WEBER STATE WILDCATS (11-5, 2-1) at
PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (10-6, 1-2)

Saturday, January 13, 2024, 4 p.m. • Viking Pavilion (3,094), Portland, OR
Live Stream: ESPN+ • Play-by-play: Matt Richert • Analyst: Devon Pouncey
Live Stats: wwViksLive.com

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OPENING TIP

A pair of teams coming off disappointing losses will meet up on Saturday at Viking Pavilion as Portland State hosts Weber State in a Big Sky Conference game.
     
The Vikings (10-6, 1-2) dropped their Big Sky home opener to Idaho State, 69-63, on Thursday night while Weber State (11-5, 2-1) lost at formerly last-place Sacramento State, 71-69. Both games had a similar theme as the Vikings and Wildcats out-shot their opponents but were beaten badly on the backboards, contributing to the defeats.
     
Portland State, which has lost two in a row for the first time this season, will try to turn things around both offensively and on the glass. PSU had been averaging near 75 points per game through 10 contests, building an 8-2 record. Since then, the Vikings have gone 2-4 and averaged only 67.3 points. PSU's .434 shooting mark from the field against Idaho State was its best among those six games and only the third time the Vikings had reached .400 or better.
     
Although the shooting percentage wasn't remarkable, it maybe showed a positive trend for PSU. The three main outside shooters - SR Gs Jorell Saterfield, Bobby Harvey and SO G Ismail Habib - combined for 40 points against the Bengals, making 14-29 (.483) from the field and 8-19 (.421) from three-point range. Perhaps those three can continue the trend against the Wildcats.
     
Weber State lost for the first time in seven games with the defeat at Sacramento State. The Wildcats are led by Dillon Jones, who ranks second in the Big Sky in scoring (19.3), leads in rebounding (10.0) and ranks second in assists (4.9). Teammate Steven Verplancken is also a major threat as evidenced by his 30 points (11-13 FG, 6-8 3-pt, 2-2 FT) against the Hornets. The Wildcats feature the Big Sky's best defense, allowing only 62.4 points per game, so the Vikings' offense will be challenged.
     
Early in Big Sky play, the Vikings (1-2) are tied for sixth place while the Wildcats (2-1) are tied for third. Saturday's game tips off at 4 p.m. at Viking Pavilion. It can be seen on ESPN+ with live stats at www.ViksLive.com.
 

COMING UP

The Vikings are on the road next week at Northern Arizona (Thursday) and Northern Colorado (Saturday). Both games tip off at 5 p.m. PT and can be seen on ESPN+. PSU comes home for four straight games beginning on Jan. 25 against Montana.
 

GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. WEBER STATE

• ALL-TIME SERIES: Weber State leads the all-time series, 45-18, and the Big Sky Conference series, 41-18... the Big Sky series is tied in Portland, 14-14... the Wildcats swept the season series last year, and the teams have split the last 10 meetings overall... PSU has never beaten Weber State in the Big Sky Tournament (0-7).
• LAST SEASON: Jan. 19, 2023 at Ogden, WSU 84, PSU 68: Weber State had one of those nights and the Vikings had no answer. 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... Weber State turned it on late in the first half, going on a 16-1 run to go into the locker room with a 51-29 lead. The Wildcats 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 was led by Cameron Parker's 13 points, five rebounds and three assists... All-Conference forward Dillon Jones had a big game for the Wildcats with 17 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists and three steals. Steven Verplancken finished with 19 points. Feb. 18, 2023 at Viking Pavilion, WSU 65, PSU 57: The Wildcats methodical approach slowed down the Viking offense and led WSU to the win. A combination of the Wildcats controlling tempo and a poor shooting night for the Vikings led to their second-lowest point total of the season... PSU shot 21-58 from the field (.362) and a mere 3-19 from three-point range (.158). The Wildcats came in at 24-53 from the field (.453) and 3-12 from distance (.250). The Wildcats had a big advantage on the backboards, winning that battle, 42-28... Cameron Parker led all scorers with 25 points and six assists for the Vikings... Dillon Jones led the Wildcats with 23 points, 13 rebounds and four assists.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Jase Coburn (Arizona State, 2006) is in his third season as Head Coach and is 36-42 overall. Coburn is 1-3 against Weber State. He spent eight previous seasons on the Park Blocks as an Assistant and Associate Head Coach... the Wildcats are coached by Eric Duft (Sterling College, 1995) in his second season. He was a long-time assistant prior to being named head coach. Duft has a career record of 29-20. He is 2-0 against the Vikings.

 

SCOUTING WEBER STATE

• Weber State is an original member of the Big Sky Conference. The Wildcats have won 22 Big Sky regular season championships, 10 Big Sky Tournament Championships and made 16 appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
• Weber State was 18-15 last season, 12-6 and third in the Big Sky Conference.
• This season, the Wildcats are 11-5 overall, 2-1 in the Big Sky. Weber State averages 76.4 points per game while allowing 62.4 points. WSU leads the Big Sky in scoring defense, scoring margin (+14.0), fewest turnovers (9.7) and turnover margin (+2.9). The Wildcats are a good shooting team at .473 from the field, .370 from three-point range and .759 at the line.
• Junior forward Dillon Jones is already a five-time Big Sky Conference Player of the Week this season. He ranks second in the league in scoring (19.3), leads in rebounding (10.0) and ranks second in assists (4.9). He shoots .511 from the field, .391 from three-point range and .823 at the line.
• Senior guard Steven Verplancken is the top shooter on the team with 38 three-point field goals. He averages 12.6 points, shoots .396 from three-point range and . 941 at the line.

 

WHO IS HOT

• SEEING THE SHOTS FALL: SR G Jorell Saterfield led the Vikings in scoring against Idaho State with 16 points (5-10 FG, 3-5 3-pt, 3-5 FT). It continues a trend for Saterfield who has shot the ball better in the past three games. Over that stretch, he has averaged 14.0 points while shooting 13-27 (.481) from the field, 8-19 (.421) from three-point range and 8-11 (.727) at the line... Saterfield averages 10.2 points for the season.
• THE BENCH BUNCH: The Vikings have been producing all season when they make substitutions. PSU has scored 430 bench points (26.9 per game) to rank 55th in the nation and second in the Big Sky... last year, the Vikings averaged 27.9 points per game off the bench to rank 12th in the nation.
• LEADER OF THE BUNCH: JR F Isaiah Johnson is not a starter, but ranks third in scoring at 10.1 points per game, second in rebounding at 5.1, and second in field goal percentage at .526... Johnson had 12 points (4-9 FG, 4-6 FT), five rebounds and two blocked shots against Idaho State... he leads the Vikings with 11 double-figure scoring games this season.
• GOOD DECISIONS: SR G Isiah Kirby is the team leader in assist-to-turnover ratio. In 14 minutes a game as a ball handler, Kirby has 31 assists and only 14 turnovers. Despite being eighth in minutes played, he is third on the Vikings in assists.
• KEYS TO VICTORY: The Vikings have never lost this season when... leading at halftime (6-0)... out-rebounding an opponent (7-0)... scoring 80 or more points (3-0).
• VIKING BASKETBALL NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART: Once again this season Portland State has had numerous close games and game-winning shots. Through 16 games, 10 have been decided by seven points or less. The Vikings are 7-3 in those games.