San Diego, CA – Despite a spirited comeback, there was no last-second magic for the Vikings this time.
 
Portland State came back to lead from double-digit deficits in both the first and second halves to take leads, but San Diego was able to come away with the victory, 69-65, at Jenny Craig Pavilion.
 
The Toreros' Wayne McKinney had 12 points in the final eight minutes, and a key assist with 32 seconds to play as San Diego held off the Vikings. McKinney finished the night with career-highs of 21 points and five assists to lead San Diego to the win.
 
Portland State used timely three-point shooting to rally back twice during the game. However,  the Vikings finished at only .350 from the field (21-60) for the night in a sluggish offensive performance. Isaiah Johnson came off the bench to lead PSU with 16 points and six rebounds. Bobby Harvey, also coming off the bench, had 15 points and six rebounds.
 
The loss drops Portland State to 8-3 on the season. The Vikings were going after a program best-ever 11-game record (9-2) at the Division level but fell just short. Meanwhile, the Toreros improved to 8-4 on the year and are 7-0 at home.
 
After PSU had an early lead, San Diego went on a 14-1 run in the first half. The run extended out to 26-6 as the Vikings struggled to shoot. PSU trailed 26-11 with eight minutes remaining in the first half and was only 4-17 from the field at that point.
 
Later, down 31-18, PSU finally found the range. First, Ismail Habib buried a corner three-pointer, then Harvey hit three straight threes. The Vikings led briefly after a pair of free throws by Johnson and got into halftime down only 34-32.
 
San Diego pushed its lead back to 12 again at 50-38, and again Harvey came back with a pair of three-pointers. Habib followed with two free throws and the Vikings tied it at 50-50 with 9:47 to go. Isiah Kirby gave PSU its first lead of the second half at 54-52 with a runner in the lane.
 
The game was a dogfight after that as there were ties at 50, 52, 54, 57, 59 and 62.
 
McKinney hit a turnaround jump shot with 1:20 left for a 65-62 San Diego advantage. He then fed teammate Steven Jamerson for a dunk with 32 seconds to go and the Toreros led by four at 67-63.
 
Johnson scored inside with 16 seconds left, but the Vikings had to foul. USD's Deuce Turner made two free throws and, at 69-65 in the closing seconds, the Vikings couldn't make up the difference.
 
Harvey, Johnson and Kirby were vital to the Vikings effort by combining to score 36 points off the bench, including 12-22 from the field and 7-11 from three-point range. PSU's starters were only 9-37 from the field.
 
Portland State was out-rebounded by San Diego, 45-34. That was key for the Toreros as they didn't shoot much better than the Vikings at .397 from the field.
 
Kevin Patton Jr. added 14 points and five rebounds for San Diego. Turner tallied 13 points and six rebounds.
 

GAME NOTES

• Bobby Harvey had a PSU career-best five three-point field goals (5-8).
• Ismail Habib had 13 points and four assists for the Vikings.
• Hayden Curtiss started his third straight game. In that span, he has 23 rebounds and 11 blocked shots.
• PSU is now 3-2 on the road, 4-3 in all games away from home.
• Portland State travels to play at Fresno State (6-4) on Monday night. The Vikings and Bulldogs meet in a 7 p.m. game that can be seen on the Mountain West Digital Network.