With four of its six remaining games on the road, Sacramento State women’s basketball is looking to gain some momentum before the start of the Big Sky Tournament.

The Hornets (16-7, 8-6) are tied for third in the Big Sky with Eastern Washington, and will travel to the University of Northern Colorado for a Thursday-evening matchup with the Bears.

As Sac State prepares for the final stretch of the season, head coach Bunky Harkleroad expects his players to finish the season on a strong note.

“We’ve got to fix some things and establish that momentum,” Harkleroad said. “It’s time for our better players to start making plays. That’s what it comes down to at this time of the year.”

With a 5-5 record on the road, Hornets’ senior guard Alle Moreno said her and her teammates understand the importance of playing well away from home.

“I think everybody realizes these away games are important,” Moreno said. “The travel is tough, so everybody is going to have to be mentally strong and ready when game time rolls around.”

Sac State junior point guard Fantasia Hilliard agreed with Moreno when discussing the importance of road games.

“Every game counts, so we have to win every game,” Hilliard said. “We have to play each one like its our last.”

Thursday’s game against Northern Colorado (13-11, 7-8) features a Bears team that enters play with the second worst scoring average in the conference at 64.0 points per game.

Despite the offensive struggles for UNC, Moreno knows that the Hornets will have to maintain a strong defensive effort.

“I think we need to put a lot of pressure on them and make them take tough shots,” Moreno said. “They’ve got some good post players that are threats to us, so we’re going to have to play our best defense against them.”

Harkleroad also said his team’s defensive game plan needs to be top-notch against the Bears.

“We have to play hard-nosed defense without fouling,” Harkleroad said. “We have to be as aggressive as we can be without giving the other team too many opportunities at the free throw line.”

On the offensive side, the Hornets rank first in team scoring in the Big Sky and second in the nation with an average of 88.4 points per game.

Northern Colorado ranks second in the Big Sky in scoring defense, allowing 65.5 points per game.

Harkleroad said his team will have to play with composure in order to have success against the Bears’ defense.

“We’ve done things in practice this week to make sure we make that extra pass and get the defense moving,” Harkleroad said. “We’ve played enough ball to where we know we need to play with some poise. We’ve put the work in and we should be ready.”

Tipoff will be tonight at 6 p.m. inside Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion. 

Satchi Hover can be reached on Twitter @SatchiHover