PORTLAND, Ore. – Sophomore Josh McSwiggan scored 14 points to lead four Portland players in double figures as the Pilots defeated San Jose State by a 64-55 margin Saturday night in non-conference basketball action before 2,098 fans at the Chiles Center.

Freshman point guard JoJo Walker added 13 points and five assists, freshman guard Marcus Shaver Jr. finished with 11 points and sophomore Franklin Porter added 10 points for the Pilots (4-6).

Defense was the key for Portland as the Spartans (2-7) were held to 35 percent shooting for the game.

Ryan Welage scored a game-high 21 points for San Jose State, but had just six points and one field in the second half.

Walker and McSwiggan buried back-to-back three-pointers to give Portland its largest lead of the night at 55-44 with 4:29 remaining and the Spartans would get no closer than seven the rest of the way.

For the second straight game the Pilots came out firing and built a 12-3 lead on four early three-pointers. In Wedneday's loss to Cal State Fullerton at the Chiles Center, Portland started with a 13-0 run to open the game, but struggled down the stretch. Saturday had a similar early blueprint, but the Pilots righted the ship and locked down defensively to secure the win.

The Spartans chipped away at the early deficit and were able to tie the game at the half on a three-quarter court heave at the buzzer by Jaycee Hillsman to make it 32-32.

Isaiah Nichols opened the second half with a three-pointer to give San Jose State its first lead of the game out of the break. The teams would trade leads four times in the early part of the second period before the Pilot defense helped create separation.

Keith Fisher tied the game at 39-39 with a dunk at the 14:52 mark of the second half, but the Spartans would be held scoreless for the next 6:37. San Jose State made just one field goal over more than a 13-minute stretch as the Pilots built a double-digit lead.

Portland shot 45 percent overall, made 8-of-21 three-pointers and converted 18-of-25 free throws overall. The Spartans made 6-of-19 three-pointers and 15-of-20 at the foul line.

SJSU entered the game outrebounding opponents by nearly nine per game, but the Pilots were able to hold their own on the boards and grabbed 26 rebounds compared to 30 for the Spartans.

Freshman big man Tahirou Diabate and junior guard Rashad Jackson provided important quality minutes off the bench for Portland. Diabate came on for Hartwich, who drew two early fouls, and finished with seven points, two rebounds, a block and a steal in 13 first half minutes. Jackson provided a defensive presence, forcing two turnovers, grabbing a pair of rebounds and knocking down 3-of-4 free throws in 16 minutes.

Portland will next take the court on the road against the Seattle University Redhawks on Saturday at KeyArena. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will be aired on the WAC Digital Network. Radio coverage begins at 6:30 p.m. on 910 ESPN-Portland (KMTT).