The loss ended Portland State's season one game short of an appearance in the Big Sky Tournament Championship. The Vikings had won 10 of their previous 13 contests to reach the semifinal. As a number-seven seed they got to the final four with wins over Idaho State and second-seeded Southern Utah in the tournament.
Michael Carter III led five Vikings in double figures with a season-high 22 points but it wasn't enough as PSU had an off-shooting night at .357 from the field and .694 at the free throw line.
Portland State's saving grace, as it had been most nights in its late-season run, was defense. The Vikings got 28 points off 22 Northern Colorado turnovers. They made 14 steals, and as a result got 22 more shot attempts.
Northern Colorado entered the game as the Big Sky's top field goal and three-point shooting team. They proved it by shooting .542 from the floor and making 8-20 three-pointers (.400). Kountz was dynamite in the second half, hitting 9-11 field goals, including four threes, and 8-8 at the line. For the night, he was 11-15, 4-6, and 10-11 for his 36 points.
In a game marred by 53 fouls, both teams had to get creative with who was on the floor and how they could play. The Vikings' Khalid Thomas drew a second personal foul at the 12:33 mark of the first half and came out of the game. That seemed ominous for a team that has relied so much on their scoring and rebounding leader in recent weeks. However, PSU pushed a 16-11 lead when he left the game to a 26-16 advantage over the next four minutes.
Northern Colorado got within four points on a couple of occasions through the remainder of the half. But the Viking pressure defense made the difference forcing the Bears into 13 turnovers in the opening 20 minutes. PSU scored 16 points off turnovers and led 40-32 at halftime.
With Thomas playing only six minutes in the half due to fouls, Carter took over the scoring load with 13 points. PSU also out-rebounded the much taller Bears, 19-17.
Portland State led 45-35 early in the second half when Northern Colorado got hot. The Bears went on a 13-2 run, with eight points from Kountz. They finally led 48-47. After an exchange of baskets by the two teams, Kountz sparked another 11-0 rally with eight more points.
PSU's 10-point lead became a 10-point deficit over the course of eight minutes as PSU found itself down 63-53 with 8:53 to play. Still the Vikings came back to within two at the 5:39 mark and kept it a two-possession game for most of the stretch run.
A few more free throws would have helped the cause as the Vikings made only 14-23 in the second half (.609). For the game, PSU was 25-36 (.694), while UNC was 26-34 (.765).
In a game heavy with fouls, Thomas was able to play only 20 minutes for the Vikings. He finished with 13 points and six rebounds. Damion Squire added 14 points and three steals. Marlon Ruffin scored 12 and Ezekiel Alley added 11 points. In addition to Carter's 22 points, he had five rebounds, four steals and three assists.
Portland State ends the year, the first under Head Coach Jase Coburn, at 14-17 overall.
"I'm incredibly proud of our basketball team," Coburn said. "We came back from the dead. We were 4-13 two months ago and put together quite a good stretch. This team had a certain amount of toughness that was unmatched. A lot of teams would have just folded. I believed in them. They believed in me. I couldn't be more proud to be their coach.
"I don't think there was any part of us that thought we would lose tonight. The only team that had a better record than us in the last 12 games of the season was Montana State. We were like a number-two seed going into the tournament."
Northern Colorado won for the 10th time in 13 games. At 20-14 overall, the number-three seeded Bears will take on number-one seed Montana State (26-7) in the Big Sky Championship on Saturday night.
GAME NOTES
- Portland State is now 14-16 all-time in the Big Sky Tournament. PSU is 4-1 all-time in first-round games, 6-8 all-time in quarterfinal round games, 2-7 all-time in semifinal games and 2-0 in tournament championships.
- The Vikings beat the Bears twice during the regular season, 79-76 in Portland on Jan. 31, and 106-99 on Feb. 3 in Greeley.
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Bears Come Back To Beat Vikings, 86-79, In Big Sky Semifinal - Portland State Vikings
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