PORTLAND PILOTS (8-3, 0-0 WCC)
WEEK 7: at Pepperdine / LMU
 
Pepperdine Waves (6-4, 0-0 WCC)
Day: Saturday
Date: Dec. 29, 2018
Place: Malibu, Calif.
Time: 2:00 PM
Gym: Firestone Fieldhouse
Live Video: PortlandPilots.com
Live Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. PEPP
Overall: 29-37  •  Last 5/10: 4-1/7-3
H: 19-12  •  A: 9-23  •  N: 1-2
Last: @POR 82, PEPP 58 (2/24/18)
 
Loyola Marymount Lions (7-5, 0-0 WCC)
Day: Monday
Date: Dec. 31, 2018
Place: Los Angeles, Calif.
Time: 2:00 PM
Gym: Gersten Pavilion
Live Video: PortlandPilots.com
Live Stats: PortlandPilots.com
 
POR vs. LMU
Overall: 32-33  •  Last 5/10: 1-4/3-7
H: 20-11  •  A: 12-19  •  N: 0-3
Last: @LMU 76, POR 55 (2/3/18)
 
THIS WEEK
• The Pilots open play in the West Coast Conference when they travel to Southern California for games against Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount.
• First is a trip to Malibu for a 2 p.m. contest against the Waves on Saturday at Firestone Fieldhouse.
• Portland then heads to Gersten Pavilion in Los Angeles on Monday to face the Lions, with tip-off also set for 2 p.m.
• Links for live streams and live stats can be found at PortlandPilots.com.
 
LAST WEEK
• The Pilots concluded the non-conference portion of their schedule by splitting a pair of home games against UC Irvine and Air Force.
• First on Sunday, Dec. 16, the Anteaters broke open a close game in the fourth quarter to win 84-69.
• Julie Spencer registered 19 points and eight rebounds vs. UCI, while Haylee Andrews flirted with a triple-double, collecting 17 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
• Against the Falcons on Tuesday, Dec. 18, five Pilots scored in double digits to help the Pilots bounce back with a solid 79-60 win.
• Spencer scored a game-high 21 points and Kate Andersen recorded her first career double-double with 10 points and 10 boards, which matched a career-best.
 
ABOUT THE PILOTS
• At 8-3, Portland has the program's best record after 11 games since also going 8-3 in 2010-11.
• Previously, Portland's 7-2 mark was the Pilots' best start to a season since 1997-98.
• The Pilots also opened the year with three straight road wins, which hadn't happened since 2010-11.
• The Pilots have already surpassed last year's win total of seven victories.
• The Pilots are the top scoring offense in the West Coast Conference, averaging 77.0 points per game.
• Portland is also No. 1 in the WCC in three-pointers (8.8), is second and steals per game (9.9) and scoring margin (+9.4), and they rank third in field goal percentage (.435), three-point percentage (.353), free throw percentage (.754) and assists per game (15.7).
• Senior Darian Slaga enters conference play with 976 career points and is on the verge of becoming the 25th player in Portland women's basketball history to join the 1,000-point club.
• Slaga also ranks third all-time at UP with an .814 career free throw percentage, and she's ninth in career three-pointers with 115.
• Senior Julie Spencer is also on pace to reach the 1,000-career point milestone as she currently has 885 points.
• She ranks No. 4 all-time at Portland with 411 defensive rebounds; she's collected 609 career rebounds overall, which is just five shy of cracking UP's all-time top 10 in that category.
• Spencer is first in the WCC in offensive rebounds (3.3), she's third in three-pointers made (24), fourth in overall rebounds (7.8), and fifth in points (16.1).
• The senior has three double-doubles this year, ranking second in the WCC, and she corralled 14 boards during a win at Weber State, which are tied for the second most rebounds in a game by a WCC player this season.
• Freshman Haylee Andrews is off to a stellar start to her career, averaging 12.5 points and a team-best 4.6 assists, which ranks third in the WCC; she's also second in the league in three-point percentage (12-for-23, .522).
• Andrews opened her collegiate career with 19 points, six rebounds and six assists during a win over Utah Valley (Nov. 10), and she corralled a career-best 10 boards against Utah State (Nov. 28).
• She also claimed her first career double-double with 10 points and 10 assists vs. Warner Pacific (Dec. 7); the 10 dimes are tied for the most in a game by a WCC player this season.
• Sophomore Maddie Muhlheim is a perfect 16-for-16 from the free throw line this season, and she's tied with Spencer for second in the conference with 24 three-pointers.
• Last year Muhlheim set a program record for three-pointers by a freshman when she knocked down 48 from behind the arc.
• The Pilots returned their five top scorers from a year ago, and they brought back 78 percent of their scoring from the 2017-18 season.
• 2018-19 marks the fifth year for head coach Cheryl Sorenson, who was previously an assistant for the Pilots.
• Sorenson, who starred collegiately at the University of Washington, was a high school All-American at nearby Clackamas High School.
• Back on the Portland bench is fifth-year assistant coach Steve Lowe.
• Skyler Young and Tiffany Gibson, who spent the past three years as Portland's director of operations, are in their first years as assistant coaches.
• Alex Brown takes over director of operations responsibilities.
• Portland has been to four NCAA Tournaments (1994-97), two WNIT's (1998 & 2009) and one WBI (2010).
 
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS
• The Pepperdine Waves won their final non-league game, which was a 51-46 decision over Northern Kentucky in Rhode Island.
• The Waves are out-scoring opponents 67.5 to 65.4, and they're led by the WCC's top scorer, senior forward Yasmine Robinson-Bacote (18.7 ppg).
• Robinson-Bacote is also the team's top rebounder (7.0 rpg), and Pepperdine's per game mark of 40.8 boards is second in the WCC.
• Three-time WNBA all-star and two-time Olympic gold medalist DeLisha Milton-Jones is in her second year as Pepperdine head coach.
• The LMU Lions claim wins over UCLA and at Arizona this season.
• Senior guard Gabby Green is one of three Lions scoring in double figures, putting up a team-best 16.7 points per game.
• Senior forward Bree Alford is second in the WCC in rebounds (8.4 ppg), while LMU ranks first as a team (41.5).
• Charity Elliott is in her seventh year as head coach at LMU.