Senior guard Darren Cooper leads four Pilots in double figures

PORTLAND, Ore. --- Senior guard Darren Cooper scored a game-high 19 points as the University of Portland men’s basketball team opened its West Coast Conference season with a win Saturday night, topping Pepperdine 73-69 in front of 1,501 fans at the Chiles Center. The Pilots improve to 5-12 (1-0 WCC) while the Waves fall to 4-13 (0-1 WCC).

The win was anything but easy for the home Pilots, who led by 10 early in the first half before settling into a tug of war battle to the end.

Portland led by five with less than a minute to play, but Pepperdine senior guard Marvin Lea made a circus layup and was fouled, converting a three-point play to make it 71-69 with 54 seconds remaining. The Waves stole the ball and had a three-on-two break with a chance to tie, but Willie Galick’s layup attempt was blocked by Pilot sophomore guard Marcus Carter and Portland’s Ben Sullivan snagged the rebound. Sullivan was fouled and drained both free throws to clinch the game.

Cooper led four Pilots in double figures, while adding four assists and tying a career-high with seven rebounds. Sullivan had 14 points off the bench, while Sherrard Watson and Jamie Jones added 13 and 12, respectively. Jones added four steals and three blocked shots.

For Pepperdine, Chase Griffin led the way with 17 points, while Marvin Lea and Kingsley Costain each scored 15. Costain tied a Chiles Center record by shooting 16 three-pointers, connecting on five. As a team, the Waves attempted 40 three-pointers, setting a new Chiles Center record.

The Pilots held Pepperdine to 13 points below their season average and limited the Waves to 35.5 percent shooting from the field, including 29.4 percent in the second half.

“Our defense was solid against a very good offensive team,” Portland head coach Eric Reveno said. “We handled their dribble penetration and contested most of their jumpers. I thought the guys did an excellent job of following the game plan.”

Portland shot 49 percent from the field and held a 40-28 rebounding advantage. The Pilots owned a 38-18 margin in points in the paint. The Waves countered by forcing 24 turnovers and gaining a 22-14 edge in points off giveaways.

“In that style of game, you can live with the inflated turnover numbers,” Reveno added. “They put so much pressure on you to make plays, but if you’re not aggressive, you don’t make them pay. I thought we attacked the basket well and our field goal percentage and assist numbers compensated for the turnovers.”

Portland now shifts its focus to the Loyola Marymount Lions who will visit the Chiles Center on Monday at 8 p.m. The game will be televised nationally live on ESPNU.

“It feels good to be 1-0 in conference, but we don’t have the luxury of time off to savor the feeling,” Reveno said. “We are still a work in progress with little margin for error.”