The Portland State Vikings went back and forth with Northern Colorado in the closing minutes of their first-round matchup in the Big Sky men’s basketball tournament Saturday in Boise.
But the eighth-seeded Bears made more plays down the stretch and scratched out an 84-80 victory at Idaho Central Arena to eliminate the No. 7 seed Vikings from the tournament and end their season.
Cameron Parker scored 19 of his 23 points in the second half and finished with 10 assists and six rebounds for the Vikings (12-19).
Northern Colorado (12-19) built an 11-point lead early in the second half, but then Portland State went on a 13-2 run to tie it at 53-53 with 12:46 left. The game stayed close from there and saw six lead changes down the stretch.
Parker made consecutive baskets for PSU to give the Vikings a 78-74 lead with 2:05 to go. But Daylen Kountz then hit four free throws in the next minute to tie the game at 78-78.
The Bears regained the lead on Dalton Knecht’s driving layup with 57 seconds left, and then Kountz made two more free throws to give Northern Colorado an 82-78 lead.
After Parker answered with a layup, Kountz made 1 of 2 free throws and the Vikings got the ball back down 83-80 with the shot clock off.
After a PSU timeout with 13 seconds left, Hunter Woods drove inside and missed a layup, and Knecht made 1 of 2 free throws on the other end to seal the Bears’ victory.
Jorell Saterfield finished with 14 points for PSU, with Woods adding 11 points and eight rebounds.
Matt Johnson II led Northern Colorado with 22 points, hitting 5 of 9 three-pointers, while Kountz and Knecht each scored 18.
The Bears advance to face No. 2 seed Montana State at 7 p.m. Saturday.
