Senior point guard Pooh Jeter scores 24 of his season-high 28 points in the second half as the Pilots end a three-game skid
PORTLAND, Ore. - Senior point guard Pooh Jeter scored a season-high 28 points as the Portland Pilots came back to beat Long Beach State 99-95 in a non-conference game Saturday night at the Chiles Center. 24 of Jeter’s points came in the second half as the Pilots end a three-game losing skid and improve to 2-5 on the season. The 49ers fall to 2-3.
Down 74-66 with nine minutes to play, Jeter took control of the game and scored 13 points during a 17-0 Portland run covering three minutes. The run got going on a dunk by senior forward Donald Wilson. Jeter followed with a jumper from just inside the three-point line. On the ensuing 49er possession, Jeter made a steal near half court and headed the other way for an unassisted lay-in. Jeter then converted a pair of free-throws, made an acrobatic lay-up and drilled a three-pointer.
Junior center Kevin Field then made a jumper in the lane before Jeter hit a 12-foot shot from the right baseline to make it 83-74 in favor of the Pilots.
"Pooh energized our team tonight and you can say he energized our season," head coach Michael Holton said. "He put us on his back and gave us life in the second half."
Portland scored 57 points in the second half on its way to a season-high total of 99. In two games last week in the Carolinas, the Pilots totaled 46 points in each of the losses to Winthrop and Charlotte.
"It feels good to win," said Jeter. "I just felt in the zone tonight, but it wasn’t all me. My teammates got me open so I could score."
The Pilots scored 54 of their points in the paint, while the 49ers totaled 34 points inside. Both teams turned the ball over 15 times.
For the game, UP shot a season-high 61 percent from the floor, including 40 percent from behind the three-point arc. Long Beach State also shot well from the field as the 49ers hit 54.8 percent of their shots and 62 percent of their three-pointers.
"We were able to sustain our energy on defense and we didn’t get discouraged when they hit their shots," Holton said. "I was pleased with our energy and our defensive intensity down the stretch."
Long Beach State didn’t go quietly after Portland’s second-half run. The 49ers pulled within 88-87 on a three-pointer by Jibril Hodges with 2:52 left on the clock. But the Pilots got timely buckets from Jeter and sophomore forward Sherrard Watson and hit enough of their free-throws down the stretch to hold on for the win.
Five Pilots scored in double figures as senior guard Darren Cooper notched 19, sophomore forward Marcus Lewis scored 15, Field added 14 and junior forward Ben Sullivan finished with 13.
"We can be a great team when we play together," said Cooper. "When we are focused on defense, we can play with anybody."
UP outrebounded LBSU 31-26 as Sullivan led the way with seven boards. Jeter and senior forward Donald Wilson each grabbed six rebounds. Wilson also added six assists.
Sean Hawkins led LBSU with 19 points. Hodges finished with 17, Kevin Houston totaled 13 and Aaron Nixon scored 12.
The Pilots next host cross town rival Portland State on Wednesday, Dec. 7 at the Chiles Center for a 7 p.m. tip-off.
