PORTLAND – Portland State used big runs in both halves to knock off North Dakota 99-62 in the Big Sky opener for both teams Thursday at the Stott Center. The Vikings (8-4, 1-0 BSC) won their fifth straight as the league's best shooting team showed why with a 56.5 percent display from the field.

PSU finished with seven players in double figures and never let the Fighting Hawks (5-6, 0-1 BSC), who dropped their fourth straight, get comfortable in this one. UND forward Drick Bernstine made it an 8-6 contest with a putback at the 17:16 mark, but the Vikings would reel off a 26-2 run over the next nine minutes to take control of the contest.

“Turnovers are part of the game. That was a key and we couldn't get our defense set,” UND head coach Brian Jones said. “In the second half, we cut it down to 13 by playing well, but started turning it over again and it went from 13 to about 25 in a hurry.”

Sophomore forward Conner Avants finished with 16 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the floor, while Quinton Hooker added 12 for the visitors. The Fighting Hawks finished with a season-high 26 turnovers and PSU finished with 19 steals and scored 51 points off those UND miscues.

Fourteen of those turnovers by UND came in the first half and the Vikings turned those into 23 points to build a 47-27 halftime lead. The deficit could have been much worse for the Fighting Hawks, but the visitors closed the opening 20 minutes on a 10-2 run to get back within 20.

UND got within 13 points with a strong start to the second half, but the Vikings regained the momentum with a 19-0 run midway through the stanza that Calean Robinson sparked by hitting back-to-back treys. He led the Vikings with 18 points, seven assists and six steals.

Robinson's four 3-pointers led a 13-for-28 effort for PSU from behind the arc, while UND connected on just 4-of-18 and also went only 6-for-19 from the foul stripe. Freshman Kienan Walter finished with a season-high eight points in front of several family and friends as he grew up in nearby Vancouver, Wash.

The Fighting Hawks will return to action on Saturday at Sacramento State. The New Year's Eve tip is set for 2 p.m. CT.

-- UND --