Put Some Windex On It: Vikings Focused on Cleaning the Glass Saturday Ahead of Meeting with Idaho

TIPOFF
The Portland State women's basketball team knows the task ahead of itself as the Vikings head into a 2 p.m. tipoff Saturday against Idaho at Viking Pavilion.

That's rebounding.

The Vikings had their largest deficit on the glass this season Thursday, when Eastern Washington out-rebounded them by 31 (58-to-27). That included a 23-to-7 advantage on the offensive glass, which led the Eagles to outscore the Vikings 23-5 in second-chance points – a stat that accounts for the entire 81-63 margin Thursday.

It doesn't get any easier for the Vikings against the Vandals. Idaho represents an even stronger rebounding team than the Eagles as they lead the Big Sky while also ranking in the top 10 nationally for total rebounds per game (47.5), offensive rebounds per game (16.9) and rebounding margin (+11.4).

Thursday aside, the Vikings have put together a number of strong rebounding performances this season. They've out-rebounded eight opponents while they finished level with four others. That's no small accomplishment for a program that was out-rebounded in all but six games last season.

The Vikings out-rebounded two of their first four Big Sky opponents, while they finished level with two others. That included a +9 margin in the Vikings' conference-opening win over Weber State on Jan. 1.

They'll need a similar performance against the Vandals Saturday to slow down the top scoring offense in the Big Sky this season. The Vandals average 79.7 points per game behind enviable balance as five different players average in double figures. Kyra Gardner and Hope Hassmann lead that group with 13.6 and 13.1 points per game, respectively.

Gardner does a little bit of everything for the Vandals. Besides leading the team in scoring, she also leads the Vandals with 2.47 steals per game while ranking second on the team in rebounds (7.1) and blocks (0.9) per game.

Hassmann, meanwhile, leads the Vandals with 3.8 assists per game, ranking her fourth in the Big Sky. The Vandals rank second in the conference as a team with 14.3 assists per game.

Deborah dos Santos leads the Vandals with 7.4 rebounds per game while also chipping in 10.6 points per game. Ana Pinheiro represents the Vandals' other regular in double figures with 10.9 points to go with 5.5 rebounds per game.

The Vikings will counter behind Kyleigh Brown, who scored in the 20s for a seventh time this season Thursday against Eastern Washington. Brown finished with 25 points on 8-for-14 shooting against the Eagles. It was her 24th straight game in double figures going back to last season, the longest such streak in the past 20 seasons at Portland State.

Cici Ellington was the only other Viking in double figures Thursday after scoring 10 points late. The second of her five straight buckets to finish the game put Ellington over 1,000 career points, joining high school and PSU teammate Ajae Yoakum, who reached the milestone earlier in the season.

The Vikings will need more than Brown and Ellington in double figures against the Vandals, however.

The Portland State offense has had its moments of late. The Vikings have actually outshot five of their six Big Sky opponents. That includes the Eagles Thursday, as the Vikings outshot them .444-to-.438.

But in three of the five games in which the Vikings outshot their opponent, they finished with at least 15 fewer shot attempts. That was true Thursday, too, as the Eagles had 19 more field goal attempts than the Vikings.

That goes back to the rebounding. The Eagles earned those extra possessions on the glass.

So, the Vikings know the task ahead of them Saturday. It's just a matter of execution now.

GAME #19: PORTLAND STATE (5-13, 1-5) vs. IDAHO (14-5, 5-1)
GAME DETAILS: Saturday, Jan. 24, 2 p.m. PT, Portland, Ore. (Viking Pavilion)
LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
SCOUTING IDAHO: The Idaho Vandals sit just a half-game back from Montana State at the top of the Big Sky standings after beating Sacramento State, 62-55, Thursday, while the Bobcats lost at Idaho State. The Vandals' lone Big Sky loss came to the Bobcats on Jan. 10, as they fell 99-66 in Bozeman. Otherwise, the Vandals have won by double digits in three of their five conference wins. Idaho represents the top rebounding team in the Big Sky Conference, as they lead the league while ranking in the top 10 nationally for total rebounds per game (47.5), offensive rebounds per game (16.9) and rebounding margin (+11.4). The Vandals also represent a potent offense, as they lead the Big Sky in scoring with 79.7 points per game. Additionally, they rank second in the Big Sky in field goal percentage (.428), assists per game (14.3) and three-pointers per game (7.0). The Vandals' offense has enviable balance with five players averaging in double figures. Kyra Gardner and Hope Hassmann lead that group with 13.6 and 13.1 points per game, respectively. Gardner also ranks second on the team with 7.1 rebounds per game, just behind Deborah dos Santos, who leads the team with 7.4 rebounds per game to go with 10.6 points per game. Gardner also leads the Vandals with 2.47 steals per game, ranking her fifth in the Big Sky and 63rd nationally. Hassmann, meanwhile, leads the Vandals with 3.8 assists per game, ranking her fourth in the Big Sky. Ana Pinheiro represents the Vandals' other regular in double figures with 10.9 points per game to go with 5.5 rebounds per game. The Vandals also lead the Big Sky with 4.4 blocks per game with Gardner (17 blocks), dos Santos (15) and Pinheiro (14) all leading the team.
ALL-TIME SERIES: The Vandals lead the all-time series between them and the Vikings, 38-15. The Vandals have won 19 of the 21 Big Sky meetings between the two teams. The Vikings' last win over the Vandals came at home, 53-43, on Jan. 7, 2023. The Vandals have won five straight games since then.

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Recent Results

The Vikings fell 81-63 to Eastern Washington at Viking Pavilion Thursday. It was their fifth straight loss after opening Big Sky play with a 68-58 win over Weber State on Jan. 1.
The Eagles out-rebounded the Vikings 58-to-27, with the minus-31 rebounding margin being the largest deficit for the Vikings this season. The Eagles held a 23-to-7 advantage in offensive rebounds, which led to them outscoring the Vikings 23-5 in second-chance points.
The Eagles had 19 more field goal attempts than the Vikings (73-to-54). It was the third time out of the last four games that the Vikings' opponent had 15 or more field goal attempts than them.
The Vikings outshot the Eagles .444-to-.438. They've now outshot their opponent in five of six Big Sky games. It was also the fifth straight game in which the Vikings have shot better than 40 percent from the field.
The Vikings went 13-for-27 (.481) from the free throw line Thursday. It was the Vikings' lowest free throw percentage in any game this season.
Three straight opponents have now scored at least 80 points against the Vikings between Northern Colorado (80), Northern Arizona (80) and Eastern Washington (81).
The Vikings won the turnover battle (12-11) for the first time since their conference-opening win over Weber State on Jan. 1. However, the Eagles still outscored the Vikings 14-12 in points off turnovers.
Kyleigh Brown led the Vikings with 25 points on 8-for-14 shooting from the field Thursday. It was her seventh 20-point game of the season as well as her 24th straight game in double figures going back to last year.
Cici Ellington scored the final 10 points of the game for the Vikings to finish with 11 points on 5-for-10 shooting. Ellington's second field goal in the fourth quarter put her over 1,000-career points.

Team Tendencies/Miscellany

Opponents are averaging 6.4 more field goal attempts per game than the Vikings. The Vikings are 4-0 when they record more field goal attempts than their opponent this season versus 1-13 when they finish with the same or fewer attempts.
The Vikings are 4-5 at home this season versus 1-7 on the road. The Vikings' home wins came over Willamette (89-52), San Jose State (75-64), Seattle U (85-62) and Weber State (68-58). The Vikings' lone road victory this season came in overtime against Kansas City, 85-79, on Dec. 6.
The Vikings average 1.3 more points per game than their opponents in the fourth quarter this season. That includes a pair of fourth-quarter comebacks as the Vikings erased six-point and eight-point deficits in wins over Kansas City (Dec. 6) and Weber State (Jan. 1), respectively.
The Vikings lead the Big Sky Conference in both free throws made (15.1) and attempted (21.4) per game this season. Their 21.4 attempts per game are 4.7 more per game than their opponents.
The Vikings have been outscored by an average of 4.8 points per game in the opening quarter this season. They've trailed by double digits after the opening quarter five times. The Vikings are 4-1 when leading after the first quarter this season versus 1-12 when they're trailing.
Opponents are outscoring the Vikings by an average of 8.1 points per game in the first half this season.
The Vikings are outshooting their opponents within Big Sky play, .417-to-.403. They've topped 40 percent in their last five games after only doing so five times within non-conference play. The Vikings rank fourth in the Big Sky for field goal percentage within conference play. They ranked eighth through non-conference play.
Three-point shooting has been a sore spot for the Vikings. They rank last in the Big Sky in three-pointers per game (4.44) while they rank ninth in three-point field goal percentage (.280).
The Vikings have attempted at least 20 free throws in 11 of 18 games this season, including a season-high 40 against Kansas City on Dec. 6. For comparison's sake, the Vikings only had four games with 20+ free throws last season.
The Vikings have won the rebounding battle eight times this season, while they finished tied with their opponent four other times. That's a significant improvement over last season, when the Vikings were out-rebounded in all but six games.
Despite Thursday's large rebounding deficit, the Vikings rank sixth in the Big Sky in total rebounds per game (37.4) as well as sixth in rebounding margin (-1.17). The Vikings haven't finished a season with a positive rebounding margin since they finished the 2018-19 season at +1.0.
The Vikings are 4-0 when they score 70 points or more this season versus 1-13 when they fail to score 70 points.
The Vikings are 4-1 when winning the turnover battle versus 1-12 when they lose it. In their five wins, the Vikings are plus-0.6 in the turnover battle. But in their 13 losses, the Vikings are minus-5.5.
The Vikings rank seventh in the Big Sky in turnovers per game (17.3), ninth in turnovers forced per game (13.4) and 10th in turnover margin (-3.83).
The Vikings are still 5-1 when holding their opponent below 40 percent versus 0-12 when their opponent shoots over 40 percent.
Three different players average at least 5.8 rebounds per game for the Vikings between Ajae Yoakum (6.8), Hannah Chicken (5.9) and Cici Ellington (5.8). Yoakum and Ellington are both averaging 7.5 rebounds per game within Big Sky play.
The Vikings' five wins this season have all come on different days of the week. The Vikings are 1-2 on Tuesday, 1-1 on Wednesday, 1-2 on Thursday, 1-0 on Friday, 1-5 on Saturday and 0-3 on Sunday.

Players
#12 Kyleigh Brown

Sophomore guard Kyleigh Brown has scored in double figures in 24 straight games, the longest such streak by any player over the last 20 seasons at Portland State. She's scored 20+ seven times this season, including Thursday when she had 25 points on 8-for-14 shooting from the field.
Brown has been better in the second half than she has in the first lately. She's averaging 14.0 points per game in the second half over the last four games, compared to 3.25 points per game in the first half of those games.
Brown leads the Vikings with 18.3 points per game this season, ranking her second in the Big Sky and 45th nationally.
Brown hadn't missed more than two free throws in any game this season until going 8-for-12 from the line Thursday. She still leads the Big Sky and ranks 28th nationally with an .878 (79-for-90) free throw percentage. That would rank eighth on the single-season list at Portland State if the season ended today.
Brown ranks 12th in the conference with 1.39 three-pointers made per game. She's shooting 39.7 percent (25-for-63) from three-point range this season.
Brown ranks sixth in the Big Sky in field goal percentage (.435).
Brown is averaging a career-best 4.1 rebounds per game, 0.7 more per game than she averaged as a freshman.
Brown leads the Vikings while ranking eighth in the Big Sky with 31.8 minutes played per game.
Brown was the OSAA 5A State Player of the Year as a senior at Silverton High School when she led her team to the 5A state title in 2024.

#9 Hannah Chicken

Freshman Hannah Chicken had a nine-game streak of scoring in double figures snapped Thursday as Eastern Washington held her to six points and six rebounds. She played a season-low 17:45 in the game due to getting in foul trouble as she fouled out with just over two minutes remaining.
Chicken ranks second on the team with 11.1 points per game. That would be the best average by a PSU freshman since Esmeralda Morales averaged 12.5 points per game during the 2021-22 season.
Chicken leads the Vikings with a .510 field goal percentage this season. She's shot 60.0 percent or better in eight games this season.
Chicken ranks second on the team in free throw percentage while shooting 80.4 percent (37-for-46) from the line. She doesn't meet the minimum requirements of 2.5 makes per game in order to be ranked statistically, however.
Chicken ranks 10th in the Big Sky with 2.22 offensive rebounds per game.
Chicken is 6-for-9 (.667) from three-point range over the Vikings' last five games. She went 3-for-4 from distance against Idaho State on Jan. 3. She was also 2-for-4 against Northern Arizona on Jan. 17.
Chicken recorded the first double-double of her career with 15 points and 10 rebounds against Cal State Fullerton on Dec. 13. She nearly had a second with 17 points and nine rebounds against Weber State on Jan. 1.
Head coach Karlie Burris said of Chicken after a game during the first month of the season: "She's at the beginning of how good she's going to be."
Chicken and fellow freshman Sophie Buzzard are roommates, making for a very bird-friendly dorm room at Portland State University.
Chicken is one of three Australians on the Vikings' roster, joining Kailee Field from Brisbane and Taylor Moffat from Mount Barker, Australia. Chicken is from Taree, Australia.

#8 Cici Ellington

Cici Ellington reached the 1,000-point career milestone in the fourth quarter of Thursday's game. She scored the final 10 points of the game for the Vikings, after only having one point through the first 35 minutes of the game.
Ellington is 12 rebounds away from 500 career rebounds.
Ellington has scored in double figures in three of the Vikings' five games.
Ellington set a career high with 16 rebounds against Weber State on Jan. 1, recording the most rebounds by a Viking since Pia Jurhar had 16 against Multnomah on Nov. 25, 2017.
Ellington's average of 8.9 points per game this season is her best since her true sophomore season at Loyola Marymount when she averaged 9.3 points per game.
Ellington ranks fifth in the Big Sky with 0.94 blocks per game.
Ellington played her first two years at Loyola Marymount (2019-21) before transferring to Grambling State (2021-24). She played 19 games at Grambling during the 2021-22 season but then missed all but one game over the next two years due to injury. She returned from the injury absence while playing for the Vikings last season, when she averaged 6.7 points per game. She was granted a rare seventh year for COVID and medical hardship.
Ellington was a West Coast Conference All-Freshman Team selection at Loyola Marymount following the 2019-20 season.
Ellington was named the OSAA 6A State Co-Player of the Year in 2019, sharing the award with future NCAA national champion and Los Angeles Sparks player Cameron Brink. Ellington and her Benson Polytechnic High School team – that included fellow Viking Ajae Yoakum – beat Brink and two-time defending champion Southridge in the 2019 state championship game.

#5 Ajae Yoakum

Ajae Yoakum has scored eight in each of the last four games. She's averaging 8.0 points and 8.25 rebounds per game while shooting 60.0 percent from the floor over the last four games.
Yoakum has two double-doubles this season. The first came with 11 points and 14 rebounds (tying a career high) against Kansas City on Dec. 6. The second came with 10 points and 12 rebounds against Seattle U on Dec. 17. Both double-doubles came in Portland State wins.
Yoakum leads the Vikings while ranking 10th in the Big Sky Conference with 6.81 rebounds per game. She also ranks eighth in offensive (2.69) and 14th in defensive (4.13) rebounds per game.
Yoakum ranks tied for third on the team with 1.75 assists per game. That's a career-best average for Yoakum.
Yoakum reached 1,000-career points over her entire collegiate career (including junior college points) with a field goal late in the third quarter against San Jose State on Nov. 28.
Yoakum scored a season-high 20 points on 9-for-12 shooting from the field to go with a career high-tying three blocks in the Vikings' win over Willamette on Nov. 11.
Yoakum is finishing her career in her native Portland after previous stops at Eastern Arizona (2020-22), FIU (2022-24) and Arizona (2024-25). She won an Oregon 6A State title in 2019 with her Portland State teammate Cici Ellington when both were at Benson Polytechnic High School.

#11 Laynee Torres-Kahapea

Laynee Torres-Kahapea tied her career high with three three-pointers against Seattle U on Dec. 17 while finishing with 13 points, five rebounds and five assists. She's averaging just 3.0 points per game in the seven games since then, however.
Torres-Kahapea – despite being just five-feet, six-inches tall – is averaging a career-best 3.8 rebounds per game. That's 1.0 more per game than her previous career-best average (2.8 as a sophomore).
In her first game back in her native Hawai'i, Torres-Kahapea – the 2023 Hawai'i State Gatorade Player of the Year – scored a career-high 22 points while also setting career highs for field goals (6), field goal percentage (.750), free throws (8) and rebounds (6, since broken).
Torres-Kahapea ranks second on the team with 14 made three-pointers this season while shooting 14-for-51 (.275) from beyond the arc.
Torres-Kahapea leads the Vikings with 2.3 assists per game, ranking her 15th in the Big Sky. She had a career-high seven assists against San Jose State on Nov. 28.

#23 Taylor Moffat

Taylor Moffat set or tied PSU career highs in back-to-back games last weekend. She started with nine points against Northern Colorado on Jan. 15, then topped that with 12 points against Northern Arizona last Saturday.
Moffat also set season highs for field goals (4), rebounds (4, tied), steals (3) and minutes (33) against Northern Arizona.
Moffat broke out of a slump from three-point range against NAU, going 2-for-6 from deep. She had been 1-for-9 over the previous five games.
Moffat ranks second on the team with 2.0 assists per game. She set a PSU career high with seven assists in the Vikings' game against Idaho State on Jan. 3.
Moffat returned from an 11-month injury absence to play 14 minutes in the Vikings' season opener at Hawai'i on Nov. 4. She returned to the scoring column against Willamette on Nov. 11, finishing with eight points on 3-of-4 shooting to go with two rebounds and three assists.
Moffat had been out since tearing her ACL in the Vikings' game against Denver on Dec. 7, 2024.

#4 Sophie Buzzard

Freshman Sophie Buzzard recorded one of her better all-around games at Sacramento State on Jan. 10, totaling nine points, three rebounds, two steals and two blocks. She had three points each against Northern Colorado and Northern Arizona.
Buzzard ranks fourth on the team in both free throws made (27) and attempted (40) this season.
Buzzard scored 20 points on 7-for-10 shooting in her collegiate debut against Hawai'i on Nov. 4. Her 20 points were the most by a Viking freshman in their first collegiate game since Esmeralda Morales opened with 32 points against Warner Pacific on Nov. 9, 2022.
Buzzard and fellow freshman Hannah Chicken are roommates, making for a very bird-friendly dorm room at Portland State University.

Additional Players

Jamia Carter set season highs for points (9), rebounds (4) and minutes played (22) against Northern Colorado on Jan. 15. She followed up with eight points on 3-for-6 shooting at Northern Arizona last Saturday.
Carter missed the first nine games of the season after suffering a knee injury last February. She's averaging 3.3 points and 11.4 minutes per game since her return.
Kirstine Munk started the first nine games of the season for the Vikings before coming off the bench for every game since. She's averaging 1.9 points and 1.9 rebounds per game this season.
Katelyn Best scored a career-high 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field against Willamette on Nov. 11. She's averaging 1.3 points per game this season.
Alani Encinas started the first two games of the season. She's only appeared in seven of the 14 games since then, however, while averaging 5.9 minutes played per game this season.

Coaching Staff

Karlie Burris earned the first win of her head coaching career with an 89-52 victory over Willamette on Nov. 11.
Burris is a first-time head coach. She spent the past four years as an assistant coach at UNLV where she helped the Lady Rebels win four straight Mountain West Conference regular-season titles (2022-25), as well as three Mountain West Conference tournament titles (2022-24).
Burris outlined three areas of focus for the Vikings this season: 1) Transition offense and defense; 2) Rebounding; and 3) Execution. Execution is an umbrella term for winning the turnover battle, executing the scouting report, and holding the opposing team's best player to under 17 points.
Burris said of the lack of expectations on her team this year: "We're going to be the hunters this year at Portland State. We're super excited about that. No one has any expectations for us, other than ourselves. And we're excited to be the hunters. That's a good spot to be. You get to play really hard with reckless abandon and really not worry about the result because all the expectations are on the other team. It's a fun place to be. It's hunting season."
Assistant coach Raina Perez is a former finalist for the Nancy Lieberman Award, which honors the nation's best point guard. She made the finalist list while at NC State where she was part of runs to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight in 2021 and 2022, respectively.

General/Preseason Info

The Vikings returned nine letterwinners and had four incoming freshmen already committed to the roster when Karlie Burris was named head coach. Burris' one addition to the 2025-26 roster was Ajae Yoakum, who signed with the Vikings in April.
The Vikings were picked to finish tied for ninth and 10th in the Big Sky Conference in the preseason coaches and media polls, respectively. The Vikings have finished 10th in the conference three of the past four seasons.
The Vikings feature only one player listed as taller than six feet in Katelyn Best, who stands 6-3. However, the Vikings have five players listed at six feet exactly in Hannah Chicken, Cici Ellington, Kirstine Munk, Brooklyn Strandy and Ajae Yoakum.
The Vikings have three players who won Oregon state titles in high school. Ellington and Yoakum won the 2019 OSAA 6A state title with Benson Polytechnic High School. Ellington was named the OSAA 6A State Co-Player of the Year that year alongside current WNBA player Cameron Brink. Kyleigh Brown, meanwhile, won the 5A state title with Silverton High School in 2024 when she was also named the OSAA 5A State Player of the Year.
The Vikings signed a five-player recruiting class this fall that features the 2025 Hawai'i State Gatorade Player of the Year in Nihoa Dunn. She'll join Torres-Kahapea, who won the award in 2023, in giving the Vikings two Hawai'i State Gatorade Players of the Year on the roster next season. Dunn is also one of two state champions in the Vikings' recruiting class along with Alex Padilla, who won an Oregon 6A state title with Tualatin High School. Emma Zuniga, from West Salem High School, represents a second Oregon product in the recruiting class, while Liv Collins and Aspen McClees will join the Vikings from Sumner, Wash., and Gilbert, Ariz., respectively.