PORTLAND PILOTS (6-7) vs. FLORIDA A&M RATTLERS (3-10)
Date: Friday, Dec. 21, 2018
Time: 5:00 p.m.
City: Portland, Ore.
Arena: Chiles Center (4,852)
Video: TheW.tv
Radio: 910 ESPN-Portland
Live Links: Video I Audio I Stats
Overall Series: First Meeting

GAME INFORMATION
Portland concludes its four-game homestand by hosting the Florida A&M Rattlers at the Chiles Center on Friday for a 5 p.m. tip-off. The Pilots will then take a break for the Holidays before visiting Cal State Fullerton to close out the non-conference schedule on Dec. 29.

GAME COVERAGE
Friday's games will have video coverage on TheW.tv with Tom Kolker and Scott Hermo on the call. Radio coverage of all Pilot games is on 910 ESPN-Portland (KMTT) with Jason Swygard providing the play-by-play. Pregame coverage begins 30 minutes prior to tip-off. Visit PortlandPilots.com for all live coverage links.

TICKET INFORMATION
Ticket packages, promotions and youth team experience opportunities at upcoming games are available now! Kids 12 and under will receive free admission to Friday night's game which will also feature an ugly sweater contest, discounted hot cocoa, sugar cookies, photo booth with Santa Wally and everything else to get you in the spirit of the holiday season! Free peppermint sticks will be given out to all fans as well. Visit www.PortlandPilots.com/Tickets or call/text the Pilots Box Office at 503-943-GoUP (4687) for more information.

PORTLAND NOTES
• Portland has lost two straight home games to Grambling State (70-58) and Seattle U (67-56) as the offense has struggled. The 56 points on Monday was a season low, while the team shot 35 and 36 percent, respectively, from the field in the two games.
• Three of Portland's losses this season have come against teams with just one loss: North Texas (11-1), Texas State (10-1) and Colorado (8-1).
• A pair of rotation players were added to the lineup in the last week. Sophomore F Jacob Tryon returned from a foot injury that sidelined him for 10 games, while junior G Xavier Hallinan became transfer-eligible after fall semester concluded on Dec. 13.
• Sophomore G Marcus Shaver Jr. was named to the Rainbow Classic All-Tournament Team earlier this year. Last season, he became the first Pilot to earn All-WCC Freshman Team honors since Taishi Ito in 2007 and first UP freshman to garner honorable mention status since Donald Wilson in 2003. He ranks 12th in the WCC in scoring this year (14.6) and 13th in steals per game (1.5).
• Sophomore G JoJo Walker has led the team in scoring five times, including three 20-point games, and is the Pilots leader in assists per game (3.9). He also is 13th in the WCC in three-point percentage (.406)
• Freshman C Theo Akwuba has started all 12 games he has been available and ranks second in the WCC in blocked shots (2.0) and is averaging a team-high 6.5 rebounds per game. Akwuba blocked five shots against Sacramento State.
• Josh McSwiggan ranks second in the WCC in FT pct. (.914) and 16th in scoring (13.9).
• The Pilots return four starters and six of the team's seven leading scorers from a year ago. Portland also adds four redshirts to the lineup this season in Pittsburgh transfer G Crisshawn Clark, freshmen Hogland and Takiula Fahrensohn, and junior Xavier Hallinan.
• Six other newcomers join the roster highlighted by Tryon. The freshmen newcomers include Akwuba, F Josh Phillips, G Miles Turner, and F Wyatt Watson, while sophomore F Dillon Scarboro joined the roster in December.
• Injuries have sidelined Clark all season, while Tryon has missed 10 games before returning to the lineup on Saturday against Grambling State.
• Former Portland State head coach Tyler Geving has joined the Pilots as an interim assistant coach. Geving, who brings 20-plus years of coaching experience including eight at the helm of the Vikings, will fill in for Kramer Knutson who is on family leave.
• Portland signed two players to NLI's in November. 6-2 G Donyae McCaskill (St. Louis, Mo./Vashon HS) and 7-1 F/C Cody Collinsworth (Lindale, Texas/Lindale HS).
• Former NBA All-Star Terry Porter is in his third year as the head coach of the Pilots.

ABOUT FLORIDA A&M
• The Rattlers (3-10) have played 11 of 13 games away from home this season including a 61-53 loss at Loyola Marymount.
• FAMU this week lost at Utah (93-64) and Oregon (71-64).
• Justin Ravenel is the lone Rattler averaging double figures (14.3) and has made 42-of-83 three-pointers (.506).
• FAMU was picked seventh in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Preseason Poll after finishing 9-25 last season.
• Head coach Robert McCullum is in his second year at the helm.

FINALS IN THE REARVIEW MIRROR
Last week was finals on campus as the Pilots completed the fall semester on Dec. 13. School will return to session beginning on Monday, January 14 for the spring semester.

HALLINAN RETURNS
Redshirt junior G Xavier Hallinan joined the lineup and became eligible following fall semester. The Portland native contributed three points and an assist off the bench in his season debut Monday against Seattle U. Hallinan provided a spark as a walk-on during the 2016-17 season, when he averaged 10.7 points while starting the final six games and led the Pilots to a WCC Tournament win over San Diego by playing all 40 minutes. He returned to The Bluff last spring after a brief stint at Cal State Dominguez Hills.

HOGLAND PRODUCING IN THE PAINT
Redshirt freshman C Hugh Hogland had a career game on Dec. 8 against Sacramento State. He went 6-for-9 from the field and scored a season-high 13 points to go with five rebounds in 19 minutes off the bench. He followed with 11 points Saturday against Grambling State. The Hawai'i native is averaging 9.3 points and 5.0 rebounds in the last three games.

McSWIGGAN MONEY AT THE LINE
Josh McSwiggan is a 32-of-35 from the free throw line to start the season. The Loughborough, England native made his first 20 free throw attempts and is second in the WCC in FT percentage (.914). He also recorded his first double double with career highs of 37 points and 11 rebounds in the opener against Multnomah. McSwiggan buried five three-pointers at Colorado and ranks sixth in Portland history for career three-point percentage (.413).

AKWUBA ON RECORD PACE FOR BLOCKED SHOTS
Freshman C Theo Akwuba ranks second in the WCC in blocked shots per game (2.0). He has 24 blocked shots in 12 games played which is the second highest per game average in Portland history. The single-season record of 73 blocked shots was set last year by Philipp Hartwich and is within reach at his current pace. Akwuba has blocked three or more shots in six games, including a season-high five blocks on Dec. 8 against Sacramento State. He also leads the team in rebounding this season (6.5). The Montgomery, Ala. native averaged a triple double as a high school senior at 11.7 points, 14.1 rebounds and 10.4 blocked shots per game and ranked No. 2 nationally in blocks. An outstanding student, Akwuba is pursuing a computer science degree from the Shiley School of Engineering at Portland.

WALKER FINDING HIS STROKE
Sophomore G JoJo Walker has reached double figures in nine of the last 11 games, including three 20-point performances. He recorded back-to-back career highs in scoring with 22 points versus North Texas (11/10) and 23 points against CSUN (11/17). The Carolina, Puerto Rico native went 9-for-11 from the field against the Mean Green in Hawai'i. He then ignited Portland's comeback win against CSUN with 23 points, seven assists and zero turnovers in 40 minutes. Walker scored 15 second half points and made 6-of-8 from three-point range in the win. He then made 5-of-7 triples and scored 22 points to lead the Pilots over Sacramento State on Dec. 8. Walker ranks 13th in the WCC in three-point percentage (.406) and eighth in assists (3.9).

WCC OFF TO STRONG START
Nine of ten WCC programs have .500 or better records, while the league as a whole is 84-40 (.677). For comparison, that is better than the Pac-12 (76-45, .628), Mountain West (63-50, .558) and Atlantic 10 (77-72, .517). The WCC is 7-7 head-to-head against the Pac-12 thus far, while five WCC teams rank in the Top 70 of the Dec. 19 NET rankings (GON #14, USF #23, SMC #53, USD #67, LMU #69).

INJURY WARD
Portland was hit with the injury bug early in the season. Four rotation players have missed a combined 25 games thus far. Pitt transfer Crisshawn Clark has missed all 13 games, while Jacob Tryon missed all but three games this year. Center Hugh Hogland missed the game against Cal Poly, while C Theo Akwuba was out against Texas State.

EARLY GAME STRUGGLES
Portland has trailed at the half in 10 of 13 games this season, but have outscored opponents in the second half in six of those contests. Portland came back from 18 down at CSUN to defeat the Matadors and overcame a 13-point deficit to beat Cal Poly.

SHAVER JR. CONTINUES WHERE HE LEFT OFF
Freshman PG Marcus Shaver Jr. is 12th in the WCC averaging 14.6 points per game. Shaver became the first Pilot since Taishi Ito in 2007 to be named to the WCC All-Freshman Team last year and was the first UP freshman to earn All-WCC honorable mention honors since Donald Wilson in 2003. Shaver's 394 points last season were the third most by a freshman in Portland history. He has recorded double figures in 11 games this year, is 13th in the WCC in steals (1.5), and was named to the Rainbow Classic All-Tournament Team.
 
IT'S ALL IN THE FAMILY
Junior G Franklin Porter and sophomore G Malcolm Porter are both sons of Portland head coach Terry Porter. Franklin began his career at Saint Mary's his freshman year before joining the Pilots, while Malcolm was a local standout at Jesuit High School.

BUILDING WITH REDSHIRTS
The Pilots have seven players on the active roster this season that have utilized redshirt seasons. Head coach Terry Porter wanted to emphasize player development in his vision of building the program and Portland is one of 10 schools in the nation that has seven or more active redshirt players this year.

WCC SCHEDULE ADJUSTMENTS
The WCC announced changes to the league schedule and conference tournament for this offseason. Moving from an 18-game to a 16-game league schedule is the result of changes adopted by the WCC Presidents' Council as part of the Conference's Men's Basketball Enhancement Plan. Portland will not play at Gonzaga and Saint Mary's will not visit the Chiles Center this year. The top two seeds at the WCC Championships will also receive byes into the semifinals to protect the high seeds late in the season.

PILOTS ADD MORE EXPERIENCE TO COACHING STAFF
Former Portland State head coach Tyler Geving joined the Pilots as an interim assistant coach last month as Kramer Knutson is on family leave. Geving brings 20-plus years of Pacific Northwest coaching experience, including eight seasons as head coach at Portland State from 2009-17 where he won 112 games and led the Vikings to the 2014 CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament. He also spent four years as the Associate Head Coach of the Vikings from 2005-09, which included a pair of Big Sky Conference titles and NCAA Tournament appearances in 2008 and 2009.

PILOTS IN THE PROS
A total of 12 former Pilots are currently playing professionally overseas: Philipp Hartwich (Huesca, Spain), D'Marques Tyson (Vitoria SC, Portugal), Alec Wintering (Windmills, Holland), Ray Barreno (Soles, Mexico), Thomas van der Mars (Aalstar, Belgium), Volodymyr Gerun (Breogan, Spain), Bryce Pressley (Bondi Ferrara, Italy), Nik Raivio (Bayreuth, Germany), TJ Campbell (Turk Telekom, Turkey), Luke Sikma (ALBA Berlin, German), Taishi Ito (Shiga L-Stars, Japan) and Pooh Jeter (Fujian S., China).

DIVERSE ROSTER WITH INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR
Portland has a diverse roster featuring players from 12 different states or countries. There are three native Oregonians and three Californians, but no other state or territory has more than one player on the roster. Internationally, Portland has players from Mali, New Zealand and England. States represented include Hawaii, Alabama, Arizona, California, Ohio, Idaho, Washington and the US territory of Puerto Rico. Sophomore F 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.

HAWAIIAN HOMECOMING
Two Pilots had a homecoming when Portland visited Hawai'i for the Rainbow Classic on Nov. 9-10. Hugh Hogland was born and raised in Oah'u and a two-sport standout in volleyball and basketball at Iolani School. Marcus Shaver Jr. lived in Oah'u for a majority of his childhood and still has many family members and friends living in Hawai'i.

PILOTS SIGN TWO EARLY
Portland signed G Donyae McCaskill (St. Louis, Mo./Vashon HS) and F/C Cody Collinsworth (Lindale, Texas, Lindale HS) to National Letters of Intent on the first day of the early signing period on Nov. 14. McCaskill (6-3, 185) averaged 18 points, seven rebounds and six assists as a junior for Vashon HS. He helped the Wolverines to a 21-6 overall record, District 4 title, and a trip to the Missouri 4A State Basketball Championships. He had offers from Creighton, UMKC, Southern Illinois, Missouri State and Southeast Missouri State before committing to Portland. Collinsworth (7-1, 225) averaged 18.3 points, 14 rebounds and eight blocked shots per game last season for Pilot Point HS. He earned District 9-3A Co-Offensive Player of the Year honors and was named to the All-Texomaland Second Team by the Herald Democrat. The Denton-Record Chronicle selected him as the Area's Defensive Player of the Year. Collinsworth had offers from TCU, Minnesota, Wright State, Northern Colorado and Northwestern State.

FORMER PILOT COACH JACK AVINA, HALL OF FAMER DARWIN COOK HONORED
Portland honored former head coach Jack Avina prior to its first exhibition game with a video tribute and moment of silence. Avina, who racked up a school-record 222 wins during his tenure from 1970-87, passed away on Oct. 4 at the age of 89. The tribute fittingly happened when the Pilots hosted Antelope Valley, coached by former Avina player and Pilot Hall of Famer, Darwin Cook. Cook, who still holds the school records for assists and steals and had an eight-year NBA Career, was also honored prior to tip-off.

HALL OF FAME CIRCUIT
Head coach Terry Porter, a two-time NBA All-Star with his jersey retired by the Portland Trail Blazers, earned some more recognition this offseason. He was inducted this fall into both the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame and the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Porter was a standout for Wisconsin Stevens-Point under legendary head coach Dick Bennett prior to his 17-year NBA career.

PILOTS ON THE TV & RADIO
Portland will have an extensive TV package with a minimum of 10 games aired nationally or regionally. Games will primarily be seen on ROOT Sports NW, while Portland's home game against BYU on Feb. 7 will air on ESPN2 or ESPNU. Visit PortlandPilots.com for complete schedule details and full TV listings. Pilot games will once again have live radio coverage on 910 ESPN-Portland with Jason Swygard calling the action. Each broadcast will feature a 30-minute pregame show and complete post-game coverage. The Terry Porter Show will air also air each Monday night (barring travel/game conflicts) throughout the season from 7-8 PM.