Complete game notes (PDF)

TIPOFF
The Portland State women's basketball team came out hot Thursday night against unbeaten Montana State. The Vikings led 16-8 after three early three-pointers from Joy Haltom. Eleven of those first 16 points came off MSU turnovers, too, as the Vikings recorded a season-high 14 steals against a Bobcat team that came into the game ranked in the top 10 nationally for turnover margin.
 
Haltom's early barrage from three-point range led her to a career-high 13 points Thursday. Laynee Torres-Kahapea, meanwhile, swiped a career-high six steals for the most by a Viking player since Nov. 7, 2022.
 
So, while the Vikings didn't get the win against the Bobcats, the performance should give them confidence heading into Saturday's game at Montana (1 p.m. PT / 2 p.m. MT).
 
The Vikings will need to be better in the second half if they hope to beat the Lady Griz. Montana State outscored the Vikings 49-24 in the second half Thursday, including a 23-7 advantage in the fourth quarter. That's been an issue throughout the Big Sky season for the Vikings. Conference opponents have outscored the Vikings 599-440 in the second half across their 16 Big Sky games, an average of 9.94 points per game.
 
They didn't have that issue in their last meeting with the Lady Griz. They won the second half against Montana on Jan. 30, outscoring them 36-31, despite losing the game overall, 73-61.
 
The Vikings tied their season high with nine three-pointers in that game. They matched that again with nine makes against Idaho State on Feb. 20, while they hit eight three-pointers against Eastern Washington on Feb. 8.
 
They'll need to be hitting three-pointers again Saturday in order to keep pace with one of the best three-point shooting teams in the conference in the Lady Griz. Montana comes into the game ranked second in the Big Sky in both three-pointers made per game (8.74) and percentage (.343).
 
The Lady Griz made 12 three-pointers on 42.9 percent shooting in their earlier win over the Vikings. Tyler McCliment-Call went 5-of-6 from three-point range while tying Izabella Zingaro for the team lead with 17 points against the Vikings. McCliment-Call leads the Lady Griz with 1.65 three-pointers made per game this season, ranking her eighth in the Big Sky Conference. Dani Bartsch and Aby Shubert rank 12th and 13th with 1.54 and 1.52 makes per game, respectively.
 
Outside of their three-point shooting, the Lady Griz also rank fourth in the conference in scoring offense (66.0 points per game), third in field goal percentage (.415) and second in both assists per game (14.9) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.02).
 
Mack Konig leads the Lady Griz with 10.2 points per game individually. Avery Waddington and McCliment-Call both average 9.3 points per game behind her. Konig ranks second in the Big Sky with 4.92 assists per game, as well as third with a 1.60 assist-to-turnover ratio.
 
The Lady Griz snapped a four-game losing streak with a 71-63 win over Sacramento State Thursday. They trailed entering the fourth quarter, but outscored the Hornets 23-13 in the final period to get back in the win column. Konig led the team with 16 points to go with eight assists.
 
The Vikings would love to snap their own losing streak Saturday. They'll have to keep pace with the Lady Griz offensively in order to do so. Teams have generally been able to do that this season, as Montana ranks ninth in the Big Sky in scoring defense, allowing 69.6 points per game. They also rank last in the conference in field goal percentage defense, allowing opponents to shoot 42.4 percent from the field.
 
So, if the Vikings can start hot and maintain that level throughout, then they'll give themselves a chance.
 
GAME #26: PORTLAND STATE (4-21, 1-15) vs. MONTANA (11-16, 7-9)
GAME DETAILS: Saturday, March 1, 1 p.m. PT / 2 p.m. MT, Missoula, Mont. (Dahlberg Arena)
LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
SCOUTING MONTANA: The Montana Lady Griz snapped a four-game losing streak with a 71-63 victory over Sacramento State Thursday. They trailed by two entering the fourth quarter, but outscored the Hornets 23-13 in the fourth quarter. The Lady Griz won five of seven games earlier in their conference schedule, a stretch that included a 73-61 win over the Vikings in Portland on Jan. 30. Overall this season, the Lady Griz represent one of the top three-point shooting teams within the Big Sky Conference. After Thursday's games, they rank second in the conference in both three-point makes (8.74 per game) and percentage (.343). They made 12 on 42.9 percent shooting in their earlier win over the Vikings, setting a season high for a Viking opponent. Three different Lady Griz players rank among the Big Sky leaders individually. Tyler McCliment-Call ranks eighth in the conference with 1.65 three-pointers per game, while Dani Bartsch and Aby Shubert rank 12th and 13th with 1.54 and 1.52 makes per game, respectively. Outside of their three-point shooting, the Lady Griz also rank fourth in the conference in scoring offense (66.0 points per game), third in field goal percentage (.415) and second in both assists per game (14.9) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.02). Mack Konig leads the Lady Griz with 10.2 points per game individually. Avery Waddington and McCliment-Call both average 9.3 points per game behind Konig, while Bartsch and Izabella Zingaro average 8.0 and 7.9 points per game, respectively. Bartsch and Waddington lead the Lady Griz with 6.7 and 5.8 rebounds per game, respectively. Konig ranks second in the Big Sky with 4.92 assists per game, as well as third with a 1.60 assist-to-turnover ratio. Bartsch ranks fifth in the conference with 0.88 blocks per game. McCliment-Call and Zingaro led the Lady Griz with 17 points each in their last game against the Vikings. McCliment-Call made 5-of-6 three-pointers in scoring her 17 points. Bartsch finished with seven points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.
ALL-TIME SERIES: The Lady Griz lead the all-time series between them and the Vikings, 57-22. They've won seven of their last eight games against the Vikings, with the Vikings' last victory coming via a 74-72 overtime win on Feb. 23, 2023. The Vikings' last win in Missoula came 61-60 on Feb. 4, 2021.
 
STORYLINES/STREAKS/RECORDS

• A 15-0 run between the third and fourth quarters saw Montana State put the Vikings away Thursday night, as the Bobcats beat the Vikings 78-49. It was the Vikings' 12th straight loss and 19th out of their last 20 games.
• The Bobcats outscored the Vikings 49-24 in the second half, including a 23-7 advantage in the fourth quarter. Big Sky opponents are now outscoring the Vikings 599-440 (9.94 points per game) in the second half of games this season. It's split almost perfectly evenly between the third quarter (296-217, 4.94 per game) and fourth quarter (303-223, 5.0 per game).
• The Vikings swiped a season-high 14 steals Thursday against a Montana State team that came into the game ranked in the top 10 nationally for turnover margin. Laynee Torres-Kahapea led the way with six steals individually, the most by a Viking since Nov. 7, 2022.
• Joy Haltom made her first three attempts from three-point range Thursday while leading the Vikings to an early 16-8 lead over the Bobcats. Haltom finished with a career-high 13 points to lead the Vikings.
• The Vikings have shot better than 44 percent from the field in three of their last five games. That includes a conference season-high 47.4 percent (27-of-57) against Idaho State on Feb. 20, as well as a 45.8 percent (22-of-48) mark against Weber State last Saturday. But seven of the Vikings' last 10 opponents have also shot better than 44 percent from the field.
• Montana State out-rebounded the Vikings, 39-27, becoming the third straight team to out-rebound the Vikings by 10 or more. Seven of 16 conference opponents have out-rebounded the Vikings by at least 10 this season. The Vikings have won the rebounding battle outright in only two of their 16 conference games, while they finished tied in another.
• The Vikings set a season high with 80 points against Idaho State on Feb. 20. The Vikings also tied their most points in a regulation game with 67 at Northern Arizona on Feb. 13.
• The Vikings averaged 6.67 three-pointers per game over their last six home games. That's a sharp uptick over their season-long average of 4.72 three-pointers per game. But the Vikings average only 3.91 three-pointers in road games this season.
• Alaya Fitzgerald has scored in double figures in 12 of the Vikings' 16 Big Sky games this season. She heads into Saturday averaging 14.1 points per game against Big Sky opponents. Across all games, Fitzgerald ranks ninth in the Big Sky in points (12.7), fifth in free throw percentage (.824), 14th in three-pointers made (1.46) and third in minutes played (33.7) per game.
• Rhema Ogele has entered the career top 10s for rebounds (7th, 651), games started (T-4th, 110) and double-doubles (T-6th, 11) as a senior. Within this season, she ranks eighth in the Big Sky with 7.28 rebounds per game. She also ranks fifth in the conference in offensive rebounds (2.84) and 11th in defensive rebounds (4.44) per game.
• Sixty points has been the magic number for the Vikings this season, more so defensively than offensively. Defensively, the Vikings are 3-1 when holding opponents below 60 points and 1-20 when they don't. Offensively, the Vikings are 3-5 when scoring 60 or more points this season and 1-16 when they don't.
• Defensively, the Vikings ranks third in the Big Sky in three-point field goal percentage defense (.306). They had ranked in the top half of the Big Sky for scoring defense, but their last 12 opponents have all scored more than 60 points.
• Laynee Torres-Kahapea played all 50 minutes of the Vikings' double-overtime loss to Idaho State on Feb. 20. She leads the Big Sky with 35.6 minutes played per game this season. She also ranks 13th in the conference with 2.56 assists per game.
• Kyleigh Brown has scored in double figures in nine of the Vikings' 16 Big Sky games. She ranks second to Fitzgerald with 9.6 points per game within conference play. Her 17 points against Idaho State on Feb. 20 tied her most in a Big Sky game this season.
• Lana Wenger scored 12 of her 16 points against Idaho State on Feb. 20 in the final two minutes of regulation and overtime. It was her seventh time in double figures this season and the 12th time of her career. Wenger has been plagued by injuries at various times this season, but she still averages 7.6 points and 3.8 rebounds per game for the Vikings.
• The Vikings returned three starters from last season in Alaya Fitzgerald, Rhema Ogele and Lana Wenger. Fitzgerald and Ogele will both be four-year starters for the Vikings this season, while Wenger enters her second year as a starter.
• Big Sky coaches picked the Vikings to finish ninth in the Big Sky in their preseason poll, while conference media members picked the Vikings to finish 10th.
• The Vikings brought in eight newcomers to mesh with their eight returners. Out of the eight newcomers, three are freshmen – Katelyn Best, Kyleigh Brown and Avery Kraft – while five are transfers – Jamia Carter (Seward County CC/Salt Lake CC), Cici Ellington (Grambling State/Loyola Marymount), Taylor Moffat (Williston State/UAlbany) Kirstine Munk (Central Arizona) and Courtney Turner (FIU/USC Upstate/Harcum College).
• The Vikings have two former Oregon State Players of the Year on their roster now in Kyleigh Brown and Cici Ellington. Brown was the 5A State Player of the Year in 2024 after leading Silverton to the 5A state title. Ellington, meanwhile, was the 6A State Co-Player of the Year – sharing the award with former NCAA champion and current WNBA star Cameron Brink – in 2019 when she led Benson Polytechnic to the 6A state title.
• The Four R's of the Portland State women's basketball program are: Relational, Resilient, Reliable and Ready.
• The Vikings picked five words to define their 2024-25 season: Accountable, Driven, Commitment, Trust and Together. They worked that into a mantra, which is "TOGETHER we rise, DRIVEN by TRUST and COMMITTED to ACCOUNTABILITY."

 
IMPROVING OFFENSE
The Vikings were deserving of a win in their double-overtime loss to Idaho State on Feb. 20. They didn't get it, but even still, the Vikings set or tied conference season highs for points (80), field goal percentage (.474) and three-pointers made (9). It was the latest in a run of improved offensive performances for the Vikings. The Vikings have shot better than 44 percent in three of their last five games. Besides their 47.4-percent mark against Idaho State, the Vikings shot 45.8 percent against Weber State last Saturday. They also made 44.1 percent of their shots against Northern Arizona on Feb. 13, which was their best shooting percentage in over a month at the time. The Vikings' 67 points against NAU also tied their most in regulation this season – the Vikings had 65 points at the end of regulation against Idaho State – matching their total in their win over Seattle U on Nov. 16. The Vikings' nine three-pointers against ISU tied the season high they set against Seattle U and later matched against Montana on Jan. 30. The Vikings averaged 6.67 three-pointers made per game over their last six home games, a sharp uptick from their season-long average of 4.72 makes per game. Besides their nine three-pointers against Montana and Idaho State, the Vikings also hit eight three-pointers against Eastern Washington on Feb. 8. Additionally, the Vikings have taken care of the ball better of late. They set a season low with only eight turnovers against Montana on Jan. 30, then matched that against Idaho on Feb. 6.
 
DEFENSIVE STRENGTH
The Vikings held Northern Colorado to 52 points in their lone conference win of the season on Jan. 16. That'll usually do the job. The 52 points tied a season low for a Viking opponent this season. The Vikings also held Cal State Fullerton to a season-low 52 points in a non-conference win on Nov. 24. The Vikings' last 12 opponents have all topped 60 points, including three 80-point games between their games against Montana State (85 points on Feb. 1), Northern Arizona (83 points on Feb. 13) and Idaho State (89 points on Feb. 20). But defense can still be a strength for the Vikings this season. They showed that early with the Cal State Fullerton game. The Vikings held the Titans to 28.6 percent (18-of-63) from the floor, the lowest mark by a Viking opponent since Idaho shot an identical percentage against the Vikings on Jan. 7, 2023. Coincidentally, the Vikings would also hold Idaho below 30 percent shooting in their first meeting of the season. The Vandals shot just 29.9 percent (20-of-67) from the floor on Jan. 11 despite them pulling out a 60-56 win over the Vikings. Defense has usually been key for the Vikings in victories. They are 3-1 when holding opponents below 60 points this season and 1-20 when they don't. Statistically, the Vikings rank third in the Big Sky in three-point field goal percentage defense (.306).
 
ROOTING FOR LAY IS A LAYUP
Alaya Fitzgerald – nicknamed Lay – put together a career performance in the Vikings' conference opener against Sacramento State on Jan. 4. The four-year starter scored a career-high 27 points while tying her then-season highs for rebounds (5) and assists (5) against the Hornets. That kicked off what's been a strong conference season for the Viking senior. She nearly matched her conference opener against Northern Arizona on Feb. 13. Playing in her home state for the final time in her PSU career, Fitzgerald scored a game-high 25 points while dishing out a season-high six assists to go with five rebounds. Fitzgerald heads into Saturday having scored in double figures in 12 of the team's 16 conference games. That includes the two 20-point games against Sacramento State and Northern Arizona. Fitzgerald reached the 1,000-point career milestone in the first half against Eastern Washington on Feb. 8 while tying for the game high with 17 points. She reached another milestone at NAU with her 100th-career start, becoming just the 10th player to start 100 games in program history. Within Big Sky play this season, Fitzgerald is averaging 14.1 points per game. Across all games, Fitzgerald ranks ninth in the Big Sky in points (12.7), fifth in free throw percentage (.824), 14th in three-pointers made (1.46) and third in minutes played (33.7) per game.
 
CALL HER SHERWIN-WILLIAMS BECAUSE SHE OWNS THE PAINT
One of two four-year starters on the roster with Alaya Fitzgerald, Rhema Ogele has owned the paint for the Vikings. She's scored in double figures 11 times this season, including five double-doubles. The latest double-double came on her Senior Day last Saturday against Weber State. Ogele nearly had the double-double in the first half, finishing one rebound short, while totaling 14 points and 14 rebounds. She also had two other double-doubles within Big Sky play between the Vikings' games against Eastern Washington on Feb. 8 (15 points, 11 rebounds) and Northern Colorado on Jan. 16 (14 points, 10 rebounds). The double-double against UNC led the Vikings to their lone conference victory of the season, a 58-52 win over the Bears. Ogele's two double-doubles in non-conference play also came in wins against Seattle U on Nov. 16 (12 points, 10 rebounds) and UC Davis on Nov. 30 (16 points, 13 rebounds). She now has 11 double-doubles in her Portland State career, ranking her tied for sixth all-time since game-by-game records were kept starting with the 2006-07 season. She hit another career milestone at Weber State on Jan. 23, when she started her 100th career game, and will take over fourth-place all-time if she starts Saturday. Additionally, she entered the career top 10 for rebounds with 12 against Northern Arizona on Feb. 13. She now ranks seventh all-time with 651 rebounds in her career. Within this season, Ogele leads the Vikings with 7.28 rebounds per game, ranking her eighth in the Big Sky Conference. She also ranks fifth in the conference in offensive rebounds (2.84) and 11th in defense rebounds (4.44) per game.
 
BAD, BAD, KYLEIGH BROWN
Like Leroy Brown, Kyleigh Brown proved she's the baddest (player) in the whole darn (gym). We may have made a few edits there, but the sentiment remains the same. With the Vikings trailing 49-40 entering the fourth quarter against UC Davis on Nov. 30, Brown went off for 14 points in the final period while leading the Vikings all the way back to a 66-61 victory over the Aggies. Brown's 14 points all came within the Vikings' first 16 points in the quarter, turning the team's nine-point deficit at the start of the period into a 56-all tie with 3:57 remaining. She finished with a game-high 18 points, then matched that with 18 points against Omaha five days later on Dec. 4. She added 10 rebounds to her 18 points against Omaha, giving the freshman the first double-double of her career. Recently, Brown has found her stroke again, scoring in double figures in six of the team's last nine games. That includes 17 points behind a career-high three made three-pointers against Idaho on Feb. 6. She matched that output with 17 points, six rebounds and four assists against Idaho State on Feb. 20 while playing over 49 minutes. Outside of scoring, Brown recorded nine assists in the team's first conference win over Northern Colorado on Jan. 16. The nine assists tied the single-game freshman record, while it led the Vikings to a season-high 17 as a team.
 
GIVE HER A GATORADE…PLAYER OF THE YEAR, THAT IS
Sophomore Laynee Torres-Kahapea – the 2023 Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Hawai'i – put together a career performance against Idaho on Feb. 6. She scored a career-high 15 points while tying her career high with five assists. All while not committing a single turnover in the game despite playing nearly 35 minutes. She nearly matched that with 14 points and five assists while playing all 50 minutes in the team's double-overtime loss to Idaho State on Feb. 20. The 50-minute game shouldn't come as a surprise as Torres-Kahapea has been the Vikings' Iron Woman this season. She leads the Big Sky while playing 35.6 minutes per game. She also ranks 13th in the Big Sky with 2.56 assists per game.
 
CICI IS PLAYING A+ IN HER RETURN FROM TWO-YEAR INJURY ABSENCE
A former OSAA 6A State Co-Player of the Year, Cici Ellington went through a two-year injury absence before arriving at Portland State. Her first game back in two years came against Air Force on Dec. 20. Her first points in nearly three years came against Eastern Washington on Jan. 9, while her first start since the 2021-22 season came against Idaho State on Jan. 25. All the milestones have been rewards for Ellington's increasingly strong play for the Vikings. She scored a season-high 13 points against Northern Arizona on Jan. 18, then matched that in the Vikings' second game against NAU on Feb. 13. She went into double figures again with 11 points against Northern Colorado on Feb. 15. Against Montana on Jan. 30, Ellington scored 11 points while grabbing a season-high six rebounds.
 
SHE'S HER FROM HERSBERG
Lana Wenger – from Hersberg, Switzerland – made an immediate impact at the start of Big Sky play as she returned from a five-game absence due to a hip injury. Starting again immediately, Wenger posted 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the floor against Sacramento State on Jan. 4. She went into double figures again in the Vikings' breakthrough win over Northern Colorado on Jan. 16, scoring 13 points on 6-of-11 shooting while also grabbing seven rebounds. She came back from another injury last week to score 12 points against Northern Arizona on Feb. 13. She followed up with 16 points against Idaho State on Feb. 20, scoring 12 of those 16 points in the final two minutes of regulation and overtime. Wenger has now scored in double figures in seven of her 20 appearances this season. Two of her double-digit scoring games came before her injury absence. That included a career-high 18 points to go with eight rebounds in the Vikings' loss at San Francisco on Nov. 12.
 
SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
Feb. 20, 2025, Idaho State 89, Portland State 80 (2OT): The Vikings played their first double-overtime game since Nov. 15, 2012. They set or tied conference season highs for points (80), field goal percentage (.474) and three-pointers made (9).
Feb. 8, 2025, Eastern Washington 65, Portland State 58: Alaya Fitzgerald became the 22nd player to reach the 1,000-point career milestone at Portland State while finishing with 17 points. Rhema Ogele also recorded her 10th-career double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds.
Jan. 16, 2025, Portland State 58, Northern Colorado 52: The Vikings won their first conference game of the season behind a season-high 17 assists. They out-rebounded the Bears 35-to-28, while tying their fewest points allowed with 52.
Nov. 30, 2024, Portland State 66, UC Davis 61: The Vikings erased a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit to complete their second-biggest comeback in school history. Kyleigh Brown led the way, scoring 14 of her game-high 18 points in the final period.
Nov. 24, 2024, Portland State 61, Cal State Fullerton 52: The Vikings held Cal State Fullerton to just 28.6 percent (18-of-63) shooting Sunday, the lowest mark by a Viking opponent since Idaho shot an identical 28.6 percent (16-of-56) from the floor on Jan. 7, 2023. The Vikings also went 23-of-25 from the free throw line in the win.
Nov. 16, 2024, Portland State 67, Seattle U 57: The Vikings picked up their first win of the season as six different players scored eight or more points. They shot season highs from the field (49.1 percent) and from three-point range (42.9 percent) while out-rebounding the Redhawks 35-to-28.