Men's Hoops Hosts LMU, Pepperdine in Final Homestand

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

Portland Pilots (13-11, 5-7) vs. LMU Lions (11-14, 3-10)
Date: Thursday, Feb. 13, 2014
Tip-off:7:00 p.m.
Location: Portland, Ore.
Arena: Chiles Center (4,852)
Video: TheW.tv
Radio: Sports 910
 
Overall Series: 43-47
At UP: 26-16
At LMU: 15-25
At Neutral: 2-6
Last: POR 71, LMU 57 (at LMU – Jan. 16, 2014)

GAME INFORMATION
• Portland returns to the Chiles Center for its final two home games of the regular season beginning on Thursday at 7 p.m. versus Loyola Marymount. The Pilots will then host Pepperdine on Saturday at 1 p.m., which will serve as Senior Day for Portland's four seniors.
• Thursday's game will be streamed on TheW.tv with Ray Crawford and Jordan Cornette on the call, while Saturday is the WCC Game of the Week and will be televised live on ROOT Sports NW, Comcast California and with Barry Tompkins and Jon Crispin calling the action.
• Sports 910 AM (KMTT) is the primary home of Portland Basketball. Veteran voice of the Pilots Bill Johnson provides the play-by-play with a 30-minute pregame show.

TICKETS & PROMOTIONS
• Both games will feature 2-for-1 adult ticket prices, while kids receive free admission (6th grade and younger).
• Thursday features the annual Halftime Mile as members of the Pilots Indoor Track Team will compete in a mile race for fans on the Chiles Center track at halftime.
• Saturday is Senior Day and will also feature a halftime paper airplane toss to a trip to Hawaii courtesy of All About Hawaii Travel.
 
ABOUT THE PILOTS
• The Pilots (13-11, 5-7 WCC) sit in sixth place in the WCC standings after a close loss at Gonzaga last Wednesday in Spokane. Portland trailed by 22 points in the first half before taking a late four-point lead. The Pilots were unable to finish it off and lost by a 71-66 margin.
• Senior F Ryan Nicholas led the Pilots with 15 points and 15 rebounds in the loss for his WCC-leading ninth double-double.
• Junior G Kevin Bailey added 13 points and sophomore G Bryce Pressley had 11.
• Portland's first five WCC games were at home, while the second half of UP's schedule features 7-of-9 games on the road.
• Bailey, who leads the Pilots and ranks seventh in the WCC in scoring (16.5), became Portland's 36th 1,000-point scorer in a game at Santa Clara on Feb. 1. He has reached double figures in all but two games this year and scored 20-plus eight times.
• Nicholas joined Portland's 1,000-point club in the second half against Princeton on Dec. 21. He is the WCC leader in rebounding (9.2) and is third on the team in scoring (12.5). He also ranks sixth on Portland's career rebounding list.
• Junior C Thomas van der Mars has had a breakout year averaging 12.6 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. His 19-point, 18-rebound effort vs. Portland State earned him league player of the week honors on Dec. 9.
• Portland returns all five starters and nine lettermen from last year's team that finished 11-21 overall.
• Head coach Eric Reveno returns for his eighth year on The Bluff and recorded his 100th career win on Nov. 27 vs. San Jose State.
• Assistant coaches Eric Jackson and Mike Wolf also return for their eighth year, while Colin Pfaff returns for his second year as an assistant coach.
• Portland looks to return to its 2008-11 success, a stretch that included back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time in school history and 60 wins over three seasons.
• The Pilots were invited to the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT) for three consecutive seasons from 2008-2011.
• The Pilots were picked to finish ninth in the 10-team West Coast Conference in the pre-season coaches poll.
• Coach Reveno posts a 100 percent graduation rate and the men's basketball program has one of the top APR scores in the nation (995), receiving a Public Recognition Award from the NCAA last spring.
 
ABOUT LOYOLA MARYMOUNT
• The Lions (11-14, 3-10) have lost four straight and 10-of-their-last-11 games entering Thursday.
• Senior PG Anthony Ireland is one of the top players in the WCC and ranks second in league scoring at 18.5 per game. He is also second in assists (5.4).
• LMU was picked to finish sixth in the WCC Preseason Coaches Poll.
• Head coach Max Good is in his sixth season with the Lions and posts a 75-112 overall record.
• LMU owns a 47-43 overall series edge over Portland, but the Pilots are 26-16 at home in the series... Last year the Portland swept the regular season series, but the Lions bounced the Pilots from the opening round of the WCC Tournament in Las Vegas (65-54)... Portland defeated LMU 71-57 on Jan. 16 in Los Angeles... Coach Reveno is 11-7 all-time against the Lions.

PORTLAND VS. RANKED OPPONENTS
• The Jan. 9 win vs. Gonzaga was the seventh all-time for Portland against an AP Top 25 program and the first since defeating No. 22 Minnesota at the 2009 Anaheim 76 Classic.
• Portland is 1-2 this year against ranked opponents, losing to then-No. 1 Michigan State on Nov. 18 and then dropping last Wednesday's game at No. 20 Gonzaga (71-66). The Pilots are now 7-55 all-time against AP Top 25 ranked opponents.

• The victory win over GU snapped an 11-game losing streak against ranked opponents.

BAILEY JOINS 1,000-POINT CLUB
• Junior G Kevin Bailey has had a breakout season and joined teammate Ryan Nicholas as the 36th member of the 1,000 point club. His 10 points at Santa Clara on Feb. 1 pushed him over the mark and he now has 1,020 points for his career.
• He has reached double figures in 22 of the 24 games, scored 20 or more points eight times, and logged a career-high 29 points in the season opener over UC Davis.
• A three-year starter, the Clovis, Calif. native averaged 11.4 points last season and 9.5 points per game as a freshman.

AMONG THE WCC LEADERS...
• Portland is second in the WCC in blocked shots (4.4), assists (15.2) and 3-point pct. (.398), and third in scoring (77.5), assist-turnover ratio (1.3), and FT pct. (.745).
• Ryan Nicholas leads the league in rebounding (9.2) and Bryce Pressley is the tops in three-point percentage (.500). Van der Mars is second in FG pct. (.600). Pressley (2.4) and Wintering (2.3) are second and third in assist-to-turnover ratio, respectively.
• Wintering is also sixth in steals (1.5), seventh in assists (4.4) and 12th in free throw percentage (.823).

 

SHARP-SHOOTER
• Junior G Bobby Sharp not only hit eight three-pointers and broke his previous career-high of 18 points with his 27-point effort against BYU on Jan. 23, many of the three-pointers were clutch and against defensive pressure.
• The two biggest threes came in the final 30 seconds of the second overtime period as the Pilots came back from an eight-point deficit with 2:39 remaining.
• His fade-away three tied it at 103 with 13 seconds left and UP cruised in the third OT.
• Sharp is shooting 46 percent from beyond the arc in league play which ranks ninth, while his 29 three-pointers made in conference play are third overall.

VAN DER MARS ERUPTS
• Junior C Thomas van der Mars had another monster game with a career-high 28 points and 11 rebounds at Santa Clara on Feb. 1. He was 9-for-10 from the field and 10-for-10 from the free throw line for his sixth double-double of the year.
• Van der Mars previously scored 27 points with 18 rebounds in the triple overtime win against BYU on Jan. 23. 21 of his points came after halftime.
• He also dropped a 19-point, 18-rebound effort against Portland State on Dec. 7 that earned him WCC Player of the Week honors.
• He became the first Pilot to win the weekly honor since Jan. 31, 2011.
• Van der Mars had a remarkable second half against the Vikings, finishing with 17 points and 11 rebounds after the break. Overall, he was 6-for-8 from the field and made 7-of-9 free throw attempts in the victory.
• The Gouda, Netherlands native scored 21 points with 12 rebounds against North Texas. He also had 15 points and 12 rebounds against Idaho.
• Van der Mars has 64 career blocked shots are seventh in school history.

NICHOLAS CLIMBING CAREER CHARTS
• Senior F Ryan Nicholas scored his 1,000th career point in the second half against Princeton on Dec. 21 to become the 35th player in school history to reach the mark. He currently ranks 17th in school history with 1,139 points.
• The Spokane, Wash. native is leading the WCC in rebounding (9.2) and cracked the top 10 in school rebounding history after his 16-rebound effort against North Texas. His 780 career rebounds are sixth all-time and eight shy of Bill Garner ('59-63) for fifth.
• Nicholas is a three-year starter and led the Pilots in scoring and rebounding each of the past two seasons.
• Nicknamed 'Rhino', he sat behind All-WCC forward Luke Sikma and four-year starting center Kramer Knutson as a freshman but followed with a breakout sophomore year (11.5 ppg, 7.6 rpg). He averaged 13.0 points and 8.7 rebounds last season.

 

WINTERING GIVEN THE KEYS

• Freshman PG Alec Wintering dished out a season-high 13 assists with just one turnover against San Francisco on Dec. 28. It was the most assists by a Pilot against a Division I school in program history, and one shy of the school record set by Dionn Holton (14 vs. Southern Oregon — Dec. 9, 1995).
• He ranks third in the WCC this season in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.3).
• The Concord, N.C. native has started all 24 games for the Pilots and matched his season high with 15 points against USF on Jan. 29
• He is shooting a team-best 82 percent from the free throw line this year.
• Portland secured a commitment from Wintering out of United Faith Christian Acad. in North Carolina, where he was coached by former NBA point guard Muggsy Bogues.
• Wintering's ties to Portland go back to when he lived in Arizona and looked up to former Pilot PG T.J. Campbell, a two-time All-WCC selection for the Pilots in 2008-10.

 

IM-PRESSLEY
• Sophomore G Bryce Pressley had a remarkably efficient game in the win over Gonzaga on Jan. 9. He finished with 16 points on 5-of-6 from the field, 2-of-2 from three-point range and 4-of-4 at the foul line. He added nine assists with zero turnovers, and also had two rebounds, two blocked shots and two steals.
• Pressley previously earned WCC Player of the Week honors on Dec. 23, joining Thomas van der Mars as the second Pilot in three weeks to be recognized.
• He was named the MVP of the South Point Holiday Hoops Classic after scoring a career-high 25 points in the win over Princeton. He was 8-for-10 from the field, 5-for-5 from three-point range and 4-for-4 at the foul line. His previous career high was 10.
• The Sacramento native picked up his first career double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds in the win over Pacific on Jan. 2.

• Pressley started the final seven games of the 2012-13 season and also took over backup point guard duties late in the year.
• The son of former NBA standout and NCAA Champion Harold Pressley (Villanova, '86), he has started every game on the wing this year and is also the backup point guard.
• An all-around versatile talent, Pressley has improved his shot is leading the WCC in three-point percentage (.500).

RECORD BREAKING GAME
• The win over BYU on Jan. 23 marked just the second triple overtime game in UP history. The other was an 82-81 win over San Jose State on November 27, 1984.
• BYU's Tyler Haws scored 48 points to break the Chiles Center individual scoring record, previously held by UP's Matt Houle (43) on Feb. 13, 1993 against San Francisco.
• The 114 points scored by the Pilots were the most against a Division I opponent in school history.

• Bobby Sharp, who hit seven three-pointers over the games final 22 minutes, was trending nationally on Twitter during the overtime periods.

SCORING PUNCH
• Scoring is up significantly this season for the Pilots as the team is averaging 77.5 points per game, the highest for a UP squad the 1991-92 season when current Miami HEAT head coach Erik Spoelstra was a senior point guard for the Pilots and the team averaged 80.9 points per game.
• Portland ranks third in the WCC in team scoring.
• Last year the Pilots averaged 61.0 points and the team averaged 65.1 points during the 2011-12 season.

IT'S ALL ACADEMIC
• Thomas van der Mars (3.95, Operations Technology Management) was named to the Capital One Academic All-District 8 Team and is eligible for Acad. All-America Honors.
• Ryan Nicholas (3.47 GPA, Psychology) and van der Mars were named to the 2013 WCC All-Academic Team, while Riley Barker (3.46, Marketing) was honorable mention.
• Nicholas picks up his second award in as many years.
• Coach Reveno has had a total of 13 WCC All-Academic selections in his seven years.
• Reveno also posts a 100 percent graduation rate (17 players) and the men's basketball program has one of the top APR scores in the nation (995), receiving a Public Recognition Award from the NCAA last spring.

BLOCK PARTY
• Portland ranks second in the WCC in blocked shots per game (4.4).

• Junior centers Riley Barker and Thomas van der Mars rank sixth and seventh in school history with 70 and 64 blocked shots, respectively.
• Junior G Kevin Bailey (52) is four shy of cracking the school's Top 10 list.
• Tim Frost (2000-02) owns the all-time Pilots record with 103 blocked shots.

DOMINATING THE BOARDS
• After being outrebounded in the first three games of the season, Portland has had a positive rebounding margin in 15 of the last 21 outings.
• For the season the Pilots have a +2.2 rebounding margin.
• During Coach Reveno's eight year tenure, the Pilots have had a positive rebounding margin in all but one season (2011-12, -0.4).