Portland, OR – A career-high 27 points by KJ Allen highlighted an all-around quality performance for Portland State as the Vikings defeated Northern Arizona, 83-68, at Viking Pavilion.
 
KJ Allen missed the first meeting with Northern Arizona in January due to a shoulder injury. The Vikings lost that game, 84-65. On Saturday night, Allen was in full health and full force. His 27 points came on 8-12 shooting from the field and 11-13 at the line. The senior forward added nine rebounds, two assists and a steal.
 
PSU won its second game in a row and improved to 16-11 on the season, 7-7 in the Big Sky Conference. The Vikings are 10-2 at home this season.
 
Allen was one of five Vikings to score in double figures as Kendall Munson, Cole Farrell, Isaiah Johnson and Jorell Saterfield all tallied 10 points each. 
 
The Vikings shot 29-58 from the field (.500), out-rebounded the Lumberjacks, 36-29, made 12 steals on defense and never trailed in the game. 
 
PSU had control from the jump, rolling out to a 9-1 lead in the first three minutes. But then, starting point guard Ismail Habib picked up two fouls and had to come out of the game.
 
Enter Cole Farrell. The freshman guard scored on his first two possessions of the game, then added an assist. Within five minutes, the Vikings had pushed their lead to 24-7 and Farrell had eight points and two assists. 
 
Northern Arizona managed a sporty 10-point run midway through the half to cut the Viking lead to 24-17. But the Vikings answered back behind Allen who scored 10 of PSU's in a 17-5 run to close out the half.
 
The Vikings' active defense set the tone for the game. They had 10 steals, forced 12 turnovers and had 17 points on turnovers at the break. PSU led 41-22 behind 15 points from Allen.
 
If defense highlighted the first half, offense was the feature of the second half on both sides.
 
Portland State made 15-25 from the field (.600) after intermission, while NAU was 19-34 (.559). However, the 'Jacks never seriously threatened the Vikings as the closest margin was 13 points.
 
Northern Arizona also had five players score in double figures, led by 14 points each from Jayden Jackson and Trenton McLaughlin.
 
NAU dropped to 12-15 on the season, 5-8 in Big Sky Conference play.
 

GAME NOTES

• Cole Farrell added career-highs of five steals and five assists to his 10-point game… Isiah Kirby had five assists and three steals for the Vikings.
• PSU's 16 wins are the most since going 18-14 in 2019-20. The Vikings also have the most home wins since 2019-20 (10-2).
• Portland State is 21-6 all-time at home against Northern Arizona in Big Sky Conference games.
• Portland State will go on the road next week, playing at Montana State on Thursday and Montana on Saturday. Both games can be seen on ESPN+.