University of Northern Colorado Athletics
Thursday, February 9
Greeley, Colo.
6 p.m.
University of Northern Colorado
9-16,4-9Big Sky
88
vs
79
Portland State
10-15,4-8Big Sky
1
2
F
Portland St.
39
40
79
Northern Colo.
42
46
88
Photo by: Jam David
Four Bears in double digits as UNC picks up second-straight win
2/9/2023 9:16:00 PM | Men's Basketball
GREELEY, Colo. – Led by 22 points from Daylen Kountz and 20 points from Dalton Knecht, the Northern Colorado men's basketball team defeated Portland State, 88-79, on Thursday night.
The win marks the second in a row for the Bears, and the second in a row in which the Bears put up 88 points. Playing in their fourth game in seven days, the Bears took the lead in the opening minutes and never looked back.
"My voice is fried, the guys are tired, but when you come out and you have a good crowd, it just makes all the difference," head coach Steve Smiley said. "We've started so many games with a deficit, so to get the lead again like we did against Weber State; we got the lead early on, it wasn't crazy, but we got the lead, and it's a lot easier, in my opinion, to play where it's even or you have a little lead, opposed to you're down 15. I thought the guys played great tonight."
In addition to Kountz's and Knecht's performances, Matt Johnson II and Theo Hughes scored in double digits, as Johnson put up 16, and Hughes had a career-best 11-point night.
Defensively, UNC played well as both Kountz and Knecht nabbed seven boards each. Hughes had five rebounds, including two offensive rebounds, to help UNC score 11 second-chance points.
BY THE NUMBERS
UP NEXT
The Bears finish their three-game homestand on Saturday, hosting Sacramento State at Bank of Colorado Arena for a 6 p.m. (MT) tip. Tickets are still available and can be purchased at UNCBears.com/Tickets
The win marks the second in a row for the Bears, and the second in a row in which the Bears put up 88 points. Playing in their fourth game in seven days, the Bears took the lead in the opening minutes and never looked back.
"My voice is fried, the guys are tired, but when you come out and you have a good crowd, it just makes all the difference," head coach Steve Smiley said. "We've started so many games with a deficit, so to get the lead again like we did against Weber State; we got the lead early on, it wasn't crazy, but we got the lead, and it's a lot easier, in my opinion, to play where it's even or you have a little lead, opposed to you're down 15. I thought the guys played great tonight."
In addition to Kountz's and Knecht's performances, Matt Johnson II and Theo Hughes scored in double digits, as Johnson put up 16, and Hughes had a career-best 11-point night.
Defensively, UNC played well as both Kountz and Knecht nabbed seven boards each. Hughes had five rebounds, including two offensive rebounds, to help UNC score 11 second-chance points.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Daylen Kountz shot 61.5% from the field, hitting 8-of-13.
- UNC was 35-for-60 (58.3%) on the night, and shot 18-for-28 (64.3%) in the second half.
- The Bears out-rebounded the Vikings 38-32.
UP NEXT
The Bears finish their three-game homestand on Saturday, hosting Sacramento State at Bank of Colorado Arena for a 6 p.m. (MT) tip. Tickets are still available and can be purchased at UNCBears.com/Tickets
Team Stats
PSU
UNC
FG%
.424
.583
3FG%
.286
.353
FT%
.682
.600
RB
32
38
TO
8
11
STL
3
2
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
22
FGM
8
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
16
FGM
7
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
C
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
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