Box Score I Video Highlights
PORTLAND, Ore --- Senior T.J. Campbell scored 20 points to go with five assists and five steals as the Portland Pilots pulled away from the Santa Clara Broncos 68-55 Saturday before 2,528 at the Chiles Center. Senior Robin Smeulders added 17 points to leave him just a single point shy of 1,000 for his career. The victory ties a school record of 10 West Coast Conference wins for the Pilots, which was set during the 1994-95 season.
Portland secures the No. 3 seed in the WCC Tournament, scheduled for March 6-9 at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. The Pilots earn a first round bye and will face the winner of No. 6 San Diego and No. 7 Santa Clara on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. Portland still has one regular season game remaining with Senior Night scheduled for Tuesday at 7 p.m. versus Lewis & Clark. The five Pilot seniors will be recognized prior to tip-off in their final regular season game at the Chiles Center.
Saturday’s win came courtesy of Campbell’s huge second half. With the game tied 30-30 at the half, the Phoenix, Ariz. native scored 17 points, dished out four assists, and swiped four steals in the period as Portland held the Broncos to 25 points and 40.9 percent shooting after the break.
The Broncos (11-20, 3-11 WCC) took the early second half lead on a three-point play by Marc Trasolini, but Campbell scored nine straight points to regain the lead for good. Portland went on a 16-2 run capped by consecutive lay-ups by Smeulders on assists from Campbell to turn a narrow margin into a double-digit lead.
Santa Clara would pull within nine on two occasions in the final two minutes, but the Pilots (19-9, 10-4) went 6-for-6 from the foul line in the final minute to secure the win.
Trasolini and Michael Santos led the Broncos with 14 points each. The Broncos shot 57 percent in the first half, but went just 4-of-16 from the three-point line and 7-of-14 at the free throw stripe for the game.
Portland gained a 25-9 edge in points off turnovers, despite only forcing 18 turnovers while giving away 16. Portland also had a 12-7 margin in second chance points.
The Pilots shot 49 percent from the field and were 7-of-15 from beyond the arc. Junior guard Jared Stohl was 3-for-4 from three-point range and moved into a tie for 10th place in WCC history for three-pointers made (238).
Tuesday’s game versus Lewis & Clark will tip-off at 7 p.m. Upper level general admission seats are specially priced at $5 for the game and available through all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com or at the Pilot Box Office (503) 943-7525.
