Vikings sail into hostile territory

Ken Bone was asked if he felt his Portland State men’s basketball team was prepared for the hostile environment it will face tonight when it takes on 22nd-ranked Gonzaga University in the McCarthey Athletic Center.

Another sellout crowd is expected for the non-conference showdown, which tips off at 5, and there probably won’t be more than a handful among the 6,000 in attendance backing the Vikings (4-2), as they attempt to keep GU (6-1) from extending the nation’s longest home-court winning streak to 44 games.

“Sure, we’re ready,” said PSU’s second-year coach, his tongue firmly planted in his cheek. “We just had 700 fans in our gym the other night against Portland. It was just crazy in the Stott Center.

“We’re ready to go.”

All facetiousness aside, the Vikings came into the McCarthey Center in their first season under Bone last November and performed admirably in an 89-80 loss to the highly favored and sixth-ranked Zags.

Three players on this year’s PSU team – senior forward Juma Kamara, junior center Scott Morrison and junior guard Ryan Sommer – played major roles in helping throw a scare into the Bulldogs last winter, combining for 41 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists.

“But other than them, not one other guy on our team played here last year,” Bone said, “so that (experience) thing has been thrown out the window. We’re basically starting from scratch this time with a bunch of new kids.”

The Vikings come in riding the momentum of a three-game winning streak that includes a 71-67 road win over Arizona State and Monday’s 69-53 triumph over Portland, which was actually witnessed by a crowd of 763.

They are paced by Morrison, a 6-foot-11 center who is averaging 14.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. They boast another solid front-line scorer in the 6-6 Kamara, who is averaging 13.3 points.

Among Bone’s biggest concerns is GU’s 6-11 sophomore center Josh Heytvelt, who is averaging 17.3 points and 7.1 rebounds.