals per game for the season, an average that ranks them fourth in the Big Sky. Three different Vikings rank in the top 15 of the conference for steals per game, led by Esmeralda Morales and Mia 'Uhila who rank fourth and fifth, respectively, with 2.00 and 1.89 steals per game. Alaya Fitzgerald also ranks tied for 14th in the conference with 1.32 steals per game.
 

ROOTING FOR LAY IS A LAY-UP

Alaya Fitzgerald, nicknamed Lay, has been the Vikings' top scorer since the season restarted on Jan. 15 following a 27-day hiatus. Fitzgerald has averaged a team-best 13.0 points per game in the team's nine games since the season re-started, and is also averaging 4.6 rebounds, 1.9 steals and 1.8 assists per game during that stretch. Fitzgerald has scored in double figures in eight of the Vikings' past 10 games, including a career game against Northern Arizona on Jan. 29. The freshman wing scored a career-high 23 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field and 3-of-4 from three-point range against the Lumberjacks while adding a career-high eight assists, five rebounds and three steals. Fitzgerald also opened the season with four straight double-digit scoring games.
 

JADA CAN KNOCK DOWN THE J's, DUH

Jada Lewis has averaged 3.0 three-pointers made per game in the Vikings' last five games, a stretch in which she's shooting 18-of-44 (.409) from beyond the arc. The recent run started with a 5-of-7 performance against Montana State on Jan. 22, the fourth time this season Lewis has hit five or more three-pointers in a game. The previous three times all resulted in wins for the Vikings, including two in back-to-back games against Dixie State and Prairie View A&M on Nov. 12 and 20, respectively. Lewis set a new career-high for points in both games while going a combined 13-of-21 (.619) from beyond the arc. Lewis started with 22 points on 6-of-9 shooting from deep against Dixie State, then topped that with 23 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the outside against Prairie View A&M. Lewis also scored over 20 points against Pepperdine on Dec. 10, when she went 5-of-7 from three-point range while pouring in 21 points. Lewis has now made at least one three-pointer in the Vikings' last 13 games, a stretch in which she's shooting 39.5 percent (32-of-81) from beyond the arc. Lewis also showed a new facet of her game against Sacramento State on Jan. 15, as she recorded her first double-double with a career-high 11 rebounds to go with 13 points. For the season, Lewis leads the Big Sky in three-pointers made per game (2.42), while also ranking fourth in the conference in three-point field goal percentage (.383).
 

MORE OF MORALES, PLEASE

Esmeralda Morales has had to adjust to being one of the primary targets of opposing teams' defensive plans, which she's been the subject of ever since her record-breaking debut against Warner Pacific on Nov. 9. Morales tied a single-game record that has stood since 1991 with eight made three-pointers in her debut against Warner Pacific. She also set five other freshman records in the game between the records for points (32), points in a debut (32), field goals made (11), three-point field goals made (8) and three-point field goal percentage (.727). Morales also made the Bank of Hawai'i Classic All-Tournament Team after averaging 19.5 points, 4.5 assists, 2.5 steals and 2.0 three-pointers per game against Prairie View A&M on Nov. 20, and Hawai'i on Nov. 21. Morales leads the Vikings with 11.9 points per game, though she's averaging only 8.7 points per game against Big Sky opponents. Morales has found other ways to contribute, however, as she ranks second in the Big Sky in free-throw percentage (.904), fourth in steals per game (2.00), fifth in assists per game (3.79), seventh in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.33) and tied for 14th in three-pointers made per game (1.47).
 

THE LONG-AWAITED RETURN OF SAVANNAH DHALIWAL

For someone who went 985 days between counting games, Savannah Dhaliwal has been remarkably consistent for the Vikings since making her return from back-to-back ACL tears. Dhaliwal has scored in double figures in all but six games this season and was within a bucket of double figures in three of the other six games. Dhaliwal put together her best performance of the season against Southern Utah on Jan. 27, as she scored a season-high 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting overall and 3-of-4 from three-point range. Dhaliwal followed with 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting against Northern Arizona on Jan. 29, but was held scoreless in the Vikings' rematch against Southern Utah last Monday. Dhaliwal ranks fourth on the team with 10.5 points per game, and also ranks second on the Vikings' team with 10.2 points per game in Big Sky games this season. So, it's been a dream return to play for Dhaliwal, who first tore the ACL in her right knee in the Vikings' home game against Idaho on Feb. 28, 2019. That kept her out of the entire 2019-20 season, and she re-tore her ACL in the fall of 2020, which forced her out of the entire 2020-21 season as well.
 

OOOOOOOOOO-HEE-LUH

Pixar took the little green aliens saying 'oooooooooo' in Toy Story from watching freshman guard Mia 'Uhila. At least that's the story we're telling ourselves. 'Uhila has the game to make it believable, especially in terms of her perimeter defense. 'Uhila has grabbed at least three steals in five of her 18 appearances this season. That's put 'Uhila fifth in the Big Sky with 1.89 steals per game. 'Uhila has also helped the Vikings rank fourth in the Big Sky with 8.63 steals per game as a team. 'Uhila had her best scoring game of the season in the Vikings' first game against Northern Colorado Thursday, as she led the Vikings with 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting overall and 2-of-2 from three-point range.
 

YOUTHFUL ROSTER

Nine of the Vikings' 14 players this season will be freshmen or sophomores, and neither class has had a normal basketball season due to the pandemic since they were either sophomore or juniors in high school. That should make for a youthful roster at times for the Vikings this season, especially considering the Vikings' only have one senior – Savannah Dhaliwal – to counterbalance that youth. Even the Vikings' juniors had their freshmen years in 2019-20 cut short in March due to the pandemic, and then weren't able to work on their games nearly as much as they would have liked as sophomores during the 2020-21 season.
 

PRESEASON PREDICTIONS

Big Sky coaches and media members picked the Vikings to finish ninth and eighth in their respective preseason polls. The top three in both polls were identical, with Idaho State the clear favorite in both. The Bengals return several key players from last year's team that ran away with the Big Sky regular-season and tournament titles. Because of that, the Bengals earned all but their own first-place vote in the coaches poll, and picked up 17 of the 22 first-place votes in the media poll. Montana State followed the Bengals at second in both polls, narrowly edging Idaho in third.
 

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

Jan. 29, 2022, Northern Arizona 79, Portland State 68: The Vikings assisted on 19 of their 29 field goals, tied for their most assists since they had a season-high 23 against Dixie State on Nov. 12. Additionally, the Vikings topped 50.0 percent from the field for only the third time this season while going 29-of-57. The Vikings out-scored NAU 40-20 in the paint, with the 40 points marking a new season-high for the Vikings from the inside.
Jan. 27, 2022, Southern Utah 64, Portland State 63: Savannah Dhaliwal recorded only the second 20-point game of her career while leading the Vikings with 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting overall and 3-of-4 shooting from three-point range. The Vikings came within a late free throw with 0.8 seconds remaining of upsetting the Big Sky leaders at the time in Southern Utah.
Dec. 19, 2021, Portland State 73, Simpson 45: Every player who dressed scored for the Vikings in their game against the Red Hawks. The Vikings assisted on 19 of their 27 field goals in the game, while nine of their 12 players recorded at least one assist.
Dec. 10, 2021, Portland State 75, Pepperdine 71: The Vikings erased a 16-6 deficit early in the game while returning to form from the outside. The Vikings went 12-of-19 (.632) from three-point range after going just 9-of-48 (.188) combined over their previous three games. Jada Lewis and Esmeralda Morales both broke out of individual shooting slumps, as they tied for the game high with 21 points while going 5-of-7 and 5-of-6 from deep, respectively.
Nov. 20, 2021, Portland State 75, Prairie View A&M 61: Savannah Dhaliwal recorded the first double-double of her career with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Jada Lewis set career highs for points (23) and three-pointers (7) to lead the Vikings offensively.
Nov. 12, 2021, Portland State 80, Dixie State 52: The Vikings held a Dixie State team that had just set a new school record with 22 made three-pointers in its season opener to 5-of-34 (.147) shooting from deep. Jada Lewis set a career high with 22 points on 6-of-9 shooting from beyond the arc.
Nov. 9, 2021, Portland State 87, Warner Pacific 64: Esmeralda Morales tied a single-game record that's stood since 1991 with eight three-pointers against the Knights, while setting five new freshman records in the game. Morales broke the freshman records for points (32), points in a debut (32), field goals made (11), three-point field goals made (8) and three-point field goal percentage (.727). Savannah Dhaliwal also made her return after missing the last two seasons due to back-to-back ACL tears. Dhaliwal had 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting while setting new career highs for assists (6) and steals (2) in her first counting game in 985 days.