Late Comeback Falls Short for Men's Hoops

Monday, January 31

Portland, Ore.

8:30 pm

University of Northern Colorado

Portland State

Photo by: Portland State Athletics

1/31/2022 11:13:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

UNC men's basketball fell to Portland State 79-76

By: By Ryan Pfeifer, UNCBears.com

PORTLAND – Down by as much as 24, Northern Colorado men's basketball battled back with the comeback falling short 79-76 against Portland State Monday night. UNC's Matt Johnson II had a shot at the horn to tie it battling through some contact as it missed to end the game.

UNC's furious comeback started with an 11-0 run to start the second half. Dru Kuxhausen made a pair of threes during it to pace the team. He had four on the night and scored 15 points.

Johnson II and Daylen Kountz took over at the midway point of the second half to tie the game with a 13-2 run. Johnson started it with a driving layup and pair of threes while Kountz attacked the basket all night long.

Kountz finished the contest with a game-high 30 points while Johnson II scored 17, 13 of which came in the second half.

Northern Colorado was unable to ever take the lead with the big comeback. Kuxhausen helped keep the Bears in it late with a made three and three free throws off of a foul to give the team a chance to tie or win it.

PSU drew a charge with 5.1 seconds left and good enough defense on the last possession to earn the win.

Portland State built its big lead with a lights-out shooting performance in the first half. The Vikings shot 51.4% and made nine three-pointers. They also took advantage of 11 UNC turnovers in the first half leading to 15 points.

What They Said

UNC Athletics · MBB Postgame at Portland State

Stat of the Game
Turnovers once again hurt the Bears on Monday night with 16 leading to 18 points for Portland State.

Game Notes
- Daylen Kountz had his second-best scoring performance with 30 points on 11-of-17 shooting and making eight free throws. The Big Sky scoring leader also dished out a game-high four assists.
- Bodie Hume passed former teammate Jonah Radebaugh on the all-time scoring list on Monday. Hume now sits in eighth with 1,340. He also had seven rebounds and an assist.
- Matt Johnson II turned it on in the second half with 13 of his 17 points. He added in four rebounds and three assists.
- Kur Jongcuch led the team with 10 rebounds.

Around the Big Sky
All three home teams won on Monday night. Southern Utah beat Northern Arizona and Weber State defended its home court against Eastern Washington.

What's Ahead
There is a quick turnaround for the Bears to avenge their loss by hosting Portland State on Thursday at 6 pm MT. Purchase tickets at UNCBears.com/Tickets.