PORTLAND, Ore. – Sacramento State put together a thrilling fourth quarter run to catch Portland State and force overtime Thursday night, but even with five extra minutes, the Hornets came up just short, falling 66-64 against the Vikings.

With the loss, Sacramento State is now 0-6 to start the season and 0-3 in Big Sky play. Portland State improves to 2-3 overall and 1-2 in conference. 

Sacramento State trailed for most of Thursday night's contest, but the team came alive late in the second half, outscoring the Vikings 20-11 in the fourth quarter. The Hornets went on an 11-3 run in the final two minutes of regulation to tie the game at 55 and force overtime.

In the final five minutes of regulation, Sacramento State took advantage of a major Portland State drought during which the Vikings went 0-for-10 from the floor.

The final eight seconds of regulation were perhaps the most thrilling of the night. Trailing 53-51, Tiana Johnson put up a game-tying bucket with 8.7 left on the clock. Portland State snapped its field goal drought at the perfect time, going back ahead, 55-53 with a layup with just over four seconds left.

With the clock running, the Hornets quickly inbounded the ball to Milee Enger, who found a streaking Jakira Wilson down the court under the Hornets basket. Wilson stutter-stepped to shake her defender before putting up an open look layup to tie the game, 55-55, and force extra time.

The teams went back and forth in overtime, but back-to-back Sacramento State turnovers turned into Portland State points that the Hornets couldn't get back. A big Jazzy Carrasco three with three seconds to play put the Hornets within one, 65-64, but a Vikings free throw capped the scoring and the night in the 66-64 final.

Johnson came up big for the Hornets Thursday night, leading all players with a game-high 25 points on 11-of-16 shooting, including 1-for-3 from distance and 2-for-2 from the free throw line. For Johnson, the game was her first in over a month as the redshirt junior missed most of December. She added a team-leading seven rebounds and two blocks to her line Thursday night, as well.

Carrasco and fellow junior guard Summer Menke both finished in double figures, scoring 11 and 10 points, respectively. Carrasco was 4-for-7 from the floor, including an excellent 3-of-4 from beyond the arc, and had two steals. Before fouling out late in the game, Menke was a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line and pulled in five rebounds.

Like Menke, the Hornets as a team were perfect from the free throw line, although they had just nine total attempts.

Overall, free throws and rebounds proved to be the killer for the Hornets on Thursday. While Sacramento State was perfect, Portland State was prolific, finishing 21-for-26 from the charity stripe. In addition, the Vikings held the edge in rebounds, 45-38, including 14-8 off the offensive glass. 

The 22 total fouls were very unlike the Hornets, who came into Thursday night's contest averaging just 12 fouls per game, the second fewest in the NCAA. Menke fouled out for the first time this year while Johnson, Sarah Abney, and Jordan Olivares all had three.

Thursday night's game was the first of two this weekend against the Portland State Vikings. Both teams will hop on a plane and travel south to Sacramento for game two on Saturday, Jan. 9 in the Nest. Tip off on Saturday is scheduled for 12:05 p.m.

As a reminder, fans are not allowed at Sacramento State home games this season, but can catch all of the action live online on Pluto TV. For information on all upcoming games and the latest on the Sacramento State women's basketball schedule, be sure to visit the Sacramento State women's basketball homepage online at HornetSports.com.