PORTLAND, Ore. — With several teams around the country kicking off their season on Monday earlier this week, it can be hard to remember that Saturday's 72-50 season-opening loss to Hawai'i for the Portland State women's basketball team was just that, an opener.
Hawai'i (1-1) opened their season two days earlier, leaving the Vikings (0-1) with an experience deficit going into their first game of the season.
Fans in attendance at Viking Pavilion certainly saw a team still finding itself. That's to be expected among a group that is meshing eight newcomers with eight returners.
"I don't think this was indicative of what our season's going to be," Portland State head coach
Chelsey Gregg said after the game.
"I'm not happy, but I'm also not going to hang my head after one game. We have to be better. We have to play together. We have to stay connected. We have to be willing to compete and do what's asked. We'll continue as a staff to find ways to put our players in the best positions to be successful."
The Vikings played a strong first quarter. They led 20-19 after the opening period after making seven of their first 11 shots from the field. The Viking defense also forced eight turnovers in the opening 10 minutes which turned into eight of the Vikings' 20 points in the quarter.
But things unraveled from there. Hawai'i – the preseason favorite within the Big West Conference after returning the majority of a team that won the conference regular-season title last season – clamped down defensively on the Vikings. While the Vikings started 7-of-11 from the field, they made just two of their next 22 shots.
Alaya Fitzgerald snapped that streak with a strong drive with 1:22 left in the third quarter. But by then, the Rainbow Wahine led 54-32.
The Viking defense also cooled in the second half. The Vikings forced just one turnover in the third quarter after inducing 13 in the first half. That allowed the 'Bows to find their groove offensively, as they out-scored the Vikings 24-9 in the third quarter to put the game out of reach.
"It was disappointing. If you look at our first quarter, we did what was asked. We didn't turn the ball over and did a lot of good things. But then we didn't score for two quarters," Gregg said.
Jamia Carter provided a spark for the Vikings in the second half. She scored all of her game-high 15 points after halftime, including 10 in the fourth quarter. Carter, playing in her first counting game for the Vikings, got to the free throw line well, going 7-of-9 from the charity stripe, while adding two makes from three-point range.
Carter also provided a spark defensively when the Vikings needed it. She recorded two of her three steals in the fourth quarter, both of which led to opportunities on the other end.
"She has the ability to score and she got to the foul line," Gregg said of Carter. "She can defend when she wants to, she knows that. So, now we'll ask her, 'how can we be consistent with that?'"
Rhema Ogele led the Vikings in the first half. She had eight points on 3-of-6 shooting to go with six rebounds in the opening 20 minutes. But the 'Bows clamped down on her in the second half, holding her scoreless after halftime.
Alaya Fitzgerald and
Lana Wenger also did the majority of their work in the first half. They both scored seven of their nine points before halftime. Fitzgerald added five rebounds and four assists to her nine points, while Wenger grabbed three rebounds.
Laynee Torres-Kahapea was limited offensively with just three points, all from the free-throw line, but swiped a career-high four steals to go with a block.
Joy Haltom hit a pair of three-pointers to finish with six points. Gregg also said she was impressed with the minutes freshman
Katelyn Best put in despite finishing scoreless in just over nine minutes.
The Vikings will now look to improve as they hit the road for two games next week. The Vikings play at San Francisco Tuesday, before heading to Seattle U Saturday. Both games tip off at 6 p.m.
"We'll watch film and see where we can be better," Gregg said of how her team will turn the focus to their upcoming games. "The execution offensively and defensively needs to be better. We don't have to suddenly make a ton more shots – though that always helps – but we have to do exactly what's asked. When we talk about the game plan and draw something on the board, the execution has to be there."
Game Notes: The Vikings fell to 4-6 all-time against Hawai'i with Saturday's loss…The Vikings hadn't lost a home opener during a non-COVID year since 2015-16 when they lost to Warner Pacific, 76-64, on Nov. 21, 2015…The 'Bows outshot the Vikings .482-to-.288 from the field and .385-to-.280 from three-point range.
