PORTLAND, Ore. — A 14-0 start for Northern Colorado put the Portland State women's basketball team in a hole it couldn't climb out of Saturday, as the Vikings lost 71-57 to the Bears at Viking Pavilion.
 
The Bears (19-8, 10-4) converted on five of their first six trips down the floor to kick things off. The Vikings (6-19, 2-11), meanwhile, missed their first six shots from the field as they didn't score until 3:31 remained in the opening quarter.
 
The Vikings bounced back to get within six twice in the second quarter, but that'd be as close as they'd come the rest of the way.
 
"We're trying to dissect these first quarters and what it is [that leads to early deficits]. If it's a belief, or whatever it is. From an execution standpoint, we couldn't put the ball through the hole and then we just dug ourselves a really big hole," Portland State head coach Karlie Burris said afterwards.
 
"I thought for the next three quarters, we did a really good job of trying to claw back. But it felt like every time we'd get close, get back within six, they'd hit a three. So just some breakdowns on the defensive end."
 
The slow start was reminiscent of the Vikings' first game against the Bears this season. Northern Colorado led 23-7 after the opening quarter of that one and then maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way.
 
But the Vikings made other improvements from that previous game. Chiefly, while they still lost the turnover battle (-2 Saturday), it was a lot closer than last time when the Bears turned a 12-turnover difference into a 31-7 advantage in points off turnovers. Saturday, the Bears only outscored the Vikings by two (20-18) off turnovers.
 
Additionally, the Vikings managed possessions better than last time. The teams were even on shot attempts Saturday, after the Bears had 18 more field goals in their first game against each other.
 
The difference Saturday came in the Bears' offensive efficiency. They established an inside presence early, scoring their first seven field goals in the paint. Then, after the Vikings closed within eight early in the second quarter, they opened up their outside game, outshooting the Vikings 6-to-2 from three-point range.
 
The Bears outshot the Vikings .468-to-.383 in the end.
 
"We're still trying to be really positive," Burris said. "The three-point line seems to really hurt us. [Northern Colorado's Julia Riley], we didn't want her taking any threes and she took five and made three. Those nine points really hurt. This is, again, where we need to be in the gym and space the floor out a bit."
 
Offensively, the Bears' physicality gave the Vikings fits. Kyleigh Brown went into double figures for the 31st straight game, scoring 10 of her team-high 14 points in the second half when she was 5-for-6 from the field. But no other Viking went into double figures.
 
Hannah Chicken had a good stretch in the first half. Her three-point play with 6:58 remaining in the second quarter cut it to an eight-point deficit and gave her seven points to that point in the game. But foul trouble limited her from there, as she finished with nine points against the Bears.
 
Laynee Torres-Kahapea and Taylor Moffat added seven points each, but both were a combined 3-for-10 from the field.
 
The Bears, meanwhile, put four players in double figures, led by Neenah George and Aniah Hall with 17 and 16 points, respectively.
 
"I thought George was really good for them at the start. Just being really physical and going into our chest. I thought we were playing pretty solid D, but we didn't have an answer for that," Burris said.
 
The Vikings hit the road next week, playing at Idaho Thursday (6 p.m.) and Eastern Washington Saturday (2 p.m.).
 
Game Notes:

• The Vikings fell to 12-29 all-time against the Bears with Saturday's loss.
• The Vikings are 0-17 this season when their opponent shoots over 40 percent from the field. They're 6-2 when holding their opponents below 40 percent.
• Northern Colorado became the ninth straight team to out-rebound the Vikings, doing so by six (32-to-26) Saturday.

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