PORTLAND, Ore. - Before he had left the visiting locker room at Reese Court on Thursday, Donnie Carson was already trying to put a tough 71-65 loss to Eastern Washington behind him.

Sure, the defeat still bothered him, and like everyone else on the Idaho State men's basketball team, he wished he could have a few plays back. But he didn't feel much like talking about the past.

To him, all that mattered was today's 8:05 p.m. showdown with defending Big Sky champion Portland State at the Stott Center.

"We've got a must-win game coming up," he said. "I think we'll all be ready. I know I will."

Usually, that kind of passion is a sign of good things to come. After all, it's not that often that players pull out the old "must-win" cliché just two games into a conference season.

But here's the thing: Portland State is looking at today's matchup as a statement game, too.

The Vikings, who shockingly had a 17-game winning streak against league opponents snapped Thursday at home by Weber State 80-66, were in no mood to talk about the past two days ago either.

Though, they talked about much more than just today's game against Idaho State. And they didn't mention anything about must-win games.

Hawaii transfer Dominic Waters, who amazed the entire conference last week by scoring 41 points against Northern Arizona, only mentioned guaranteed victories.

"We won't lose any more," he told the Oregonian, a Portland-based newspaper. "Not any games. The rest of the season, we will not lose again."

Idaho State may never have received better bulletin-board material.

But seeing as how the Bengals already labeled their game with the Vikings as a "must win" they shouldn't need any extra motivation.

Junior forward Chron Tatum said he views today's game as important, but no more important than any other remaining game.

"We're going in to Portland with the mind-set that it's a championship game," he said. "But that's the way we're going to approach every game from now on."

Playing at Portland State could be Idaho State's toughest remaining game, though. Beating the Vikings (12-5 overall, 3-1 Big Sky) is hard enough. Trying to defeat them two days after losing their first conference game of the season could be even harder.

Helping Idaho State, though, is that Weber State gave it a blueprint for beating the Vikings. The Wildcats took away their inside game, holding Portland State's starting big me n to a combined seven points and five rebounds and forced them to shoot from the outside.

The Vikings, in turn, put up 35 3-pointers and only made 12 of them.

That was enough for Weber State to pull the upset.

Idaho State (4-12, 1-1) feels like it "must" do the same.

Idaho State (4-12, 1-1) at Portland State (12-5, 3-1)

When: 8:05 p.m.

Where: Stott Center, Portland, Ore.

Watch/Listen: www.bigskytv.org/930 AM KSEI

What's at stake:

A win would give Idaho State exactly what it was hoping for on its first road trip of the conference season: a split that moves the Bengals to 2-1. For Portland State, the Vikings need a home win to maintain the label of conference favorites.

Key Matchup:

Jeremiah Dominguez vs. Idaho State's lineup of tall guards. Dominguez, the Big Sky's reigning MVP, has terrorized the Bengals in their past three meetings. But no matter how you look at it, he is still almost a foot shorter than Amorrow Morgan and Matt Stucki. Whether or not Idaho State can capitalize on that disparity will influence the game.

Three things about Portland State

- The Vikings are made up almost entirely of transfers. Of the 17 players listed on their roster, only six came to Portland State directly from high school.

- Portland State can score more easily than any other team in the conference. The Vikings have five players who average at least 9.8 points per game.

- The Vikings scored one of the most impressive wins in the history of the Big Sky conference earlier this season when they beat Gonzaga, which was ranked No. 7 at the time, 77-70 on the road.

Happy ending if …

Idaho State holds Portland State to a season-low point total. Sixty-six points against Weber State is the Vikings current low. The Bengals will need to hold them to about 60 if they hope to win.

Sad ending if …

Kal Bay's potential return to the team after missing action all week with a virus doesn't give Idaho State a handful of 3-pointers. Idaho State can't compete with Portland State unless the Bengals have an outside threat.

Bottom line:

Idaho State shouldn't throw a fit if it loses this game. At Portland State, especially two days after a Vikings loss, will be the Bengals most difficult conference game of the season.