Eastern Washington women's basketball battled a hot-shooting Portland State team on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 4), coming up short 80-71. The Vikings shot 60 percent for the game to outpace the Eagles. Eastern falls to 7-5 in the Big Sky and 14-8 overall. Portland St. improves to 5-6 in conference and 10-11 overall.

"I didn't think we defended with urgency in the first half. We worked harder in the second half and defended better. But Portland State just hit shots and they shot 60 percent for the game. They hit timely shots when they needed to," head coach Joddie Gleason said. "We had people in their face. [Jada] Lewis got free too much and hit some shots. We had people playing out of position doing a great job and doing the best that they can. We just have to defend better. We'll take time off and rest for a few days, and then think about Idaho for next week. It's important at this time of the year to give our players breaks."

Aaliyah Alexander led the team in scoring with 19 points. Jamie Loera scored 16 points, adding eight assists and seven rebounds.

"In zone we just have to keep moving the ball and finding those passing lanes," Loera said. "I always try to dissect the zone. Knowing my teammates are open in that short corner, I just had to throw it in there and they hit shots. I keep the same sense of urgency with people coming in for different roles. I tried to make sure they just have the confidence they need and keep talking from my end."

Andie Zylak got the scoring going for the Eastern on a long two-point jump shot from the wing. Portland St. would hold the early advantage at 6-2 with 6:34 on the clock. The Eagles then tied the game on a layup from Alexis Pettis, off the feed from Milly Knowles. The Vikings then built a small lead at 13-9 with 1:20 left in the quarter. At the end of the quarter, Portland St. had a 15-11 lead over the Eagles.

Eastern had some difficulty shooting, registering a 30.8 percent mark from the floor. The Vikings had a 58.3 percentage to take the lead.

Now in the second quarter, Portland State extended its lead to 10 points with a 23-13 advantage and 6:54 on the clock. Jamie Loera looked to spark the Eagles, scoring four points to cut into the Viking lead. Aaliyah Alexander also pushed the advantage with her three-point shooting. Portland St. maintained its lead as the quarter went on. Going into the half, Eastern trailed the Vikings 24-37.

The Eagles did improve their shooting to 35.3 percent, but Portland St. was shooting hot at 64.3 percent.

Eastern moved to get back in the game in the third quarter, but the Vikings defense remained tough to overcome. Jaleesa Lawrence found an easy basket in transition to bring the Portland St. lead down to 39-27 at 7:33. The Vikings countered with four-straight points to keep the momentum. Despite the deficit, the Eagles continued to fight. They went on a 9-0 run to reduce the lead down to 43-36 with 3:57 left in the quarter. The teams were going back-and-forth, but Eastern continued to chip away at the lead. With 1:13 left in the quarter, Pettis converted two free throws and lead was down to 48-44. Lawrence felt the momentum swinging and lined up a three to cut the advantage down to one at 48-47.

The Eagles had an eye-popping 83.3 shooting percentage in the third. The Vikings shot 41.7 percent in the quarter.

Portland St. opened up with a 7-0 run in the fourth quarter, establishing a 57-49 lead. Loera would break the run with a layup and free throw. Eastern stayed in striking distance as Loera and Alexander continued to score well. With 2:24 left in the game, Loera made a jumper to cut the lead to 67-62. The Eagles effort was there but the Vikings were able to make their free throws in the final minutes. Portland St. won the game, 80-71, shooting 80.0 in the final quarter. Eastern shot 45.0 percent in the fourth.

In the game, the Eagles posted a 46.8 shooting percentage. The Vikings finished with a 60.4 percent mark.

Key Statistics
Along with leading Eastern in rebounds and assists, Jamie Loera recorded five steals to match her career-high.

Aaliyah Alexander had her 23rd game this season scoring in double figures. It is the 12th double-digit scoring game in her career. She has scored in double figures in six-straight games and her second-straight scoring 19. Loera scored in double figures for the 14^th time this season.

Alexis Pettis scored 12 points on 4-of-8(50.5%) shooting. Pettis scored in double figures for the second time this season and 10^th for her career.

The Eagles' bench outscored the Vikings', 21 to four. Gabrielle Jung matched her career-high with nine points, going 4-of-7(57.1%) on field goal attempts.

Eastern tallied 19 assists on 29 made field goals.

The teams matched each other in points in the paint with 32 each. Portland St. won the rebounding battle, 29 to 23. The Eagles, however, grabbed nine offensive rebounds to the Vikings' five.

Up Next
Eastern Washington will play its next game in a week, when they travel down to play Idaho in Moscow, Idaho on Saturday, Feb. 11 at 1 p.m. Pacific Time.