Ogden, UT – Weber State had one of those nights and the Vikings had no answer. The Wildcats took control early with excellent shooting and cruised to an 84-68 Big Sky Conference win at Dee Events Center.

WSU shot 31-54 (.574) from the field for the game to only 20-51 for the Vikings (.392).  Combined with a 40-22 rebounding advantage, the Wildcats had a relatively easy time of it. 

Portland State was led by Cameron Parker's 13 points, five rebounds and three assists. Bobby Harvey made three three-pointers in his role off the bench for nine points and five rebounds.

The loss was the Vikings second in a row and they dip to 8-11 on the season, 2-4 in the Big Sky Conference. The Wildcats are surging, having won seven of their last 10. They are 9-10 overall, 4-2 in the Big Sky.

The shooting of Weber State's Steven Verplancken staked the Wildcats to a 28-19 lead midway through the first half. He made his first four three-point attempts on the way to 16 first-half before intermission. 

Weber State turned it on late in the half, going on a 16-1 run to go into the locker room with a 51-29 lead.

The Wildcats were averaging only 66.1 points going into the game. However, potent shooting had them well above their trend. They made 18-28 shots from the field in the first half (.643) including 6-10 from three-point range, and had a 20-10 rebounding edge. Meanwhile the Vikings were only 8-24 from the field (.333).

Weber State continued the onslaught in the second half, making six of their first eight field goal attempts and pushing the lead to 30 points.

Portland State kept the battle going and was able to close the game to within 16 points.

All-Conference forward Dillon Jones had a big game for the Wildcats with 17 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists and three steals. Verplancken finished with 19 points.

GAME NOTES

• Isiah Kirby had eight points and three assists off the bench.
• Weber State has been the most difficult Big Sky Conference locale for the Vikings throughout history. PSU is only 4-23 all-time in Big Sky games in Ogden.
• PSU is 3-7 on the road this season.
• Portland State travels to Idaho State for a Saturday evening game. The Vikings and Bengals meet at 5 p.m. PT in a game that can be seen on ESPN+.