vs. SAN FRANCISCO DONS (9-15, 2-9 WCC)
Date: Thursday, February 14, 2013
Tip-off: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Portland, Ore.
Arena (Capacity): Chiles Center (4,852)
Video/Audio: PilotsVideo.com
Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. USF
Overall Series: 30-25
Here: 19-6
There: 11-15
Neutral: 0-4
Last 5/10: 4-1/9-1
Last 1: @USF 88, POR 81 (January 12, 2013)
 
PORTLAND PILOTS (10-14, 5-6 WCC)
vs. SAINT MARY’S GAELS (16-6, 8-2 WCC)
Date: Saturday, February 16, 2013
Tip-off: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Portland, Ore.
Arena (Capacity): Chiles Center (4,852)
Video/Audio: PilotsVideo.com
Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. SMC
Overall Series: 20-34
Here: 13-12
There: 6-20
Neutral: 1-2
Last 5/10: 0-5/2-8
Last 1: @SMC 58, POR 53 (February 7, 2013)
 
THIS WEEK
• The Portland Pilots, who have won four of their past five games, welcome the San Francisco Dons and the Saint Mary’s Gaels to the Chiles Center this week for a pair of West Coast Conference games.
• The Dons first visit for a 7 p.m. game on Thursday night.
• The Gaels, who sit at No. 34 in the latest RPI rankings, then come to The Bluff on Saturday night, with tip-off also set for 7 p.m.
• Saturday night is Portland’s annual ‘Play 4Kay” game, and fans wearing pink will receive free admission.
 
LAST WEEK
• The Pilots split their two conference games on the road last week, dropping a close decision at Saint Mary’s on Thursday before routing Pepperdine on Saturday.
• Against the Gaels at McKeon Pavilion in Moraga, Calif., the Pilots overcame a 15-point second-half deficit to take the lead, but Saint Mary’s would prevail 58-53; UP freshman Annika Holopainen scored 26 points on 10 of 13 shooting.
• The Pilots then ran the Waves out of the gym with a 73-34 win at Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu, Calif.; the Pilots held the Waves to just 17.7 percent shooting, and sophomore Jasmine Wooton scored a game-high 16 point.
 
ABOUT THE PILOTS
• Freshman Annika Holopainen is the WCC’s Player of the Week after dropping 26 points on Saint Mary’s last Thursday; Holopainen averaged 15.5 points per game last week, shot 57.1 percent from the floor and grabbed a career-best eight boards at Pepperdine.
• Sophomore Kari Luttinen nabbed two straight WCC Player of the Week awards in December.
• Senior Amy Pupa’s 19 rebounds against Pepperdine (Jan. 31) are a career-high and she missed tying a program single-game record by one.
• Seven different players have scored in double figures this season, six players have led the team in scoring and two Pilots, Kari Luttinen & Annika Holopainen, have games with at least 20 points; Holopainen scored a team season-high of 29 points at USF (Jan. 12).
• Portland’s game against Boston College on Nov. 24 marked the 1,000th game in the history of the women’s basketball program, which dates back to 1977.
• Portland does not have one senior on its roster.
• Junior Cassandra Brown is utilizing her redshirt year after undergoing off-season surgery.
• Junior Alexis Byrd missed six games in November due to a hamstring injury.
• Three of Portland’s five freshmen originally hail from overseas, with Ellen Nurmi and Annika Holopainen both coming to The Bluff from Finland; Sara Hernandez is from Italy.
• Head coach Jim Sollars has more WCC wins (164) than any other coach in league history and he’s been named league coach of the year an unprecedented five times.
• Sollars, who was the head coach at Portland State before coming to The Bluff, is four wins away from historic win No. 400 at the NCAA Division I level.
 
Play 4Kay
• The Pilots are asking you to join the global, unified effort to raise breast cancer awareness and funding at its annual “Play 4Kay” game, which is set for Saturday night.
• Fans are encouraged to join the Pilots and Gaels in wearing pink to the game, and all fans wearing pink will receive free entry.
• Pink wrist bracelets, as well as other information and hand-outs, will be available to fans as they enter the Chiles Center.
• UP has partnered with Providence Cancer Center for the Play 4Kay promotion and Dr. Ali Colin, a Providence oncologist, will welcome fans to this special event.
 
CLEANING UP THE GLASS
• Junior Amy Pupa had a historic night at the Chiles Center on Jan. 31 when she grabbed 19 rebounds against Pepperdine, which missed tying a UP program record by one.
• Sarah Green holds the program single-game record at the NCAA DI level, which she set back in 1998 when she grabbed 20 boards.
• Lorena Legarde holds the all-time record of 24 rebounds, which she accomplished in 1982 when the Pilots played at the NAIA level.