Box Score I Video Highlights
PORTLAND, Ore. --- With leading scorer Nik Raivio sidelined with a strained Achilles, the Portland Pilots rallied with a balanced offensive effort and stifling defense en route to a 79-39 win over the Loyola Marymount Lions in West Coast Conference basketball action Thursday night at the Chiles Center. The 39 points allowed were a season-low for the Pilots and 24 points lower than LMU’s previous season low.
Junior forward Luke Sikma had a career-night with 19 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, three blocked shots and three steals. It marked a career-high in scoring for Sikma and was his third double-double of the season.
Making his first start of the year in place of Raivio, junior guard Jared Stohl added 14 points (all in the second half). Seniors T.J. Campbell and Robin Smeulders added 12 and 11 points, respectively. Sophomore guard Nemanja Mitrovic also recorded a career-high eight points off the bench.
LMU (10-10, 1-3) entered the game averaging 79.3 points per game and shooting 47 percent from the field, but the Pilots held the Lions to just 21.2 percent shooting (11-52) and only three two-point field goals. The Lions were 8-for-26 from the three-point line. LMU’s previous season low in scoring came in a 64-63 loss at Montana on Nov. 15.
Portland (11-7, 2-2) had its best defensive performance of the season, forcing LMU into 20 turnovers and gaining a 25-5 edge in points off of turnovers. The Pilots also had a 32-4 scoring margin in the paint and a 40-31 edge in rebounding. The 11 Portland steals also were a season high against Division I competition.
The Pilots’ offense wasn’t bad either, finishing at 53 percent from the field (27-51) and 8-for-17 from the three-point line.
Portland never trailed in the game after starting with a 10-0 run that included two baskets by Smeulders and a pair of three-pointers by Campbell. The Pilots led by as much 14 points in the first half before Vernon Teel went coast-to-coast for a layup at the halftime buzzer to make it 33-21 at the break.
A 20-5 run early in the second half put the game out of reach and the Pilots slowly built the lead into their largest of the game at the final buzzer.
Sophomore Drew Viney was the lone LMU player in double figures with 18 points. No other Lion scored more than five. LMU sophomore guard Jarred DuBois (12.7 ppg) was unavailable with dehydration.
Portland had used the same starting lineup for all 17 games entering Thursday’s contest, but with Raivio (14.1 ppg) leaving practice Tuesday night with the injury, head coach Eric Reveno was forced to make some changes. Using a deeper rotation, the Pilots got a big lift from the reserves as Portland’s bench outscored LMU’s bench 29-8.
Raivio is not expected to be available for Saturday’s game against Pepperdine (7-13, 3-1); a team that suffered its first loss in league play at Gonzaga on Thursday by a 91-84 margin. His status for next week is yet to be determined.
