BOISE — Portland State coach Jase Coburn didn’t mince words when asked about Idaho State in the postgame press conference.

“They are not a nine seed,” Coburn said. “We played them in early January and they had us down 17 at their place, and it took some miraculous plays to come back and win that game in overtime.”

It showed Sunday night.

The Bengals pushed the No. 1 seed and regular season champions Vikings down to the wire in the quarterfinals of the Big Sky Conference Tournament. But their season still came to an end with an 85-78 loss at Idaho Central Arena.

“I thought we battled from start to finish,” Idaho State head coach Ryan Looney said. “Maybe just made a couple mental mistakes early in the second half and felt like we were trying to play catch-up the whole time.”

Because they were.

Idaho State (13-20) jumped out to an early lead, with freshman Louis Bond and senior Connor Hollenbeck scoring back-to-back buckets to go up 6-3. But Portland State responded with an 8-0 run that ended up giving them the lead for good. However, the Bengals used a 7-2 run to close the half, capped by a pair of free throws from redshirt senior guard Gus Etchison to tie it at 36 heading into the break.

ISU tied the game three more times in the second half — on a Hollenbeck layup, a layup from senior Caleb Van De Griend and a dunk from sophomore center Evan Otten — and twice pulled within one, but Portland State had an answer every time.

Etchison had several chances to swing the game his team’s way. He missed a reverse layup that would have given ISU the lead with just over 12 minutes remaining, then missed the free throw on a potential four-point play moments later. He missed a 3-pointer that would have tied it at 9:36, then another with 8:15 left that would have done the same.

Hollenbeck had his chances as well, including a second-half shot that was swatted away by Big Sky Player of the Year Terri Miller Jr. — more on him in a moment.

“Sometimes the ball just doesn’t bounce your way,” Bond said. “Little things like that change the whole game.”

The Vikings led 55-49 before ISU made one last gasp, clawing back within one at 56-55. But senior guard Jaylin Henderson’s 3-pointer pushed the lead back to seven. Miller then buried another 3 with just over four minutes remaining to make it 69-61, and the Bengals never got closer than five the rest of the way.

“We missed a lot of free throws going down the stretch, which hurt us,” Etchison said of the Bengals’ 67.9% shooting from the charity stripe. “But credit to them — they did a good job closing the game.”

Miller also helped.

The senior forward finished with 31 points, 10 rebounds and four assists, going 4-of-7 from 3-point range, but that only tells part of the story. He drew foul after foul, getting Idaho State’s big men in trouble all night — including Otten, who Looney called the “anchor” of ISU’s defense. He was limited to just 12 minutes. Van De Griend and senior Blake Daberkow, who played only nine minutes, also struggled to stay on the floor.

“Terry Miller was obviously a load,” Looney said. “Felt like the entire conference had problems with him all year long.”

Bond agreed.

“He really showed up on a big stage,” Bond said. “Everybody in the league has a lot of respect for him. That’s why he got MVP.”

Idaho State’s bench tried to compensate, outscoring Portland State’s reserves 44-5, but it still wasn’t enough.

“We left it all on the floor,” Etchison said. “We showcased a lot of energy and our love for each other. It didn’t end up going our way, but I wouldn’t change the energy and love we gave that game.”

Etchison led Idaho State with 20 points, while Van De Griend added 14 and Bond chipped in 13.

It’s the fifth consecutive non-winning season for the Bengals, who hit a rough patch in the middle of the year with a nine-game losing streak — the longest in six seasons. But Idaho State still managed to win a game at the Big Sky Tournament for the second time in three years.

“There was a lot of ups and downs,” Etchison said. “But I cherish that. I think I grew a lot as a person and a man. I look at it as a successful year.”

And Etchison’s story at Idaho State may not be over. Looney said he will pursue a medical hardship waiver that could give the redshirt senior one more year.

“We’re going to fight for him to be able to get that,” Looney said.

He’ll have to replace five seniors, including two starters, and the transfer portal could reshape the roster further.

“We’re just in an era of college basketball where you’ve got to constantly be recruiting, identifying future players, and continue to work with young guys like Louis to help him continue to develop,” Looney said. “I think you guys saw this weekend, he has a chance to be a really good player in the Big Sky if he keeps focused and keeps working at it every day.”