PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (8-13, 6-7) AT MONTANA STATE BOBCATS (18-5, 10-2)

Thursday, February 10, 2022, 6 p.m. PT • Worthington Arena (6,772), Bozeman, MT
Live Stream: ESPN+
Live Stats: www.ViksLive.com
Complete notes and stats in pdf

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THE OPENING TIP

With four straight victories, the Portland State basketball team is officially on a roll. The Vikings will take their momentum into one of the most challenging weeks of the season, playing at Montana State on Thursday and Montana on Saturday.
     
The Vikings (8-13, 6-7) continued their winning ways on Saturday with a 73-65 victory over Sacramento State. That made for four wins in a row, matching the longest winning streak of the 2020-21 season.  Most notable for the Vikings has been a climb from ninth place into sixth place in the Big Sky Conference.
     
The last time PSU won more consecutive games was a six-game streak at the end of the 2019-20 campaign that was stopped when the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the Big Sky Conference Tournament.
     
Getting a fifth win in a row won't be easy. The Vikings play MSU in Bozeman. The Bobcats (18-5,10-2) have the best overall record and are currently second in the Big Sky. They knocked off first-place Weber State last Saturday in Ogden, and have already beaten the Vikings (73-60) in Portland on Jan. 22.
     
That was a different Portland State team though. Since then, Head Coach Jase Coburn has transitioned his team to a small-ball, up-tempo approach. Part of the change came about as a need to reverse the Vikings' fortunes, and part came about by a slew of injuries (seven different players have missed games due to injuries this season). Regardless of the reasons, the results have been there. After the Montana State game, the Vikings were averaging 67.7 points and shooting .402 from the field. Since that game, PSU has averaged 86.0 points and shot .479 from the field. During the winning streak, PSU has averaged 88.8 points, shot .492 from the field, and .480 from three-point range (making 11.8 per game).
     
Leading the Viking attack has been SR G Ezekiel Alley, who had three straight season-high scoring performances last week with 22 points on Monday, 23 on Thursday, then 26 on Saturday. He has averaged 20.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.0 steals during the winning streak, with a shooting slash line of .519/.500/.800.
     
Montana State provides a particular challenge that includes superior size, a talented offense, and a defense that is holding opponents to the lowest shooting percentage in the league (.413).
     
The Bobcats are 8-1 at Worthington Arena. The Vikings are 4-6 on the road, with wins in their last two road outings at Northern Arizona and Northern Colorado (averaging 101.5 points in those two games).
     
Saturday's game at Montana (16-8, 9-4) features another Big Sky contender. The Grizzlies are 12-0 at home this season. They beat the Vikings 66-64 in Viking Pavilion on Jan. 20 in a game that went down to the wire.
     
Thursday's game is a 6 p.m. PT contest at Montana State. It can be seen on ESPN+. Live stats are available at www.ViksLive.com.
 

COMING UP

Saturday's game at Montana is a 6 p.m. PT tip off.  PSU's next home game is Feb. 17 against Northern Arizona. All games can be seen on ESPN+.
 

GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. MONTANA STATE

• THE SERIES: Montana State leads the all-time series, 37-27, and the Big Sky Conference series, 30-24... ironically, PSU has won all four times the teams have met in the Big Sky Conference Tournament... Montana State leads 20-7 in Big Sky games played in Bozeman... MSU has won three straight in the series.
• THIS SEASON: Jan. 22, 2022 at Viking Pavilion, MSU 73, PSU 60: A slow start to the second half spelled doom for Portland State. It was a three-point game at halftime, but the Bobcats went on a 16-2 run to open the second half and Portland State was never able to get the deficit back to single digits.... Ezekiel Alley scored 12 points off the bench for Portland State. He was matched by James Jean-Marie, who had a dozen points and seven rebounds. Damion Squire had 11 points for the Vikings.... Xavier Bishop led four Bobcats in double figures with 15 points. He added seven assists, six rebounds and two steals... PSU was only 18-51 from the field (.353) and never scored more than four points in a row in the second half. MSU finished 25-54 from the floor (.463). Most significant was a 43-26 rebounding advantage by the Bobcats over the Vikings. Montana State had 14 offensive rebounds and 15 second chance points.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Jase Coburn (Arizona State, 2006) is in his first season as Head Coach. He has spent eight previous seasons on the Park Blocks as an Assistant and Associate Head Coach... the Bobcats are led by Head Coach Danny Sprinkle (Montana State, 2000) in his third season. He is 47-30 overall, including 3-2 against the Vikings. Sprinkle starred for the Bobcats as a player in the late 1990s.

 

MONTANA STATE BOBCATS

• Montana State is located in Bozeman. The Bobcats are an original member of the Big Sky Conference and have won four regular season championships and two tournament titles over the years. MSU has made three appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
• The Bobcats were 13-10 overall last year, 8-6 and tied for fourth in the Big Sky Conference. All five starters and eight letterwinners return from that team.
• This season, the Bobcats are 18-5 overall, 10-2 and second place in the Big Sky Conference. The Bobcats score 76.6 points per game and allow 67.2 points. They shoot .467 from the field, .374 from three-point range and .728 at the free throw line. MSU leads the Big Sky in shooting defense (.413), blocked shots (3.6) and scoring margin (+9.4), and have the best overall record.
• Junior forward Jubrile Belo is a candidate for Big Sky Player of the Year, averaging 13.3 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocked shots to lead the Big Sky. He shoots .592 from the field.
• Senior Guard Xavier Bishop averages 12.7 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game.
• Senior Forward Amin Adamu averages 11.7 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.

 

WHO IS HOT

• The Vikings have won four games in a row and are 4-2 in Big Sky Conference road games. The Vikings beat Northern Colorado 106-99 on Feb. 3, shooting 33-63 from the field (.524), 14-25 from three-point range (.560) and 26-32 at the line (.813). It was the most points against a Division I opponent since a 106-81 win over Cal on Dec. 21, 2017. 
• In the last six games, PSU has averaged 86.0 points and shot .479 from the field. During the four-game winning streak, PSU has averaged 88.8 points, shot .492 from the field, and .480 from three-point range (making 11.8 per game).
• Portland State's defense was on display against Sacramento State, making 16 steals and forcing 24 turnovers for 26 points. The 62 points allowed were the fewest by an opponent in nine games.
• SR G Ezekiel Alley had a third-straight season high in the win over Sacramento State on Saturday. He scored a season-high 22 points (7-13 FG, 3-7 3-pt, 5-5 FT) with six rebounds and two assists in the win over Northern Colorado last Monday. Then, he followed with 23 points (7-15 FG, 4-7 3-pt, 5-7), four rebounds and two assists last Thursday. Alley improved to 26 points (10-18 FG, 4-8 3-pt, 2-3 FT) with two rebounds, two assists and five steals in the win over Sacramento State... he is shooting 53-100 from the field (.530) in the last 10 games... Alley is averaging 20.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.0 steals during the winning streak, with a shooting slash line of .519/.500/.800.
• JR G Marlon Ruffin scored 20 points (7-12 FG, 3-3 3-pt, 3-3 FT) with five rebounds, two assists and two steals in the win at Northern Colorado. Ruffin followed that with another quality outing in the win over Sacramento State with 13 points (3-8 FG, 1-2 3-pt, 6-8 FT), three rebounds and two steals. He is averaging 15.0 points in the last three games and has made 15-30 field goals, 6-7 three-point field goals and 9-12 free throws.
• FR G Paris Dawson is 41-47 at the free throw line this season (.872) to lead the Big Sky Conference... in the last six games, he has made 21-38 from the field (.553) and 10-19 from three-point range (.526).
• JR G Ian Burke has averaged 12.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.4 steals in the last five games. He has made 21-38 field goals (.553), 11-19 three-pointers (.579) and 11-13 free throws (.846)... Burke is shooting .506 from the field this season and .467 from three-point range... since moving into the starting lineup eight games ago, he has averaged a team-high 36 minutes per game. In the last two games he played 78:39 of a possible 80:00 minutes.
• Portland State continues to lead the Big Sky Conference in steals with 9.2 per game, ranking 17th in the nation... JR G Ian Burke is second in the Big Sky (1.82) and SR F Khalid Thomas is fourth (1.76).

 

TRAVEL WEARY

Portland State will be playing its sixth straight game in a different venue. The Vikings have been home, road, home, road, home and now road against Montana State. The Vikings played at home on Jan. 27 against Southern Utah, then flew to Northern Arizona for a Jan. 29 afternoon game (approx. 2,500 mile round trip, including a four-hour round trip drive to Flagstaff from Phoenix). After playing Northern Colorado at home on Monday, the Vikings flew to Northern Colorado for a Thursday game, then fly back for Saturday's game with Sacramento State (approx. another 2,500 miles round trip, including a two-hour round trip drive to Greeley from Denver). The Vikings then traveled approximately 750 to Bozeman.
 

BATTERED AND BRUISED

Portland State has had a rough go of it health-wise this season. While the Vikings have been impacted by COVID-19 like virtually every other program in the country, they have also had a variety of injuries preventing them from fielding a full squad virtually every game this year. Hips, knees, fingers and non-COVID illnesses have all played a role in player availability.

• Just nine of 14 players were available to face Idaho on Jan. 24. That number increased to 11 players for four games, then just 10 on Thursday an Saturday.
• Only two players, SR F Khalid Thomas and SR G Ezekiel Alley, have been healthy enough to play in every game this season. Seven have missed games due to injuries.
• The Vikings have started 11 different players this season and had 10 different starting lineups.
• Head Coach Jase Coburn has started nine different lineups in the last 13 games.

 

GRAND LARCENY

Remarkably, Portland State has led the Big Sky Conference in team steals per game for the past seven seasons. The same is true this year under first-year Head Coach Jase Coburn, as the Vikings are currently averaging 9.2 steals per game. Thievery on the basketball court was also prevalent during the Barret Peery and Tyler Geving coaching eras. In addition, PSU has had two individual steals leaders. A look:
 
Season, steals per game
2015-16: 8.5
2016-17: 9.9, individual: Calaen Robinson, 2.35
2017-18: 9.8
2018-19: 8.3
2019-20: 8.7, individual: Holland Woods, 2.06
2020-21: 8.2
2021-22: 9.2 (currently)
 

SEASON HIGHLIGHT REEL

• Nov. 12, PSU 100, Evergreen State 44: Portland State picked up its first win of the season in relatively easy fashion. The Vikings rolled over the Geoducks, shooting .536 from the field - its best mark in two seasons. JR G Marlon Ruffin scored 18 points (6-9 FG, 5-6 T) in 18 minutes while SR F James Jean-Marie had 15 points (6-9 FG, 1-1 3-pt, 2-5 FT) and 10 rebounds. The victory was the first for new Head Coach Jase Coburn.
• Nov. 17, PSU 104, George Fox 58: The Vikings had another big offensive night, shooting 41-71 from the field (.577). PSU had 66 points in the paint, 26 on the fast break, and scored 50 points off 27 George Fox turnovers. FR G Paris Dawson came off the bench to score a career-high 19 points (6-8 FG, 1-2 3-pt, 6-6 FT). SR F James Jean-Marie registered his third straight double-double with 14 points (7-10 FG) and 11 rebounds.
• Nov. 23, Double-Double x 4: SR F James Jean-Marie racked up a fourth straight double-double in the game against Portland. It marked the first time in PSU's Big Sky Conference history that a player has recorded four double-doubles in a row.
• Dec. 2, PSU 63, Idaho State 55: The Vikings handed new Head Coach Jase Coburn a win in his first Big Sky Conference game. PSU never trailed after the first two minutes, out-rebounded ISU 45-31 and forced 18 turnovers. SR F James Jean-Marie had his fifth double-double of the season with 16 points (3-4 FG, 9-12 FT) and 10 rebounds. JR G Marlon Ruffin added 10 points, nine rebounds and two steals.
• Dec. 18, Ruffin Goes For 26: JR G Marlon Ruffin scored a Portland State season-high 26 points (10-15 FG, 2-3 3-pt, 4-4 FT) with five rebounds at CSUN (12/18).
• Jan. 15, PSU 67, Sacramento State 62: Portland State leads for the final 22 minutes of the game and holds off a late charge from Sacramento State to pick up the road win after a 16-day break from play. The Vikings shoot .426 from the field, its best mark in nine games, and has just eight turnovers. SO F Jacob Eyman records his second straight career high with 14 points (6-10 FG) and eight rebounds, while SR F Khalid Thomas gets a second straight double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
• Jan. 29, PSU 97, Northern Arizona 76: The Vikings put forth their best performance of the season, shooting .561 from the field, .519 from three-point range and .900 at the line. They had season-highs of 14 three-point field goals and 23 assists. SR F Khalid Thomas matched his career-high of 25 points (10-15 FG, 3-6 3-pt, 2-2 FT) with eight rebounds and two steals. JR G Ian Burke tallied season-highs of 21 points (8-11 FG, 3-5 3-pt, 2-2 FT) and five assists.
• Jan. 31, PSU 79, Northern Colorado 76: After building a 21-point halftime lead the Vikings held on for their second win in a row. SR G Ezekiel Alley scored 22 points (7-13 FG, 3-7 3-pt, 5-5 FT) with six rebounds and made the key defensive play by drawing a charging foul with 6.1 seconds remaining in the game.  JR G Damion Squire added a season-high 19 points with five rebounds, three assists and two steals.
• Feb. 3, PSU 106, Northern Colorado 99: Portland State extended its winning streak to three by scoring the most points against a Division I opponent since a 106-81 win over Cal on Dec. 21, 2017. The Vikings shot 33-63 from the field (.524), 14-25 from three-point range (.560) and 26-32 at the line (.813). SR G Ezekiel Alley scored a season-high 23 points, followed by 20 points and five rebounds from JR G Marlon Ruffin.
• Feb. 5, PSU 73, Sacramento State 65: SR G Ezekiel Alley had a third straight season scoring high with 26 points (10-18 FG, 4-8 3-pt, 2-3 FT) and five steals. That matched the team season high set previously by JR G Marlon Ruffin. The Viking defense dominated the day with 16 steals, forcing 24 turnovers for 26 points. The win was four in a row for the Vikings, the longest since the 2020-21 season.