Pilots Look for Road Sweep at BYU
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Portland Pilots (10-17, 3-9) at BYU Cougars (18-8, 8-4)
Date: Saturday, Feb. 16, 2013
Tip-off: 6:00 p.m. (PST)
Location: Provo, Utah
Arena: Marriott Center
Television: BYUtv
Radio: 800 AM
Overall Series: 0-8
At UP: 0-4
At BYU: 0-4
At Neutral: 0-0
Last: BYU 85, POR 67 (Jan. 26, 2013 at Portland)
GAME INFORMATION
• Portland concludes its two-game West Coast Conference road trip at BYU on Saturday matchup with a 6 p.m. (PST) tip-off.
• The Pilots are coming off of a 78-76 win at San Francisco on Thursday.
• BYU will look for the season sweep after defeating the Pilots 85-67 in Portland on Jan. 26.
GAME COVERAGE
• Saturday’s game will be televised live on BYUtv with Dave McCann and Steve Cleveland calling the action.
• All Portland basketball games will be on the radio live on True Talk 800 AM with Bill Johnson calling the play-by-play and a 30-minute pregame show.
COMING UP
• Portland returns to the Chiles Center to host San Diego on Feb. 21 (7 PM) and then Santa Clara on Feb. 23 (2 PM)
• Tickets start at $10 for adults and $5 for kids through all Ticketmaster outlets, online at Ticketmaster.com or through the Pilot Box Office at (503) 943-7525.
ABOUT THE PILOTS
• Portland (10-17, 3-9 WCC) picked up a big road win at San Francisco as sophomore G Kevin Bailey led the way with 18 points in a 78-76 final on Thursday.
• Four Pilots reached double figures as junior F Ryan Nicholas added 15 points, sophomore C Thomas van der Mars 14 and junior G Tanner Riley 11.
• Senior PG Derrick Rodgers chalked up eight assists and has dished out 26 assists in the last three outings.
• The Pilots shot 50 percent from the field and outrebounded USF 40-33.
• Portland’s defense has allowed the fewest points per game since the 1985-86 season, but has allowed three-of-the-last-seven opponents to shoot 50 percent or better.
• Only six teams have shot better than 50 percent against UP this year.
• Nicholas, who averaged team highs of 11.5 points and 7.6 rebounds last season, is again leading the Pilots in scoring (13.3), rebounding (9.1) and double-doubles (8).
• Bailey, who played with a protective face mask for the first time since Dec. 22 on Thursday, is the only other Pilot averaging double figures at 11.3 points per game.
• Sophomore PG David Carr suffered a torn ACL in his right knee in the loss at Pepperdine on Jan. 5 and will be lost for the remainder of the season.
• Rodgers has moved into the starting role, while freshmen Bryce Pressley and David Ahern have earned minutes at the point in Carr’s absence.
• Head coach Eric Reveno returns for his seventh year on The Bluff.
• Portland is coming off a 7-24 season after winning 60 games from 2008-2011, a stretch that included back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time in school history.
• Portland returns three starters and 10 lettermen from last year’s team that finished eighth in the WCC with a 3-13 league record.
• Rodgers is the team’s lone senior.
• The Pilots were picked to finish eighth in the nine-team West Coast Conference in the pre-season coaches poll.
• The Pilots were invited to the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT) for three consecutive seasons from 2008-2011.
• All 11 UP graduates in the last three years and have gone on to play pro ball.
• Portland announced the signing of PG Alec Wintering (Concord, N.C./United Faith Christian Academy) to a NLI on November 14.
ABOUT BRIGHAM YOUNG
• The Cougars (18-8, 8-4 WCC) lost a 99-87 decision to San Francisco in Provo last Saturday.
• Leading scorer Tyler Haws, who averages 20.7 ppg, finished with 16 points against the Dons, while senior C Brandon Davies added 13 points and nine rebounds.
• It marked the second straight league loss, following a 74-68 defeat at San Diego. BYU also lost at Gonzaga (83-63) and dropped another home loss to Saint Mary’s (70-69) on a 30-foot buzzer-beater.
• The Cougars’ non-conference losses came to Florida State (88-70), at Notre Dame (78-68) and at Baylor (79-64).
• Senior Brandon Davies averages 17.8 points and 7.9 rebounds, while sophomore guard Matt Carlino adds 11.2 points per game.
• Head coach Dave Rose is in his eighth season with the Cougars and posts a 203-62 overall record.
• BYU is coming off of a 26-9 season and advanced to the second round of the 2012 NCAA Tournament. The Cougars were picked to finish second in the WCC Preseason Coaches Poll.
PORTLAND-BYU SERIES NOTES
• The Cougars lead the all-time series by an 8-0 margin.
• BYU is 4-0 against Portland in Provo.
• On Jan. 26 in Portland, the Cougars came away with an 85-67 victory as Matt Carlino finished with 24 points and Brandon Davies added 20 points and 11 rebounds.
• Ryan Nicholas led Portland with 16 points and 11 rebounds.
RODGERS ROLLING
• Senior PG Derrick Rodgers is averaging 9.0 points, 8.8 assists and 5.7 rebounds over the last three games.
• Rodgers dished out eight assists with just one turnover in Thursday’s win at USF.
• He recorded career-highs of 17 points and eight rebounds, and also dished out seven assists, in Saturday’s loss to Pepperdine, after handing out a career-high 11 assists in a win over LMU on Feb. 7.
• It marked the first time a Pilot had 10-or-more assists since T.J. Campbell had 10 against Northern Colorado on March 17, 2010.
• Rodgers broke his previous career-high of nine assists, which also came against LMU earlier this season.
• The team’s lone senior has had to log heavy minutes at the point guard position since starter David Carr went down with a season ending knee injury on Jan. 5 at Pepperdine.
• In WCC play, Rodgers ranks fifth in the league in assists per game (4.8).
VAN DER MARS GETS FIRST DOUBLE-DOUBLE
• Sophomore C Thomas van der Mars picked up his first career double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds against Pepperdine last Saturday.
• He was one rebound shy of a second consecutive double-double on Thursday, finishing with 14 points and nine rebounds.
• The Gouda, Netherlands native, a two-year starter for the Pilots, was one rebound shy of a double-double twice as a freshman.
BAILEY LOSES MASK, BREAKS OUT
• Sophomore G Kevin Bailey played without a protective mask on Thursday for the first time since breaking his nose against Colorado State on Dec. 22.
• He responded with a game-high 18 points and four rebounds.
• Bailey averaged 13.2 points and was shooting 46.4 percent from the field without the mask before the injury, but those numbers dipped to 9.6 points and 37.4 percent with the mask.
• He entered the Colorado State game averaging 22.3 points in his three previous games.
• Those averages took a hit when he suffered a broken nose from an elbow 30 seconds into the game.
• Bailey missed the remainder of the CSU game and sat out the game versus Bradley the following day.
• He returned to the lineup against UTPA on Dec. 29 wearing the protective mask, but struggled to a 3-for-14 shooting day and missed the next two games following surgery.
RILEY BOUNCES BACK IN A BIG WAY
• Junior G Tanner Riley finished 6-for-10 from the field and drained 4-of-5 three-pointers against LMU on Feb. 7 for 17 points off the bench.
• It was an important bounce back effort for Riley, who missed the previous two games due to a suspension from an on-court incident against BYU on Jan. 26.
• He added 11 points in 16 minutes off the bench against USF on Thursday.
• Earlier this season Riley scored a career-best 23 points on a perfect 8-for-8 from the field against Portland State.
PRESSLEY IMPRESSES
• Freshman G Bryce Pressley has made the most of his opportunity during the league season.
• Pressley, the son of former NBA player and Villanova NCAA Champion Harold Pressley, scored a season-high 10 points on Saturday vs. Pepperdine.
• He recorded a team season-high of six steals at Santa Clara on Jan. 31 along with eight points and four assists.
• He followed by grabbing a season-high seven rebounds in his first career start on Feb. 2 at Saint Mary’s.
• The Sacramento, Calif. native has also moved into the backup PG role over the last four games. He has 20 assists and 15 turnovers in WCC action.
NICHOLAS NEARLY PERFECT
• Ryan Nicholas was 6-for-8 from the field, 5-for-5 from three-point range and 4-for-4 from the foul line Feb. 7 vs. LMU for a game-high 21 points.
• It marked the latest impressive performance for the Spokane, Wash. native.
• He had a career night against then-No. 18 UNLV with 15 points, 19 rebounds and six assists on Dec. 4.
• The 19 rebounds are tied for the second most since Rick Raivio grabbed 20 on Jan. 18, 1979 at Air Force.
• He followed that with his third double-double of the year at No. 19 Kentucky with 15 points and 13 rebounds.
• Nicholas has led the Pilots in rebounds in all but six games this year.
• Nicknamed ‘Rhino’, he is averaging team-highs of 13.3 points and 9.1 rebounds, which is second in the WCC and 39th nationally.
• After sitting behind All-WCC forward Luke Sikma and four-year starting center Kramer Knutson as a freshman, Nicholas had a breakout sophomore year (11.5 ppg, 7.6 rpg).
• He finished the year strong with a 19-point, 14-rebound effort in the regular season finale at BYU, followed by a 24-point, 11-rebound performance in the WCC Tournament opening round win over Santa Clara.
HOME SWEET HOME
• The Pilots have rattled off a 48-22 record at the Chiles Center since the start of the 2008-09 season.
• The Pilots had a 19-game home winning streak snapped by Gonzaga in 2011.
• Signature home wins have come against Washington, Oregon, Nevada and Saint Mary’s three times.
• Portland finished the 2010-11 regular season with a 13-2 record at the Chiles Center for the second straight season.
D’ING UP
• Portland is allowing opponents just 67.2 points per game this season.
• Only six opponents have shot better than 50 percent in a game this season, although three of those have come in the last seven games.
• This year’s points allowed average is the lowest at UP since the 1985-86 season (60.7).
FRESHMEN ROLES INCREASE
• In addition to Pressley, fellow freshmen Oskars Reinfelds and Jake Ehlers have also seen increased minutes in league play.
• Reinfelds has started the four games after scoring a season-high 12 points against Gonzaga and has reached double figures in three games.
• Reinfelds also scored all 10 of his points in a second half comeback win over Bradley on Dec. 23.
• A teammate of sophomore C Thomas van der Mars at the Canarias Basketball Academy, Reinfelds was a member of the Latvian Under-18 National Team.
• Ehlers has moved into the regular rotation as well, playing 10 or more minutes in four-of-the-last-six outings.
• Ehlers guided Corvallis HS to consecutive state championships and was named Oregon’s 5A Player of the Year as both a junior and senior.
CARR INJURY LEAVES PILOTS THIN AT PG
• Sophomore PG David Carr went down with a torn ACL in the second half of the Jan. 5 loss at Pepperdine and will be lost for the season.
• The Portland native from Central Catholic HS averaged 4.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists while starting all 17 games for the Pilots.
• Senior Derrick Rodgers stepped up with 10 points and nine assists in his first start of the season on Jan. 12 at LMU.
• Walk-on freshman PG David Ahern has played in seven games off the bench.
• Ahern, who was planning on redshirting the season until the injury to Carr, had four points and an assist in six minutes against Gonzaga.
FINDING THE RANGE
• The Pilots drilled 11-of-16 three-pointers against LMU last Thursday, tying a season high for makes and setting a season-high for percentage (.688).
• The three-point shot has been a struggle for Portland this season as the team ranks last in the WCC at 31.1 percent.
• The Pilots were previously the top three-point shooting team in the country over a four-year period from 2007-10.
CHILES CENTER RENOVATIONS
• The men’s basketball locker room was renovated this summer as part of a $2.5 million investment.
• A new state-of-the-art ‘Pilot Teaching Board’ was installed in the locker room, as well as modern lockers and a more spacious wet area.
• The men’s basketball coaching staff moved into new offices as part of the build-out, while the Chiles Center training and weight rooms were also upgraded.
HOME VERSUS ROAD
• Portland is 7-6 at home this season, but 1-9 on the road.
• At the Chiles Center the Pilots are scoring 66.4 points and allowing 64.1, while on the road UP is averaging 53.1 and surrendering 70.2 points.
• The Pilots have a +8.1 rebounding margin at home and -3.4 on the road.
PILOTS SIGN POINT GUARD ALEC WINTERING
• Portland signed point guard Alec Wintering (Concord, N.C./United Faith Christian Academy) to a National Letter of Intent on Nov. 14.
• Wintering is beginning his senior season at United Faith and is coached by former NBA point guard, Muggsy Bogues.
• Bogues isn’t the only notable point guard with ties to Wintering. Former Pilot great T.J. Campbell attended Sunnyslope HS in Arizona, where Wintering began his prep career.
