LATE PORTLAND STATE RUN DOOMS MEN’S BASKETBALL IN 94-88 LOSS

2/23/2012

Junior forward John Dickson scored a career-high 26 points and has now scored at least 20 points six times this season

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Portland State’s Charles Odum scored a career-high 38 points and sparked a late 8-0 run to help lead the Vikings to a 94-88 victory over Sacramento State in a Big Sky Conference men’s basketball game Thursday evening in front of a sellout crowd at the Nest.

Odum scored 27 of his 38 points in a second half which saw nine tie scores and the lead change hands 14 times between the two teams. After trailing the entire first half, a Jackson Carbajal layup gave the Hornets their first lead of the game at 47-46 with 16:05 remaining in the game. Both teams then exchanged baskets constantly with 14 lead changes over the next eight minutes.

Leading by two points with 6:19 to play, Portland State took advantage of a pair of Hornet turnovers and went on an 8-0 run to take a game-high 10-point lead (82-72) with 3:42 to play. Six of those points were scored by Odum, including a three-pointer and three free throws. The Vikings scored on four straight possessions during the spurt, and Sacramento State would get no closer than within five points of the PSU lead the rest of the game.

Sacramento State, which was playing its final home game of the season, shot 50.8 percent (33-65) from the field, 44.4 percent (8-18) from the three-point line and 93.3 percent (14-15) from the free throw line. Usually those numbers are good enough to win, especially at home, but Portland State was even better from the field. The Vikings shot 53.6 percent (30-56) from the floor, including a robust 60.9 percent (14-23) in a second half that saw PSU outscore the Hornets, 56-51.

The Vikings went to the free throw line 35 times (20 more attempts than the Hornets), and converted on 26 of those freebies. That included the team going 7-for-8 from the line over the final two minutes to help put the game away. Odum’s 27 points in the second half came on 6-of-7 shooting from the field, 4-of-4 from distance and 11-of-12 from the charity stripe.

The game featured a combined 39 fouls (22 whistled on the Hornets), and saw three players foul out. Portland State’s Chehales Tapscott and Nate Lozeau, and the Hornets’ Konner Veteto each fouled out in the second half.

The loss eliminated Sacramento State (9-18, 4-11) from Big Sky Tournament contention as the Hornets dropped their fourth straight game. The top six teams in the nine-member conference qualify for the league’s postseason event, and Sacramento State is two games behind the sixth-place squad (Montana State) with one game remaining. That Hornets will conclude the 2011-12 season at Idaho State on Saturday evening.

With the victory, Portland State (14-13, 8-6) won its fourth straight league game and clinched a berth in the Big Sky Tournament. The Vikings now sit all alone in third place in the conference standings.

Four Hornets scored in double figures, including John Dickson’s career-high 26 points on 11-of-21 shooting from the field and 4-of-4 from the free throw line. Tonight marked the sixth time this season Dickson has scored at least 20 points in a game. Joining Dickson in double figures for Sacramento State were Dylan Garrity (18 points, 13 assists), Jackson Carbajal (18 points and a game-high six rebounds) and Joe Eberhard (12 points and four rebounds).

For Garrity, it marked the true freshman’s fourth double-double of the season, and third in the last five games. It also was the fifth time he has recorded at least 12 assists in a game this season. Already sixth in the nation in assists per game, Garrity’s performance will likely inch him even higher among the nation’s leaders as he continues to cement himself as the favorite to win the Big Sky Freshman of the Year award. Carbajal has now scored in double figures in five straight, and eight of the last nine games. That includes three straight games with at least 18 points. Veteto added nine points and seven rebounds.

Odum (38), Renado Parker (career-high 19 points), Lateef McMullan (14 points, five assists) and Tapscott (11 points, four rebounds) combined for 82 of Portland State’s 94 points. The Vikings held advantages over the Hornets in points off turnovers (16-9) and second-chance points (21-15).

NOTES -- Tonight’s attendance of 1,132 was the largest crowd to watch the Hornets play inside the Nest this season.