EASTERN WASHINGTON EAGLES (17-7, 11-0) at PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (10-13, 4-6)

Saturday, February 4, 2023, 7 p.m. • Viking Pavilion (3,094), Portland, OR
Live Stream: ESPN+ • Play-by-play: Matt Richert • Analyst: Devon Pouncey
Live Stats: www.ViksLive.com
Complete notes and stats

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THE OPENING TIP

Portland State has an opportunity to gain the nation's attention and end its four-game home stand in style when the Vikings host Eastern Washington on Saturday night at Viking Pavilion.
     
PSU takes on an Eagles' team that has the longest winning streak in NCAA I basketball at 13 games. Eastern Washington is a perfect 11-0 in the Big Sky and 17-7. Moreover, the Eagles come off one of their most impressive wins, an 82-63 decision at Sacramento State in which they shot .646 from the field.
     
The Vikings (10-13, 4-6) go into the game on a positive note as well, following a 69-66 victory on Thursday night over Idaho. SR G Cameron Parker, JR G Jorell Saterfield and JR F Hunter Woods combined for 56 of the Vikings' 69 points as they held off the Vandals in the late-going.
     
Thursday's win also continued a trend of strong late-season play by Portland State that has occurred over the past five years. Admittedly, it is just one February game for the Vikings, but they are 1-0 this month, and 26-12 in February dating back to the 2017-18 season. PSU was 5-2 in February last year. In contrast, the Vikings are 26-38 in all other Big Sky regular season games not played in February since 2017-18.
     
PSU's win over Idaho keeps them in seventh place in a tightly-bunched middle of the pack in the Big Sky with eight games to play on the conference schedule. The Vikings are one-half game behind sixth-place Montana (5-6), a game behind fifth-place Sacramento State (5-5) and a game-and-a-half behind fourth-place Idaho State (5-4).
     
In order to get another February win and knock off the high-flying Eagles, the Vikings will need to produce their best offensive game. EWU leads the Big Sky in scoring (76.2) and shooting (.487). The Eagles beat the Vikings, 92-80, in Cheney on Jan. 5 behind a .588 shooting performance that included 16-31 three-point field goals. That was Eastern's fifth straight win in its current school-record string of 13 in a row.
     
Portland State is 5-4 at home this season, while the Eagles are 6-5 in road games, including a perfect 5-0 in Big Sky road games.
     
All eyes will be on Viking Pavilion Saturday night as Portland State tries to stop the hottest team in the nation. Tip-off for the game is 7 p.m. and it can be seen on ESPN+.
 

COMING UP

Next week, Portland State travels to Northern Colorado and Northern Arizona. The Vikings are home again on Feb. 16 hosting Idaho State.
 

GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. EASTERN WASHINGTON

• ALL-TIME SERIES: Eastern Washington leads the all-time series, 30-27, and the Big Sky Conference series, 29-24... the Vikings are 15-9 in Big Sky games played at Portland... the Eagles have won six straight in the series dating back to the 2018-19 season.
• Jan. 5 at Reese Court, EWU 92, PSU 80: The Eagles were down six with eight minutes to play before going on a 28-10 run down the stretch to pick up the win. The Eagles shot 30-51 from the field (.588), making 16-31 from behind the arc (.516). Portland State couldn't match those numbers, shooting 31-74 (.419) and 8-28 (.284) from distance... PSU stayed in the game by turning the Eagles over 20 times for 31 points. They also had 15 rebounds on the offensive glass for 15 points... Eastern Washington shooters had a big night, making eight straight shots from the field and 11-13 at one point in the second half - five of which were three-point field goals... All-Conference forward Steele Venters led Eastern Washington with 25 points. Angelo Allegri added 21 points and eight rebounds... Jorell Saterfield topped the Vikings with 21 points, eight rebounds and three assists. Hunter Woods scored 15 points and Bobby Harvey had a dozen points with six rebounds off the bench... PSU played without point guard Cameron Parker who was serving a one-game league suspension.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Jase Coburn (Arizona State, 2006) is in his second season as Head Coach and has a 24-30 record overall. He is 0-3 against Eastern Washington. Coburn spent eight previous seasons on the Park Blocks as an Assistant and Associate Head Coach... the Eagles are coached by David Riley in his second season. Riley is 35-22 overall, 3-0 against the Vikings.

 

SCOUTING EASTERN WASHINGTON

• Eastern Washington is located in Cheney, WA. The Eagles program has won two Big Sky Conference regular season titles and three Big Sky Tournament titles, making three appearances in the NCAA Tournament since joining the Big Sky in 1987. The most recent came in 2021.
• This season, Eastern Washington is 17-7 overall, 11-0 and in first place in the Big Sky. The Eagles have the longest winning streak in the nation at 13 games. The Eagles average 76.2 points and allow 70.2 points per game. They lead the team in scoring, field goal percentage (.487), three-point field goals made, assists and blocked shots.
• Sophomore forward Steele Venters averages 15.0 points and has made 50 three-point field goals to lead the team. Senior forward Angelo Allegri averages 13.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 48 three-point field goals.

 

WHO IS HOT

• PARKER PUSHING THE PEDAL: SR G Cameron Parker's play has been elevating in recent weeks as he has averaged 18.4 points and 6.3 assists while shooting .523 in the last eight games. He has led the team in scoring in all eight games and assists in seven games... Parker has averaged 22.0 points and 6.7 assists in the last three games, making 23-41 from the field (.561). He now leads the team in scoring (15.8) and the Big Sky in assists (5.9)... Parker ranks fourth in the nation in free throws made (133) and is shooting .831 at the line this year. He ranks 15th in the nation in assists.
• THE BENCH BUNCH: Portland State has had solid bench play all season and averages 29.2 points per game off the bench to rank 13th in the nation... SR G Bobby Harvey leads the bench bunch with 7.3 points per game and has made 40 threes (.392)... SO C Hayden Curtiss leads the team with a .600 field goal percentage off the bench (18-30) while SO F Isaiah Johnson is shooting .553 (57-103)... JR G Isiah Kirby is .864 at the line (19-22).
• PORTAL PRODUCTION: SO F Isaiah Johnson was a late addition to the Vikings' roster last summer after leaving Oregon State. He is proving to be a great addition... in the last 10 games Johnson has averaged 8.1 points and shot over 60% from the field.
• BOBBY THREE-BALL: SR G Bobby Harvey has made at least one three-point field goal in 19 straight games. His 40 for the season rank second on the team with JR F Hunter Woods. He is averaging 8.8 points over the last six games.
• IN A HURRY: Portland State is first in the Big Sky Conference and 11th in the nation in fast break points (15.6 pg).
• BIG SKY LEADERS: Portland State leads the Big Sky Conference in turnover margin (+4.0), turnovers forced (16.6), and steals (7.5)... the Vikings are 19th in the nation in turnovers forced... SR G Cameron Parker leads in assists (5.9).

 

NO FOOLS IN FEBRUARY

The month of February approaches and that bodes well for the Vikings. Portland State has had a lot of success in Big Sky Conference play in February in recent seasons. This season the Vikings play nine games during February's 28 days, with five at home and four on the road.

• In the past six seasons the Vikings are 26-12 (.684) in February, including 5-2 last year. (2018: 5-3; 2019: 5-3; 2020: 5-2; 2021: 5-2; 2022: 5-2; 2023: 1-0)
• PSU is 52-50 in Big Sky games overall the last six seasons, which means the Vikings were 26-38 (.406) in non-February games.