The Portland State Vikings men’s basketball team will face the Northern Colorado Bears in Greeley on Saturday, February 14, as both teams enter the matchup with strong recent performances in Big Sky Conference play. The game is scheduled for 2 p.m. Mountain Time at Bank of Colorado Arena and will be streamed live on ESPN+.
Since January, Portland State has won 11 of its last 12 games and remains undefeated on the road during this stretch, setting a new school record with six consecutive road victories. Their most recent win came against Northern Arizona, where senior forward Terri Miller Jr. and senior guard Jaylin Henderson combined for 51 points. The Vikings shot 61.9 percent from the field and 81.5 percent from the free throw line in that game.
Portland State currently holds a three-game lead in the Big Sky standings with six regular season games remaining. The program last claimed a Big Sky regular season title in 2008 and a tournament title in 2009.
Earlier this season, Portland State defeated Northern Colorado at home by a score of 76-73. At that time, the Bears were struggling but have since turned their season around with five straight wins, including a recent victory over Sacramento State.
Northern Colorado leads the conference in scoring with an average of 83.2 points per game and makes ten three-pointers per contest while shooting nearly 50 percent from the field. Senior guard Quinn Denker leads the Bears with averages of 18.5 points and a conference-best 7.4 assists per game.
Vikings head coach Jase Coburn is now in his fifth season at Portland State, holding an overall record of 79-70 and a mark of five wins and six losses against Northern Colorado. Steve Smiley coaches Northern Colorado and is in his sixth year leading the program.
Portland State has been dominant defensively this season, leading the Big Sky Conference in several categories including scoring defense (69.5 points allowed per game), field goal percentage defense (40.7%), three-point percentage defense (30.4%), steals (7.7 per game), rebounding margin (+5.6), and turnovers forced (12.9 per game). During their current four-game winning streak, opponents have shot just under 39 percent against them.
Senior forward Terri Miller Jr., who was named Big Sky Player of the Week on January 27, leads the conference in scoring at nearly 20 points per game and often increases his production during second halves of games.
Senior center Tre-Vaughn Minott has set new school records for dunks both in a single season (53) and over his career (100). He also leads the conference with an average of 8.6 rebounds per game.
The Vikings are undefeated when leading at halftime or when scoring at least eighty points this season.
After Saturday’s matchup, Portland State will return home to host Idaho on Thursday followed by Eastern Washington next Saturday.
