Live Video I Live Audio I Live Stats I Tickets I Game Notes (PDF)
The Portland Pilots will host the University of Oregon Ducks on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Chiles Center. The Pilots are 2-0 on the season after defeating Seattle University 98-81 in their home-opener on Tuesday. The Ducks are 3-0 thus far, winning big in each contest. Live video of the game will be available at www.pilotsvideo.com. Tom Kolker and Jason Brough will provide the commentary, which will be available for free at www.portlandpilots.com.
Ticket Information
Tickets for Saturday’s game are still available through all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com, over the phone at (800) 745-3000 or in-person at the Pilot Box Office. Season tickets are still available through the Pilot Box Office at (503) 943-7525. Prices range from $99 to $230. For complete basketball ticket information, click here.
Captain Wally’s Pregame
Get to the games early and meet your friends at “Captain Wally’s.” New this season, fans can purchase Widmer beer and dollar dogs before every home game in the Hall of Fame Room. The pre-game also features a coaches’ chalk talk 40 minutes prior to tip-off. Open to all UP alumni, season ticket holders and friends of UP. Please have your “UP Alumni & Friends Benefit card” (complimentary through the Alumni Office at (503) 943-7328 or alumni@up.edu).
Pilots Briefly
*Portland defeated Seattle 98-81 on Tuesday at the Chiles Center
*Robin Smeulders and T.J. Campbell each had career highs in points with 24 and 21, respectively
*Campbell also recorded his first career double-double with a career-best 11 assists
*Nik Raivio also had a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds
*Portland was picked second in the WCC Preseason Coaches Poll behind Gonzaga
*Raivio and Campbell were named to the 10-player WCC Preseason All-Conference Team
*Raivio was also named an honorable mention mid-major All-America by CollegeInsider.com
*Portland appeared in the inaugural CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT) last year, the program’s first postseason appearance since 1996
*The Pilots tied for second in school history last year in total wins (19) and WCC wins (9)
*Portland returns 12 players and all five starters
*2009 WCC Coach of the Year Eric Reveno and his staff remain together and enter their fourth year at the helm of the Pilots (assistants Joel Sobotka, Eric Jackson and Michael Wolf)
*ESPN’s Fran Fraschilla listed UP among the top 10 mid-major programs in the nation
*Portland is ranked No. 15 in the CollegeInsider.com Preseason Mid-Major Top 25
*FOXSPORTS.com’s Jeff Goodman has the Pilots in his preseason NCAA bracket as a 12-seed
*Goodman lists Jared Stohl as the No. 6 shooter in the nation and Campbell the No. 31 shooter
*Four high school seniors singed NLI’s with Portland on Nov. 11, 2009: Riley Barker, John Bailey, Ryan Nicholas and Tanner Riley
About Oregon
The Ducks (3-0) opened the season with three home wins at the BTI Tip-Off Tournament at McArthur Court last weekend. Oregon posted comfortable wins over Winston-Salem State (94-43), UC Davis (95-64) and Colorado State (68-53). The Ducks have outrebounded opponents by a 19.3 margin in the early going and have forced over 20 turnovers per game. Senior guard Tajuan Porter leads the team with an 18.7 scoring average and is joined in double figures by Teondre Williams (13.7) and LeKendric Longmire (11.0). Porter set the school record for career three-pointers earlier this season (290) and is 53 shy of breaking the Pac-10 record. Head coach Ernie Kent is Oregon’s all-time winningest coach with a 222-157 record in his 13th year with the program. The Ducks finished the 2008-09 season with an 8-23 overall record and 2-16 mark in the Pac-10 with a young squad. Kent returns all five starters and added four newcomers in the offseason. The Ducks were picked to finish sixth in the Pac-10 Preseason Poll.
Portland-Oregon Series
Oregon leads the all-time series by a 49-9 margin and has won three in a row against the Pilots. Last season, Portland overcame a 22-point deficit to force overtime before losing by a 79-76 margin in Eugene. The last Pilot victory came on Dec. 22, 2005, with Portland earning an 80-72 win at the Chiles Center.
Last Game
Portland 98, Seattle 81 (Nov. 17): Robin Smeulders scored a career-high 24 points and the senior backcourt duo of T.J. Campbell and Nik Raivio logged double-doubles as Portland ran to a 98-81 victory over Seattle in the Pilots’ home opener Tuesday night at the Chiles Center. Portland improves to 2-0, while the Redhawks fall to 0-2 on the season. Campbell recorded career-highs of 21 points and 11 assists, despite playing just 26 minutes and attempting eight field goals. Raivio, who was a rebound shy of a double-double in the season-opener at Eastern Washington, finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds. It was a back-and-forth battle until midway through the second half when Campbell asserted himself and led the Pilots to a double-digit lead. Trailing 60-59 with 13:02 remaining in regulation, Campbell assisted on three consecutive baskets to give the Pilots a 66-60 edge. After Garrett Lever stalled the run with a layup, Campbell came back with a steal and layup, and then assists on three more Pilot baskets including a Luke Sikma jumper to give the Pilots a 76-64 lead with 7:20 remaining. Seattle cut the margin to five points on a Chris Gweth three-pointer with 5:41 left, but Jared Stohl answered with a three at the other end (again assisted by Campbell) and then Campbell pushed the margin back to double figures with a pair of free throws. The lead would grow from there as the Pilots made free throws down the stretch to reach the final margin. The Pilots shot 55 percent from the field, made 7-of-16 three-pointers and converted 25-of-31 free throws. Stohl was the fourth Pilot in double figures, finishing the night with 14 points. Seattle was led by Charles Garcia with 30 points and eight rebounds, but the junior college transfer also committed nine turnovers in the game. The Redhawks shot 50 percent from the floor, but were only 4-of-15 from the three-point line. Portland held a 44-42 lead at the half despite 21 first-half points from Garcia.
