The Vikings, who built a 17-point halftime lead only to see the Hornets come within one point of that lead late in the second half, improved to 10-4 overall and 2-0 in the Big Sky. The game marked the conference opener for Sacramento State (3-10, 0-1) as the Hornets have never won a Big Sky opener on the road since joining the league in 1996.

Sacramento State forced Portland State into 29 turnovers, but the Vikings overcame with the large rebounding disparity while also shooting 56.3 percent (27-48) from the field. Conversely, the Hornets shot just 37.5 percent (21-56) from the field while committing 24 turnovers of their own.

Boxley’s 25 points came on 8-of-10 shooting from the floor and 9-of-15 from the free-throw line, as the senior also added a game-high tying eight rebounds. All but two Viking players who attempted a shot finished with field-goal percentages of .500 or better.

Sacramento State had four players score in double figures – led by senior Jameel Pugh’s 18 points – and shot 86.4 percent (19-22) from the free-throw line. The Hornets were whistled for 30 fouls during the contest as both junior center Aaron Perry and junior swingman Jason Harris fouled out.

Portland State broke open a close game by finishing the first half on a 21-3 run to take a game-high 17-point lead (41-24) into halftime. Boxley scored nine of the Vikings’ points during the run while the Hornets had trouble finding the basket.

Sacramento State, however, bounced back behind Pugh’s 16 second-half points. The Hornets went on a 32-16 run over the first 13:13 of the second half to close within one point of Portland State’s lead (57-56) with 6:47 remaining in the contest. The Vikings quickly responded with a three-pointer from Blake Walker and a three-point play from Will Funn to reclaim a seven-point lead (63-56) with 5:43 to play. The Hornets closed within four points on a three-pointer from Pugh, but that was as close as Sacramento State would get the rest of the way.

Although Pugh scored 18 points, he shot just 6-of-17 from the floor and 2-of-6 from beyond the three-point arc. Joining Pugh in double figures for the Hornets were juniors DaShawn Freeman (14), Jason Harris (14) and Aaron Perry (11). Freeman narrowly missed a triple-double as the point guard finished with a career-high tying nine assists and a career-high eight steals. However, Freeman did commit 11 of the Hornets’ 24 turnovers. Harris, who has led the Hornets in scoring eight times this season, fouled out of the game with 4:46 remaining.

Pugh’s 18 points marked the first time in 10 games that neither Harris or sophomore Alex Bausley had led the Hornets in scoring. Perry, Bausley and Freeman tied for the team lead in rebounds with four. Sacramento State outscored Portland State in the second half, 45-38, while shooting 48.1 percent during the second stanza compared to just 27.6 percent in the first half.

Joining Boxley in double figures for Portland State were Walker (15), Funn (11) and Jake Schroeder (11). Fun added 12 assists, five rebounds and five steals. Scott Morrison finished with nine points and eight rebounds.

Sacramento State, which has split its last four games, returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 8, as the team travels to Cheney, Wash., to take on Big Sky rival Eastern Washington at 7:05 p.m. The Eagles won last season’s conference championship and represented the Big Sky at the NCAA Tournament.