Portland State’s cold streak continued this weekend as two more defeats extended the Vikings losing streak to eight games, the longest winless streak in a decade for the men’s basketball team. After dropping their latest games on the road against Northern Arizona University and California State University, Sacramento, head coach Tyler Geving’s crew is now 0-12 on the road in 2012–13 and has gone a full calendar year since their last win away from the Stott Center. With two road games remaining, the Vikings are at risk of becoming just the second team in school history to go winless on the road for an entire season.
Familiar flaws for Vikings basketball
Portland State’s cold streak continued this weekend as two more defeats extended the Vikings losing streak to eight games, the longest winless streak in a decade for the men’s basketball team. After dropping their latest games on the road against Northern Arizona University and California State University, Sacramento, head coach Tyler Geving’s crew is now 0-12 on the road in 2012–13 and has gone a full calendar year since their last win away from the Stott Center. With two road games remaining, the Vikings are at risk of becoming just the second team in school history to go winless on the road for an entire season.
Once again, the squad’s troubles stemmed from a sluggish start in the first half, as PSU sputtered defensively and allowed both of their opponents to build early leads. The Vikings would eventually gain momentum in each contest, but the Lumberjacks and Hornets had built enough of a buffer by then to stave off the comeback.
It was a pair of extended runs by Northern Arizona that put the game out of reach on Thursday, giving the Lumberjacks a 16-point lead at halftime. The Vikings clamped down defensively in the second half, holding the hosts to 33 percent shooting from the field, but were unable to make up the deficit in a 79-72 defeat at the J. Walkup Skydome.
Saturday night was another chapter in a story that has sounded familiar all season for PSU. The Vikings grabbed the lead three minutes into the contest on a three-pointer by Gary Winston, but in a reprisal of recent games, the team suffered a defensive meltdown.
After falling behind on Winston’s long jumper, Sacramento State went on a 24-12 run over the next 10 minutes to open up a double-digit lead. The Hornets led by as many as 12 points late in the first half. PSU rebounded in the second half, going on a 19-8 run in the first 10 minutes to retake the lead by five points. Just as quickly as they had reclaimed the upper hand, however, the Vikings let that momentum slip away. Mikh McKinney led the Hornets down the stretch, scoring a career-high 30 points for Sacramento State as the home side pulled away in the end.
Like most of their losses this season, defense and free-throw shooting would prove to be insurmountable weaknesses for the Vikings. PSU finished just 3-of-9 from the line compared to 12-of-15 for Sacramento State, losing by six points despite outshooting the Hornets from the field and enjoying a significant advantage from behind the arc. Lateef McMullan led all Viking scorers with 17 points, one of four starters to reach double figures in the losing effort.
PSU returns to the Park Blocks for the rest of February. The team plays next on Thursday against Southern Utah University, one of five straight games at the Stott Center before the Vikings wrap up the regular season with two games on the road.
