Portland Pilots (1-2) vs. Abilene Christian (2-0)Date: Sunday, November 22, 2015
Tip-off: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Portland, Ore.
Arena: Chiles Center (4,852)
Video: TheW.tvRadio: 910 ESPN-Portland (KMTT)Live Stats: PortlandPilots.comPOR vs. ACU Series: First Meeting
THIS WEEK • The Pilots dropped an 85-63 decision on the road to Colorado on Friday.
• Portland returns to the Chiles Center for a Sunday meeting with Abilene Christian at 7 p.m. It is the first hosted game of the Corpus Christi Coastal Classic. The Pilots will also host Alcorn State on Tuesday at 7 p.m. before traveling to Corpus Christi and facing Colorado State in the bracketed tournament on Friday at 5:30 p.m.
TICKET INFORMATION• Single-game tickets for Friday's opener against Oregon Tech start at $10 for adults and $5 for kids. Tickets can be purchased through all Ticketmaster outlets or at the door.
• Season tickets, mini packs, and group packs are still available for the 2015-16 season.
Click here for ticket package options and pricing.
PROMOTIONS• Pre-Game Pasta will return to the Chiles Center mezzanine this season. $8 provides all you can eat pasta, salad, desserts and snacks beginning one hour prior to tip-off.
• The Pilot Club space on the south mezzanine will remain open from one hour prior to tip-off through the 12-minute mark of the second half for all regular season games this season. Pilot Club members will have open access to the space and will receive one free beverage of choice per game. A Pilot Club Gameday Pass is available for $5 for non-Pilot Club members. The pass will include one free drink token that can be used for beer or soda on that date. The space will be open to all ages and have beverage service start-to-finish. Re-entry will be allowed throughout the game and snacks will be provided after tip-off.
• For a complete list of promotional events for the upcoming season,
click here.
GAME COVERAGE• Sunday and Tuesday games will have free video broadcasts courtesy of TheW.tv with Travis Demers and Darren Cooper calling the action.
• Radio coverage on the home of the Pilots, 910 ESPN-Portland (KMTT), begins with a 30-minute pregame show. The broadcast will also feature a complete post-game show with player and coach interviews.
• Online audio simulcasts are available via 910 ESPN-Portland, while all live game statistics can be found on PortlandPilots.com.
ABOUT THE PILOTS • The Pilots (1-2) trailed by three early in the second half, but Colorado pulled way for an 85-63 win on Friday in Boulder, Colo. D'Marques Tyson led the Pilots with 12 points, all in the first half.
• Portland previously dropped a 79-66 decision at UC Davis last Sunday and defeated Oregon Tech 85-78 to open the season on Nov. 13.
• Portland is attempting 29.3 three-pointers per game, including 31 against UC Davis which was the most for the Pilots since they attempted 34 in a 2004 game.
• Portland has played up-tempo with a lot of new faces on the roster. The team attempted 80 field goals against UC Davis, the most since the team hoisted 84 on Nov. 25, 2001 against Duke.
• Senior G Bryce Pressley is averaging a team-high 15.3 points per game, including 30 in the season opener versus Oregon Tech.
• Junior PG Alec Wintering, a two-year starter and Preseason All-WCC selection, is averaging 10.3 points and 8.3 assists per game.
• Junior F Jarrel Marshall started and scored 15 points in UP's exhibition game, but suffered an ankle injury and missed the season-opener. He played limited minutes against UC Davis, but logged eight points and three rebounds in 20 minutes on Friday.
• Marshall, along with junior C Ray Barreno, are incoming JC transfers that are expected to contribute immediately. Barreno has started all three games and is grabbing a team-high 5.7 rebounds per game.
• Head coach Eric Reveno returns an experienced backcourt and seven lettermen from a 2014-15 squad that finished 17-16 overall and earned an invitation to the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament.
• The Pilots were picked fifth in the West Coast Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, while Wintering was named to the 10-player Preseason All-WCC Team.
• Wintering earned All-WCC second team honors last year after averaging 12.3 points and 5.7 assists per game. He ranked third in the league in both assists and three-point percentage (.449), fifth in steals (1.5), and ninth in free throw percentage (.794).
• Pressley, a two-year starter like Wintering, ranks fourth in Portland career three-point field goal percentage (.424). He and Wintering are co-captaining the Pilots this season.
• Portland also returns four sophomores that played key minutes last year in Gabe Taylor, Jason Todd, Tyson and Philipp Hartwich.
• The Pilots added five true freshmen to the roster, including local standout Jazz Johnson (Lake Oswego HS). Johnson broke the prestigious Les Schwab Invitational scoring record last winter by averaging 35.0 points over four games. Rashad Jackson (Bakersfield, Calif./Garces Memorial HS/IMPACT Academy) scored more than 2,100 points as a four-year prep standout and then spent last year training at the IMPACT Academy in Las Vegas. Colin Russell (Folsom, Calif./Folsom HS) led his high school to the 2014 Nor Cal State Title and consecutive Section Division titles. Xavier Hallinan (Portland, Ore./Central Catholic HS) was a two-sport prep standout in basketball and football and joins the Pilots as a walk-on. Chier Maker (Sydney, Australia/Newington College) is redshirting the 2015-16 season and will have four years of eligibility remaining beginning next season.
• Reveno picked up a pair of his former players to join the coaching staff this offseason. Mitch Johnson, a former Stanford point guard, comes on as an assistant coach, while former Pilot center Kramer Knutson also joined the staff as director of basketball operations.
• Portland announced that 6-10 center Joseph Smoyer (Portland, Ore./Franklin HS) signed a National Letter of Intent and will join the Pilots next season.
ABOUT ABILENE CHRISTIAN• The Wildcats (2-0) have defeated a pair of non-Division I opponents to open the year with victories over University of the Southwest (94-63) and Howard Payne (70-56).
• Three players are averaging double figures early this season led by Jaylen Franklin (15.0) and Jaren Lewis (13.5 pts, 8.5 rebs).
• Head coach Joe Golding is in his fifth season at Abilene Christian.
• Abilene Christian is now in its third year as a Division I member of the Southland Conference. The Wildcats finished last season 10-21 overall and 4-14 in league play.
• The Wildcats return three starters and six lettermen this year are picked to finish last in the Southland Conference Preseason Poll.
PILOTS SIGN LOCAL CENTER TO NLI • Smoyer has started for the Quakers each of the last three seasons earning All-Portland Interscholastic League First Team honors last season. He was honorable mention all-league in both his freshman and sophomore seasons.
• An elite student, Smoyer is currently the senior class President and a has been admitted to the University of Portland Shiley School of Engineering.
• Smoyer joins previous signee Alec Monson to comprise the Class of 2016. Monson signed in 2014 and will return from a two-year church mission next season.
