Pilots Host No. 7 Gonzaga Saturday Night on ESPN2

Complete Release (PDF) I Live Video I Live Audio I Live Stats

Portland Pilots (10-4) vs. #7 Gonzaga Bulldogs (13-1)
Date: Jan. 3, 2015
Time: 6:30 PM
Location: Portland, Ore.
Venue: Chiles Center (4,852)
Radio: Sports 910 (KMTT)
Television: ESPN2

Portland vs. Gonzaga Series
Overall Series: 66-93
Home/Road: 35-36/22-45
Neutral/Unknown: 9-12
Last 5/10: 1-4/1-9
Last: GON 71, POR 66 (2/5/14 at GON)

THIS WEEK
• The Pilots host No. 7 Gonzaga in the WCC home-opener on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. Chiles Center doors will open at 5 p.m.
• The game is sold out, but will be televised nationally on ESPN2 with Beth Mowins and Stan Heath calling the action.
• All Portland basketball games will be aired live on Sports 910 (KMTT) with pregame coverage beginning 30 minutes prior to tip-off. Bill Johnson will call the play-by-play all season long.
• Live stats, audio and video links are available at PortlandPilots.com.

ABOUT THE  PILOTS
• Portland split a WCC-opening road series with a buzzer-beating win at San Diego (61-58) on Saturday, before falling at BYU (97-88) on Monday.
• Sophomore PG Alec Wintering buried a game-winning three-pointer with 0.3 seconds left to cap a come-from-behind win against the Toreros.
• Portland trailed by six with 2:49 remaining, but held San Diego scoreless the rest of the way. Senior F Volodymyr Gerun finished with 13 points and a career-high 14 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.
• Wintering dropped a career-high 30 points in the loss to BYU. Portland trailed by 22 points midway through the second half, but cut the deficit to seven with two minutes remaining. BYU made free throws down the stretch to hold on.
• Senior leading scorer Kevin Bailey has missed the last seven games with a foot injury and will be a game-time decision against Gonzaga.
• Senior C Thomas van der Mars scored his 1,000th career point on Dec. 14 at Sacramento State. He then cracked the UP top 10 in rebounds a game later.
• Wintering ranks top seven in the WCC in assists, free throw percentage, steals, three-point percentage and assist-to-turnover ratio. His 52.9 percent from three-point range tops the league.
• Freshmen Jason Todd and D'Marques Tyson continue to impress. Todd has played consistent minutes since Bailey went down, while Tyson has been an efficient scorer, including 13 first-half points at San Diego and a season high 25 points in 17 minutes in the team's loss to Valparaiso.
• Senior G Bobby Sharp is finding his shooting stroke after struggling early. Sharp has made two or more three-pointers in seven of the last eight games and is 15-for-35 from beyond the arc the last six games.
• Two of the Pilots three losses this season have come in overtime: versus Oregon State (65-58) and at UNLV (75-73).
• Portland is 4-1 this season in games decided by five points or less after finishing 1-7 last season.
• The Pilots lead the WCC in blocked shots (4.3) as senior C Riley Barker and van der Mars are both approaching the school record for blocked shots.
• The Pilots rank 14th nationally in free throw percentage (.756), 28th in rebounding margin (+7.6), 41st in three-point percentage (.386), 50th in assists per game (15.6), and 68th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.21).
• Portland returns four starters and seven of the top eight scorers from last year's team that finished 15-16 overall.
• Bailey, a four-year starter, averaged 16.5 points per game a year ago before missing the final seven games with a leg injury. He leads four Pilots averaging double figures this season at 13.1 points per game.
• Van der Mars is also a four-year starter and he's the 37th player in program history to reach 1,000 career points. He was a Preseason All-WCC selection by the league's head coaches and Academic All-American last year.
• Portland added five newcomers to the roster this season with four freshmen and a junior college transfer. Four of the newcomers have Pacific Northwest ties, while the fifth is 7-footer Philipp Hartwich (Cologne, Germany).
• Head Coach Eric Reveno added experience to his staff in the offseason with the addition of veteran NBA head coach Herb Brown and former Portland Trail Blazers video coordinator Tim Grass.
• Portland looks to return to the form it had from 2008-2011, a stretch that included back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time in school history and 60 wins over three seasons.
 
ABOUT NO. 7 GONZAGA
• The Bulldogs (13-1, 2-0 WCC) are ranked No. 7 in this week's Associated Press poll and No. 8 in the USA Today Coaches Poll.
• Gonzaga swept BYU (87-80) and San Diego (60-48) on the road last week to open conference play.
• The team's lone loss was in overtime at Arizona (66-63), while notable wins have come against UCLA, St. John's, SMU and Georgia.
• The Bulldogs are rated No. 5 in the Dec. 31 NCAA RPI.
• Gonzaga has a veteran roster that includes Kentucky transfer Kyle Wiltjer (17.1 ppg) and USC transfer Byron Wesley (12.3 ppg).
• Senior PG Kevin Pangos is a four-year starter and averages 11.5 points and 5.0 assists per game.
• Head coach Mark Few is in his 16th season at the helm of the Bulldogs and has led Gonzaga to the NCAA playoffs each season along with 14 WCC Championships.
• Last season, Portland snapped a 20-game losing streak to Gonzaga and recorded the first win at the Chiles Center over the Bulldogs since 1996 with an 82-73 win on Jan. 9... The Pilots then overcame a 22-point deficit to take a late lead in Spokane before falling 71-66 for a season split.

PORTLAND VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS
• Last season's win versus Gonzaga was the seventh all-time for Portland against an Associated Press Top 25 program and the first since defeating No. 22 Minnesota at the 2009 Anaheim 76 Classic. The victory snapped an 11-game losing streak against ranked opponents.
• Portland is now 7-55 all-time against AP Top 25 ranked opponents and has never defeated a top 10 opponent.

WINTERING CONTINUES BREAKOUT CAMPAIGN
• Sophomore PG Alec Wintering continues to break personal records and climb the Portland single-game and career charts.
• After burying a step-back three-pointer to win the game at San Diego with 0.3 seconds left, Wintering erupted for 30 points at BYU on Monday night.
• It is the first 30-point game for a Pilot since Jared Stohl finished with 30 against Idaho on Dec. 22, 2009.
• He also finished 15-of-17 from the free throw line, marking the first 15 makes from the foul line since Darren Cooper versus Oregon on Dec. 22, 2005.
• Wintering dished out a season-high 12 assists at Sacramento State and followed up with 24 points and five assists at UNLV.
• He already has four 20-point games this season after entering the season with a career-high of 15 points as a freshman.
• He had 27 points with six assists against Portland State on Dec. 3 after going 7-of-12 from the field and 11-of-13 at the foul line.
• That effort bettered his career-high of 24 points, established at San Jose State on 7-of-11 from the field, 4-of-4 from three-point range, and 6-of-6 at the foul line.
• The Charlotte, N.C. native is shooting the ball with much more confidence this season. He leads the WCC in three-point percentage (.529, 18-of-34) and is fourth in free throw percentage (.848).
• Wintering also ranks fourth in the league in assists (5.1), fifth in steals (1.4), and seventh in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.9).
• He had a phenomenal freshman campaign in which he started the first 27 games before a leg injury sidelined him the final four games of the season – Portland went 0-4 without him.
• Wintering ranked third in the WCC in assist/turnover ratio (2.1) and FT percentage (.879), fourth in assists (5.4) and fifth in steals (1.7) last year.
• His 13 assists against San Francisco were the most by a Pilot against a D-I school in program history, and one shy of the school record.
 
OFFENSIVE EFFICIENCY
• The Pilots rank third in the WCC and 77th nationally in points per game (73.3)
• Portland's 39 percent from three-point range ranks 41st nationally, while the team's 75.6 from the free throw line is 14th in the nation.
• Portland has shot 71 percent or better from the free throw line in the last 11 games.

REBOUNDS AND BLOCKED SHOTS
• Portland has used its size and experience to become a good rebounding team and the top shot blocking squad in the WCC.
• The Pilots have outrebounded 12 of the 14 opponents this season and rank 28th nationally with a +7.6 rebounding margin.
• Portland averages 4.3 blocked shots per game, tops in the WCC.

VAN DER MARS REACHES MILESTONES
• With 20 points during a win at Sacramento State on Dec. 14, Thomas van der Mars became the 37th player in school history to score 1,000 career points.
• He now has 1,058 career points and also ranks fourth in school history in field goal percentage (.563) and tied for third in blocked shots (88).
• A native of The Netherlands, van der Mars also ranks ninth on the UP career rebounding charts (673).
• Van der mars had a dominating performance against Portland State on Dec. 3 with 19 points and 14 rebounds. He was 9-for-9 from the field.
• A third team Academic All-American and WCC honorable mention pick last year, van der Mars was named to the Preseason All-WCC Team this season.
 
PILOTS GO BIG
• Portland has experimented with a big starting lineup with some success against both UNLV and BYU.
• Portland started a frontline of three 6-11 players with regulars Thomas van der Mars and Volodymyr Gerun joined by Riley Barker in both games.

BARKER NOT JUST BLOCKING SHOTS
• Riley Barker has stepped up big this season, including a season-high 14 points and seven rebounds versus UNLV in his first start this year.
• He added 10 points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots at BYU.
• Barker is one of the top shot blockers in school history and has a good chance to break the all-time record. He is currently second overall with 90 blocks, 13 shy of leader Tim Frost (2000-02).
• The Surrey, British Columbia native has blocked two or more shots in four of the last five games.

GERUN GETS GOING
• Senior F Volodymyr "Voldy" Gerun recorded his third double-double of the season with 13 points and a career-high 14 rebounds at San Diego.
• He was named to the Challenge in Music City All-Tournament Team over Thanksgiving weekend and has been solid all season after moving into the starting rotation.
• He erupted for a career high 21 points on 10-of-12 shooting against SIU-Edwardsville. That came six days after recording his first career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds at San Jose State.
• Gerun joined the Pilots last season after a brief stop at West Virginia, but playing behind a pair of three-year starters in the post averaged just 11.2 minutes per game.
• He dropped 15 pounds over the last offseason and it showed as he logged 41 active minutes against SJSU.
• Gerun earned the starting nod in place of the graduated Ryan Nicholas and is averaging 10.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, and ranks third in the WCC in field goal percentage (.578).
 
CLOSE CALLS
• Portland has already played three overtime games this season and had two other games go down to the final possession. The Pilots are 4-1 in games decided by five points or less.
• Portland opened the season with an overtime win at San Jose State, lost in OT at home to Oregon State and then dropped another extended game at UNLV.
• Games at Sacramento State and versus Murray State in Nashville also came down to the closing seconds with the Pilots pulling out both wins.
• The latest thriller came at San Diego, with Alec Wintering winning the game with a three-pointer with less than one second remaining.
• Last season, the team went 1-7 in games decided by five or less and was 1-1 in overtime games.

BAILEY BATTLING FOOT INJURY
• Senior G Kevin Bailey got off to a fast start averaging 13.1 points per game, but the Clovis, Calif. native injured his foot against Portland State and has missed the last seven games. He is recovering and will be a game-time decision on Saturday.
• Bailey hit a big jumper and two free throws late against Murray State to clinch the win against the Racers. He also ignited Portland's second half rally against San Jose State with 13 points over the final 10:29, including the game-tying three-pointer with 3:14 remaining.
• Bailey has 1,112 career points which ranks 21st in school history.
 
IT'S ALL-ACADEMIC
• Under Coach Reveno the Pilots have thrived academically.
• Last season Thomas van der Mars was named a third team CoSIDA Academic All-American, becoming just the second men's basketball player in program history to earn the honor (Rick Raivio, 1980).
• Senior F Ryan Nicholas was also the recipient of the Division I-AAA Athletic Director's Association Postgraduate Scholarship and joined van der Mars on the 10-player national all-academic team.
• The team boasts a 100% graduation rate, a near-perfect rating in the NCAA's Academic Progress Rate, and 14 WCC All-Academic selections since 2007.

FRESHMEN BREAK OUT
• Freshman G Jason Todd has also played important and effective minutes since moving into the rotation over the last ten games.
• He is averaging 21.3 minutes over that span and shooting 50 percent from the field, including 7-of-13 from three-point range. More importantly, Todd has been one of the team's best perimeter defenders and can play multiple positions on the wing or as a stretch four.
• Todd, the two-time Washington Gatorade State Player of the Year at Mill Creek HS, grabbed a season-high eight rebounds versus Montana State and scored a season-best seven points versus Lewis & Clark.
• Freshman G D'Marques Tyson has also had a great impact already. He scored a season-high 25 points off the bench in Portland's loss to Valparaiso at the Challenge in Music City. Tyson finished the game 9-for-11 from the field and 6-for-8 from three-point range. He also had 13 first half points against San Diego on Saturday.
• Tyson is second on the team with 23 three-pointers made this season and is shooting 41 percent from beyond the arc.
• The Bothell, Wash. native played last season at Quality Education Academy in North Carolina after helping lead Lakeside HS to the Washington 3A title game as a junior.

STAFF ADDITIONS
• Head Coach Eric Reveno bolstered his staff with an infusion of NBA-level expertise in the offseason.
• Herb Brown, who has 45 years of coaching experience including four NBA Championship rings, joined the bench as an assistant coach.
• Former Portland Trail Blazers Video Coordinator, Tim Grass, was hired as Portland's Video Technology Coordinator.
 
DEFENSIVE ASSIGNMENTS
• Portland has been focused on defense throughout the preseason and early regular season.
• The coaching staff is tracking how many times per game the Pilots record three consecutive defensive stops... The goal? Seven is the target per game. 
 
EARLY NLI SIGNINGS
• Portland announced three NLI signings during November's early signing period.
• Jazz Johnson (Lake Oswego, Ore/Lake Oswego HS), Colin Russell (Folsom, Calif./Folsom HS) and Chiir Maker (Sydney, Australia/Newington College) will join the Pilots as freshmen next year.
• Johnson (6-0, 175) is a combo guard that earned Oregon 6A All-State honorable mention honors last season. He was a Three Rivers League First Team selection in his first year with the Lakers after leading the league in scoring. Last week he broke the Les Schwab Invitational scoring record by averaging 35.0 points per game against elite national competition.
• Russell (6-8, 220) is an active post presence and has raised his profile over the last two seasons while playing for highly competitive prep and club teams. He helped Folsom High School win the California Division 2 Northern Region Championship and led the team to a runner-up finish at the state championship.
• Maker (6-7, 190) is a versatile wing with good size and athleticism. Throughout his prep career at Newington College he put up big numbers while displaying a nice shooting stroke with good range.
 
TELEVISION SCHEDULE
• Ten Portland games will be featured on regional or national television.
• The Pilots host Gonzaga on ESPN2 on Saturday, Jan. 3.
• Portland will be featured on the Time Warner Cable SportsNet Game of the Week in matchups versus San Francisco (Jan. 10) and San Diego (Feb. 28). Those games will also air live on ROOT Sports Northwest.
• ROOT will also broadcast five other Pilot games, the contest at BYU will air on BYUtv, and the road matchup with Pepperdine is on Time Warner Cable SportsNet.
• Watch parties for all televised Pilot road games will once again be hosted by Buffalo Wild Wings Lloyd District this season.
 
SPORTS 910 ONCE AGAIN IS THE HOME OF THE PILOTS
• The Pilots have returned to Sports 910 (KMTT) for all men's basketball games as well as the Monday night Portland Pilots Basketball Show.
• Coverage for all home and road games begins with a 30-minute pregame show and concludes with postgame highlights, stats and interviews.
• Veteran voice of the Pilots Bill Johnson is back to call the action and host the Portland Pilots Basketball Show, which airs each Monday 7-8 p.m. throughout the season and features head coach Eric Reveno in studio.
• Fans are encouraged to call in with questions and comments about the program to (503) 542-0910. The show will be streamed live via both Sports 910 and PortlandPilots.com. Fans can interact and ask questions via Twitter using the hashtag #AskCoachRev.