Portland, OR – If the Vikings' Big Sky Conference win over Sacramento State was a painting, it was certainly no Rembrandt. But Portland State played well when it needed to in the second half and pulled out a 58-51 win over the Hornets at Viking Pavilion.
 
PSU relied on its defense, improved second-half shooting and some timely blocked shots to win its third game in a row. The Vikings improved to 14-8 on the season, 5-4 in the Big Sky.
 
PSU had a sputtering start on offense, falling behind 18-6. A Jorell Saterfield three-pointer finally got the Vikings out of their malaise. In fact, it was Saterfield and KJ Allen, coming off the bench, who got the Vikings most of their first-half offense. Those two combined for 16 of the Vikings' 24 points as they trailed 29-24 at the break. They shot five of eight from the field and three of five from three-point range. But the rest of the team was only 3-14, 0-5 shooting. 
 
Sacramento State dictated the slower pace to their liking in the first half. The Hornets were 12-24 from the field and held a 20-10 rebounding advantage.
 
Portland State trailed 36-30 early in the second half. Then Hayden Curtiss came off the bench to make his presence felt. The 6-11 center blocked four Hornet shots in the span of 1:17, igniting his teammates and the home crowd. PSU responded with a 20-4 run over a 10-minute span and led 50-40. Although the Vikings never ran away with the game, they were in control the rest of the way.
 
"It was amazing and it energized the entire building," said Vikings Coach Jase Coburn of his junior center. "He is definitely a guy our fans get behind. I could feel the energy in the building when he got a block. Those blocks really turned the game. They tried to go at him in the post and he came up huge for us."
 
He only scored two points, but Curtiss' impact on the game was felt, as he blocked a career-high six shots - just one shy of the school record. It was a key part of the Vikings' 34-22 scoring advantage in the second half and holding the Hornets to 9-26 from the field in the half (.346).
 
Also big was the play of Saterfield and Allen. The tandem combined for 30 points, getting 15 each, and 11 rebounds. It was the most points for Saterfield in six games. 
 
"They got more than half our points tonight," said Coburn. "I'm really proud of Jorell for hanging tough and he was ready for the moment. He stepped up and played well."
 
Also posting a career-high was Isiah Kirby with seven assists. He was called into more ball-handling duty as point guard Ismail Habib was unable to go due to an ankle injury.
 
Sacramento State got 11 points each from Duncan Powell and Zee Hamoda. The Hornets finished at 21-50 from the field (.420), compared to 22-53 for the Vikings (.415). PSU was able to even out the rebounding in the second half as the Hornets had only a 34-33 edge. The Vikings forced 15 Hornet turnovers, converting them into 19 points.
 
Sacramento State dropped to 6-16 on the season, 2-7 in the Big Sky. 
 

GAME NOTES

• Also getting minutes at point guard was Keshaun Saunders. He handed off four assists with no turnovers in 14 minutes off the bench.
• Curtiss is among the Big Sky league leaders with 33 blocked shots this season – his career high.
• PSU is now 8-1 at home, having won four straight home games… PSU is 22-5 against Sacramento State in Big Sky games played in Portland.
• Portland State plays the final game of its four-game home stand on Monday night. The Vikings take on first-place Eastern Washington in a 7 p.m. game at Viking Pavilion. It can be seen on ESPN+.