Portland Pilots (8-15, 2-8 WCC) vs. Pepperdine Waves (4-18, 1-9 WCC)
Date: Thursday, Feb. 1, 2018
Time: 7:00 PM
Place: Portland, Ore. (Chiles Center)
Video: TheW.tv
Radio: 910 ESPN-Portland
Stats: StatBroadcast
Tickets: PortlandPilots.com/Tickets
Series: POR trails 38-59 (H: 22-24 A: 14-30 N: 2-5)
Last Meeting: Pepperdine 78, Pilots 60 (Jan. 26, 2017 at Pepperdine)

GAME INFORMATION
The Portland Pilots are home for games against Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount this week. The Waves visit for a Thursday night tip-off at 7 p.m. at the Chiles Center, while the Lions and Pilots are slated for a 1 p.m. tip on Saturday afternoon. Visit PortlandPilots.com/Tickets for ticket information and use promo code 'PILOTS' for a half off discount. Saturday will also feature $1 hot dogs at concessions.

GAME COVERAGE
Thursday's game airs on TheW.tv with Travis Demers and Darren Cooper on the call. Saturday is the WCC Game of the Week and will be aired in Portland on ROOT Sports Northwest. Tom Glasgow and Francis Williams will provide the commentary. Live radio coverage is on 910 ESPN-Portland (KMTT) with play-by-play voice, Jason Swygard.

PORTLAND NOTES
• The Pilots dropped a pair of games to ranked opponents last week. Following a road sweep of San Diego and LMU, Portland dropped a 95-79 decision to No. 15 Gonzaga at home on Thursday night. The Pilots then were dealt a 72-55 loss at No. 16 Saint Mary's on Thursday. Freshman G Marcus Shaver Jr. led the Pilots with 16 points versus Gonzaga, while freshman PG JoJo Walker scored a team-high 15 points at Saint Mary's.
• Portland has one of the youngest rotations in the nation and has started three freshmen, a sophomore and a senior the last four games. Walker, sophomore G/F Josh McSwiggan and senior C Philipp Hartwich are the only Pilots to have started all 23 games.
• Portland's two seniors have risen up the UP charts this season. Hartwich broke the school career record for blocked shots earlier this year and then swatted six shots at LMU on Jan. 20 to become the Pilot single-season leader (60). He is leading the WCC in blocks per game (2.6) and is  second in the league in rebounds (8.7).
• D'Marques Tyson is second in UP history for career three-pointers made (226).
• McSwiggan is leading the Pilots in scoring at 11.7 points per game, has reached double figures 15 times thus far and is fourth in the WCC in three-point percentage (.444).
• Shaver is averaging a team-best 11.4 points per game in WCC play and has led the team in scoring 16 games this season.
• Terry Porter's 2017 recruiting class was ranked No. 10 nationally by HoopScoop. The class was the highest rated in the WCC and No. 2 nationally among mid-majors. Nine newcomers comprised the class with seven freshmen and two junior college transfers.
• Portland has a diverse roster featuring players from 13 different states/countries. There are four Oregonians, but no other region with more than one player. Internationally, Portland has players from Mali, New Zealand, Germany and England.
• The Pilots signed 6-8 post Josh Phillips (Huntington Beach, Calif.) to a NLI during the early signing period.
• Portland took an August foreign tour to England and went 3-1 on the trip. The Pilots defeated 2017 British Basketball League runner-up Newcastle on a buzzer-beater by Franklin Porter, dropped a buzzer beater to BBL Champions Leicester, and posted two comfortable wins against academy teams.
• Xavier Hallinan returned to the Portland roster over winter break. Hallinan was a walk-on for two years and played significant minutes down the stretch last season, starting the last six games. He will sit out this season, but can practice with the team.
 
ABOUT PEPPERDINE
• The Waves (4-18, 1-9 WCC) were picked seventh in the WCC Preseason Poll, but injuries have hit Pepperdine hard. With the return of leading scorer Kameron Edwards (15.5) after missing a month due to a concussion, the Waves are looking to get on track.
• Division I wins for Pepperdine have come against Oral Roberts, UC Riverside and last week against conference rival LMU on a three-pointer just before the end of regulation.
• Colbey Ross leads all WCC freshmen in scoring (14.6) and assists (5.5).
• Pepperdine leads the all-time series against the Pilots by a 59-38 margin, but the Pilots have won 11 of the last 13 games at the Chiles Center.
• Head coach Marty Wilson is in his seventh year at the helm of his alma mater.
 
YOUTH MOVEMENT
The Pilots feature one of the youngest rosters in the nation. Portland has 10 underclassmen with eight freshmen and two sophomores. Freshman PG JoJo Walker has started all 23 games this year and freshman G Marcus Shaver Jr. has scored 15 or more points eight times this season.

SHAVER JR. CONTINUES SCORING SURGE
Whether starting or coming off the bench, freshman G Marcus Shaver Jr. has provided Portland with consistent scoring. The Phoenix, Ariz. native has reached double figures in 12 of the last 14 games and is leading the team in scoring in WCC games (11.4).

GETTING DEFENSIVE
Portland's stifling defense against San Diego on Jan. 18 limited the Toreros to 36 percent shooting and the 49 points allowed was the lowest for the Pilots since holding Oregon State to 45 points on Dec. 18, 2016. San Diego point guard Isaiah Wright, who erupted for a career-high 30 points at Portland on Jan. 4, was held to a season low three points on Thursday. Portland held just two Division I opponents 70 points or less in non-league play, but the Pilots have held five WCC opponents to 70 or less through 10 games.

BENCH PROVIDES LIFT
Although Portland played just seven players in a 72-65 win at LMU on Jan. 20, Franklin Porter and D'Marques Tyson provided huge contributions off the bench. Porter scored a game-high 16 points on 5-of-8 in 25 minutes, while Tyson buried a pair of crucial three-pointers in the second half to thwart LMU's rally. Tyson then finished with 15 points off the bench on Thursday against Gonzaga, while freshman G Malcolm Porter added 11 and 12 points against the Zags and Saint Mary's, respectively.

McSWIGGAN MAKING SHOTS
Josh McSwiggan has led the Pilots in scoring nine times this year, reached double figures in 15 of 23 games, and is averaging a team-high 11.7 points per game. The Loughborough, England native had a circuitous route to Portland. After committing to UTEP and sitting out his freshman season, he transferred to Casper College (Wyoming) and had a solid 2016-17 campaign. Portland assistant coach Bob Cantu, who recruited McSwiggan to UTEP, kept in touch and helped garner his commitment to the Pilots. McSwiggan was then able to return to his roots and play in his hometown in front of friends and family when Portland took a foreign tour to England in August.
 
HARTWICH SETS RECORD, CONTINUES BREAKOUT SEASON
Senior C Philipp Hartwich broke the school career record for blocked shots on Dec. 19 against Hartford and then set the single-season school record on Jan. 20 at LMU. The Cologne, Germany native swatted three attempts against Hartford to pass former teammate Thomas van der mars (121, 2011-15) for the top spot. He now has 147 and counting. He blocked a career best six shots at Loyola Marymount to eclipse the single-season school record (60). Hartwich averaged 1.4 points and 3.0 rebounds through his first three years on The Bluff, but is averaging 5.8 points, 8.7 rebounds and 2.6 blocked shots this year. He has recorded his first three career double-doubles, leads the WCC in blocked shots, and is second in rebounding.
 
DIABATE SURGING IN RETURN TO STARTING LINEUP
Freshman F Tahirou Diabate was re-inserted into the starting lineup when the Pilots hosted San Diego on Jan. 4 and scored the team's first six points and matched a season-high with 13 points. He got off to another fast start two nights later with the opening six points at Santa Clara and finished with career highs of 15 points, 10 rebounds and four blocked shots. He came up big again at San Diego on Jan. 18 with the go-ahead basket with less than two minutes remaining and finished with 11 points and then added 14 points and seven rebounds in a Jan. 20 at Loyola Marymount.

TYSON CLIMBING UP CHARTS
Senior G D'Marques Tyson is the leading returning scorer for the Pilots after averaging 8.5 points per game a year ago. Tyson, a three-point specialist, ranks second all-time in three-pointers made at Portland (226). He passed Casey Frandsen (211, 2000-04) after drilling five three-pointers against Sacramento State on Dec. 21 and now trails only Jared Stohl (336, 2007-11). Tyson is also No. 6 in career three-point percentage (.412).
 
THREE-POINT THREATS
Portland is third overall in the WCC in three-point percentage (.381) and makes 8.2 three-pointers per game. The Pilots have made nine or more triples in 10 games this year. Three Pilots rank in the Top 15 in the WCC for three-point percentage led by Josh McSwiggan (4th, .444) and D'Marques Tyson (9th, .420).
 
WALKER RESILIENT
Freshman PG JoJo Walker is from Puerto Rico and still has many family and friends that were impacted by the hurricanes. Walker left Puerto Rico to gain greater basketball exposure and opportunities when he was a freshman in high school and settled in Santa Maria, Calif. Originally supposed to be a short stint, Walker developed such a connection with his host family and friends that he ended up staying all four years at St. Joseph HS. Despite only getting back to Puerto Rico a couple weeks per year, Walker's entire biological family still calls Carolina, Puerto Rico home. His mother, father, and grandfather were able to get off the island and visit JoJo in Portland in early October and were also at the PK80 Tournament. The Pilots were able to use the NCAA Natural Disaster Exemption to host an exhibition game against Eastern Washington on Oct. 29 that raised nearly $3,000 for Red Cross efforts benefitting Puerto Rico relief.
 
DIVERSE ROSTER WITH INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR
Portland has a diverse roster featuring players from 13 different states or countries. There are four native Oregonians, but no other state or territory with more than one player on the roster. Internationally, Portland has players from Mali, New Zealand, Germany and England. States represented include Hawaii, Arizona, California, South Carolina, Ohio, Idaho, Washington and the US territory of Puerto Rico. Freshman Tahirou Diabate is from Mali, but has lived in France, the Canary Islands, and Japan and speaks five languages: Bambara (native), English, French, Spanish and Japanese.

ENGLAND FOREIGN TOUR IN AUGUST
Portland went on a foreign tour to England in August and finished with a 3-1 record. The Pilots defeated 2017 British Basketball League runner-up Newcastle on a buzzer-beater by Franklin Porter, dropped a buzzer beater to BBL Champions Leicester, and comfortable defeated a pair of academy teams during the trip. In addition to the games and tours in London, the team was able to get 10 extra days of practice on campus. Visit PortlandPilots.com/LondonTour for complete details on the trip.
 
PILOTS INK ATHLETIC BIG DURING EARLY SIGNING PERIOD
Portland signed Josh Phillips (Huntington Beach, Calif./Edison HS) to a NLI on the first day of the early signing period, head coach Terry Porter announced. Phillips (6-8, 190) will join the Pilots as a freshman in the fall of 2018. Porter and the Portland coaching staff targeted a 2018 post this summer and Phillips caught the staff's attention immediately. He earned All-Sunset League First Team honors and helped Edison post a 23-5 overall record and 9-1 mark in the Sunset League. The team advanced to the second round of the CIF Southern Section 2017 Boys Basketball Division I-AA Championships. "Josh impressed us with his ability to make multiple effort plays consistently as we evaluated him in the recruiting process," Porter said. "He has good size, length and athleticism, a great motor, and the tremendous desire to defend and rebound. His shot blocking ability will translate right away and he is always doing the little things that helps winning programs. He will bring a unique skillset to our frontline next year."
 
PILOTS IN THE PROS
A total of 11 former Pilots are currently playing professionally overseas: Alec Wintering (Araberri, Spain), Ray Barreno (Panteras de Aguascalientes, Mexico), Thomas van der Mars (Kalev/Cramo Tallinn, Estonia), Volodymyr Gerun (FC Barcelona B, Spain), Bryce Pressley (Palencia, Spain), Nemanja Mitrovic (Araberri, Spain), Nik Raivio (Legnano, Italy), TJ Campbell (Turk Telekom, Turkey), Luke Sikma (ALBA Berlin, German), Taishi Ito (Toyota Alvark, Japan) and Pooh Jeter (Tianjin Gold Lions, China).

IT'S ALL IN THE FAMILY
Sophomore G Franklin Porter and freshman G Malcolm Porter are both coming off of redshirt seasons and in 2017. Franklin transferred to UP after playing one season at Saint Mary's, while Malcolm signed with the Pilots after graduating from Jesuit High School. Both players are also sons of Portland head coach Terry Porter. They are one of 30 brother tandems on the same team this year at the NCAA Division I level.

RECRUITING CLASS RANKED NO. 10
Terry Porter put together a nine-player 2017 recruiting class that one publication has been ranked as the No. 10 in the nation. In his first full recruiting cycle, Porter and his staff were recognized by HoopScoop.com to have the top class in the WCC and No. 2 class nationally among mid-major schools. Three of those newcomers will redshirt the 2017-18 season - Crisshawn Clark due to NCAA transfer rules after coming to Portland from Pitt, Takiula Fahrensohn is coming off of knee surgery, and Hugh Hogland is redshirting to focus on development.
 
SUITS AND SNEAKERS
Portland joined others around the country last week to participate in the annual Coaches vs. Cancer Suits And Sneakers® Week. The nationwide event ran from Jan. 22-28 and unites coaches across the country to raise funds and awareness about the fight against cancer. Coaches will wear sneakers with their game attire as a visible reminder about the importance of nutrition and physical activity in reducing one's cancer risk. Portland is also participating in the Coaches vs. Cancer 3-Point Challenge where fans can pledge a donation for every 3-Point shot the Pilots make in games from Jan. 25-Feb. 24. Visit the PortlandPilots.com/Challenge for more information.