PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland Pilots defeated traditional NAIA power Oregon Tech by an 86-59 margin in non-conference men's basketball action before 1,541 fans Sunday night at the Chiles Center. The Pilots were tested early, but pulled away late in the first half and never looked back.

The Pilots (2-1) would lead by as much as 30 points late in regulation and were able to get all 12 active players into the game.

Redshirt sophomore Josh McSwiggan led the way with 16 points and seven rebounds, while freshman Tahirou Diabate added 13 points and six rebounds to lead the Pilots. Junior Rashad Jackson scored all 13 of his points in the second half.

The Pilots shot 48 percent from the field and limited the Hustlin' Owls to just 27 percent overall. Portland drilled 9-of-22 three-pointers, while OIT finished at 4-of-25 from long range.

Portland jumped out to an early 21-10 lead to open the game, but the Owls used a 12-2 run capped by a Will Swank three-pointer to close the gap to 23-22. The Pilots responded and consecutive three-pointers by freshmen Marcus Shaver Jr. and JoJo Walker pushed the margin back to double figures. The Pilots would lead 41-26 at the half.  

The second half opened with a 9-3 UP run with Diabate scoring all nine of the points, highlighted by a steal and dunk for a 50-29 lead. OIT pulled within 53-34 on a layup by Quim Vallve, but D'Marques Tyson answered with a Pilot three-pointer and the margin stayed over 20 the rest of the way.

Senior center Philipp Hartwich blocked four more shots and has 14 through three games. He became the third player in school history to pass 100 career blocked shots (101) and is now two shy of second place and 20 shy of the program record.

Portland will now prepare for the highly-anticipated PK80 Invitational this week hosted at the Moda Center and Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The Pilots will face defending NCAA champion and No. 9-ranked North Carolina on Thanksgiving morning. The game will tip at 11:30 a.m. live on ESPN.

Fans in town are encouraged to gather at Dr. Jacks at the Rose Quarter 60 minutes before each scheduled UP tip-off to meet up with fellow Pilot fans.