BOISE, Idaho -- Into the semifinals of the Big Sky Conference Tournament for the fourth time overall and the first time since 2015, the No. 3-seeded Sacramento State women's basketball team continues its postseason run on Tuesday (March 7) at 1:30 p.m. PT, taking on No. 7-seeded Portland State at the Idaho Center Arena in Boise, Idaho.

GAME #31
BIG SKY CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT SEMIFINALS
WHAT: No. 7 Portland State (15-15) vs. No. 3 Sacramento State (23-7)
WHEN: Tuesday, March 7, 2023
TIME: 1:30 p.m. PT
WHERE: Boise, Idaho
VENUE: Idaho Central Arena
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: Big Sky Conference
BUY TICKETS: Ticketmaster.com
TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: Big Sky Conference

HORNET TIP-INS
• No. 3-seeded Sacramento State, which earned a share of the league's regular season title, advanced to the semifinals of the Big Sky Conference Tournament following a 73-58 victory over No. 6-seeded Idaho on Tuesday to open its postseason run.
• Tuesday marks the Hornets' fourth appearance in the tournament's semifinal round after advancing three times in the span of four seasons: 2012 (lost to No. 1 Idaho State), 2013 (lost to No. 1 Montana), and 2015 (lost to No. 4 Northern Colorado).
• A win Tuesday would give Sacramento State its first-ever trip to the conference tournament's championship game.
• Monday's win over Idaho snapped a two-game losing streak in the conference tournament for Sacramento State, posting its first since an upset of Montana as the No. 11 seed to tip-off the 2021 event.
• The win improved the Hornets to 6-15 in conference tournament play.
• The 15-point win is the largest margin of victory for Sacramento State in tournament play since they beat Montana State by 16 points in the 2015 quarterfinals.
• Monday's wire-to-wire win was the Hornets' eighth of the season and the first since a win at Weber State on Jan. 21.
• Sacramento State meets a Portland State squad that upset defending tournament champion and No. 2-seeded Montana State in the quarterfinals. The Hornets swept the regular season series from the Vikings with a win in Portland (65-56) on Dec. 31 and a win in Sacramento (80-54) in the regular season finale on Feb. 27.
• Entering the tournament, Sacramento State had never faced Idaho and Portland State in the league tournament and will now face those two teams in back-to-back games at this year's postseason event.
• With the win over the Vandals, the Hornets extended their winning streak to seven games, matching its longest of the season from Dec. 10 – Jan. 12 earlier this year.
• Sacramento State is averaging 74.0 ppg while holding opponents to just 57.6 ppg during its winning streak, including holding the last three opponents – and five overall during the run -- to fewer than 60 points.
• The Hornets have hit double-figures from three-point range in each of their last four games: 13 at Idaho State (Feb. 18), 17 vs. Montana State (Feb. 23), 10 vs. Montana (Feb. 25), 13 vs. Portland State (Feb. 27), and 10 vs. Idaho (March 6).
• Monday marked the second consecutive game that two Hornets finished with double-doubles as Kahlaijah Dean scored 22 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, while Isnelle Natabou finished with 22 points and 10 boards. A week ago to the day, Dean had 16 points and 10 assists, while Olivares had 18 points and 11 rebounds in a win over Portland State in Sacramento.
• Sacramento State is 15-3 when a player records a double-double this year.
• The double-double was Dean's sixth of the year, while the 13 rebounds (all on the defensive end) are a school Big Sky Tournament record, breaking the mark held by Summer Menke against Montana in 2021.
• It was also her 14th game with at least 20 points, her 21st consecutive game in double figures, and her 29th in 30 games overall this year.
• Natabou notched her team-high 12th double-double of the season, her eighth game with at least 20 points, and her 26th overall contest in double figures.
• Of her 10 rebounds, nine came on the offensive end for Natabou, setting a new program tournament record, breaking Margaret Huntington's mark of eight against Eastern Washington in 2016.
• Natabou also had nine offensive rebounds against Northern Arizona earlier this year in overtime on Feb. 9.
• The Hornets' .468 field goal percentage also broke the school conference tournament record previously held by the 2014 team that shot .467 against Southern Utah.
• The 10 three-pointers made marked the eighth time in school history that the Hornets have hit double-digits from downtown in a conference tournament game.
• The 10 turnovers were also the fourth-fewest in a conference tournament game in school history and the fewest since they committed just nine against Montana in 2021.
• The 10 makes from the field by Dean and Natabou are tied for the third-most in school history in the conference tournament, just one short of the record held by Maranne Johnson against both Southern Utah (2016) and Montana (2018).
• With four blocks against Idaho, the 2023 Hornets became the sixth team in school history to record 100 blocks in a season (now at 103).
• Jordan Olivares and Katie Peneueta played all 40 minutes against Idaho – the 16th and 17th times a Hornet has gone the distance in a game this year. Peneueta leads the team with six, Natabou is second with five, Dean has four, and Benthe Versteeg joins Olivares with one.
• It was Olivares' second career 40-minute performance, matching her game against Montana in last year's regular season finale on March 4, 2022, at home.
• Dean now ranks No. 7 on the school's single-season list with 158 assists.
• Sacramento State allowed on 24 rebounds by Idaho on Monday, marking the 21st time in 30 games that the Hornets have held an opponent to fewer than 30 in a game this year.
• Monday marked the 26th time that the Hornets have led at the half this season, improving to 22-4 in those games, while trailing at the break only three times.
• Sacramento State has only been held to fewer than 60 points in a game three times this season.
• Monday marked the 14th double-digit win out of the team's 23 wins overall.
• The 25-point fourth quarter against Idaho was the team's highest-scoring fourth quarter of the year, surpassing the 24-point final stanza against Northern Arizona on Feb. 9.
• In that 25-point fourth quarter, the Hornets hit 10 baskets from the field – the seventh time that they have made 10 baskets in a single quarter this year.