Eastern falls short against Portland State

PORTLAND — Dominic Waters had 23 points and eight assists Saturday night to lead Portland State to a 98-75 win over Eastern Washington in the Big Sky Conference opener for both teams. Melvin Jones added 19 points for the Vikings (3-4, 1-0 Big Sky), Jamie Jones had 17 and Julius Thomas contributed 16 off the bench. Glen Dean and Jeffrey Forbes led Eastern Washington (3-5, 0-1 Big Sky) with 17 points each. Portland State trailed only once all night and shot 76 percent in the first half. Waters scored seven points during a 10-0 run midway through the first half that gave Portland State a 20-10 lead. Melvin Jones capped another 10-0 run in the second half with back-to-back 3-pointers that put the game away for the Vikings. Portland State set a school record with 68.8 percent shooting from the floor on the night.