PORTLAND PILOTS (11-7, 4-3 WCC)
WEEK 12: vs. Loyola Marymount / Pepperdine
 
LMU Lions (7-13, 3-4 WCC)
Day: Thursday
Date: Jan. 23, 2019
Place: Portland, Ore.
Time: 7 p.m.
Gym: Chiles Center
Online: Video I Stats
 
POR vs. LMU
Overall: 32-35  •  Last 5/10: 1-4/1-9
H: 20-12  •  A: 12-20  •  N: 0-3
Last: LMU 70, @POR 54 (2/28/19)
 
Pepperdine Waves (9-8, 3-4 WCC)
Day: Saturday
Date: Jan. 25, 2019
Place: Portland, Ore.
Time: 2 p.m.
Gym: Chiles Center
TV: NBC Sports NW
Online: Video I Stats
 
POR vs. PEPP
Overall: 30-38  •  Last 5/10: 3-2/6-4
H: 20-12  •  A: 9-24  •  N: 1-2
Last: @POR 85, PEPP 63 (3/2/19)
 
THIS WEEK
• The Pilots begin a stretch of four straight home games when they host LMU and Pepperdine for a pair of West Coast Conference contests at the Chiles Center.
• Thursday's game against the Lions is set to begin at 7 p.m., while Saturday's tip-off with the Waves is scheduled for 2 p.m.
• Portland's game vs. Pepperdine will be broadcast live on NBC Sports Northwest.
• Online links for a live stream and live stats for the game can be found at PortlandPilots.com.
 
TICKETS/PROMOTIONS
• Fans can visit PortlandPilots.com/Tickets or call/text 503-943-GoUP for information on tickets every Pilot home game.
• For information on all fan promotions, please visit PortlandPilots.com/Promotions.
 
LAST WEEK
• The Pilots swept their two-game WCC road trip to the Bay Area, holding off San Francisco 73-66 on Thursday night before defeating Santa Clara 80-77 on buzzer beater from Kate Andersen on Saturday afternoon.
• The Pilots and Broncos were never separated by more than five points, and Andersen buried a game-winning corner three as time expired.
• Alex Fowler exploded for a career-best 35 points against the Broncos, which is the most points scored by a WCC player this season.
• Andersen finished with 20 points, and Haylee Andrews registered her second double-double with 15 points and 12 assists.
• Andrews also scored a game-high 24 points against the Dons.
 
ABOUT THE PILOTS
• At 4-3 in the WCC, the Pilots are off to their best start in league play since also going 4-3 in 2009-10; additionally, 11-7 is the best record after 18 games since that same year.
• Last weekend's wins at USF and SCU marked the first WCC weekend road sweep for the Pilots since 2009-10 (also at USF & SCU), and they've won three straight conference road games for the first time since 2008-09.
• Following Portland's road sweep, freshman forward Alex Fowler was named the WCC's Player of the Week for the second time this year.
• Fowler poured in a career-best 35 points at Santa Clara, she averaged 26 points and eight rebounds, and shot 65 percent from the field.
• She also nabbed the WCC's weekly award on Nov. 25 when she averaged 23.5 points and 7.0 rebounds during Portland's games at CSUN and Air Force.
• Fowler leads the WCC in scoring (17.4 ppg) and she's second in field goal percentage (.556); her 35 points at Santa Clara are the most scored by a WCC player this year.
• The 35 points are also the most scored by a Pilot since Jasmine Wooton went off for 36 points in 2013, and Fowler is the first Pilot to score at least 30 points since Cassandra Brown in 2015.
• Fowler also has a team-best four double-doubles this season, and she ranks 10th nationally in field goals made (134).
• In her last four games, sophomore guard Haylee Andrews is averaging 18.8 points and 10 assists.
• During wins over Saint Mary's (1/11) and Santa Clara (1/18), Andrews dished a career-best 12 assists.
• The 12 assists are the most by a Portland player since ReZina TecleMariam also collected 12 dimes in 2011; the program record for assists in a game is 13.
• Andrews is second in the league in scoring and assists, and her 7.3 assists in WCC contest are tops in the conference.
• Andrews was the league's inaugural player of the week (Nov. 11) after she averaged 23 points and 8.5 rebounds during Portland's two season-opening wins.
• Earlier this season, Portland just missed matching a program single-game DI record by one when they tallied 24 assists overall at CSUN.
• The Pilots began the season 4-0 for only the third time ever in program history, and it was the first time since 2010-11.
• The Pilots lead the league in both assists (18.1) and steals (11.3), and they're second in field goal percentage (.450), margin of victory (+7.4), and three-point field goal percentage defense (.279).
• Portland is 14th nationally in assists and 17th in steals.
• On Jan. 4, the Pilots won 57-48 at BYU, ending a 20-game losing streak to the Cougars; it was the first win for Portland over BYU since the 1998-99 season.
• Portland has just one senior on the roster, local product Kate Andersen (Jesuit HS), who's averaging a career-high 14.2 points; she ranks 14th nationally in steals (3.2).
• Maddie Muhlheim ranks sixth all-time at UP with 155 career three-pointers, and last year she set a program single-game record when she buried nine three's against USD.
• She's currently second in the conference in three-pointers per game (2.2).
• The Pilots are under the guidance of first-year head coach Michael Meek.
• In nine years at George Fox, Meek led the Bruins to eight NCAA DIII Tournaments, which included national title game appearances in 2012 and 2015.
• Meek ranks fourth in career winning percentage (239-42, .851) among active coaches with five-plus years of experience at all divisions of women's college basketball.
• First-year assistant coach Sharon Rissmiller ('01) is a UP alum who starred on the court for the Pilots from 1997 to 2001; she still ranks ninth all-time with a .770 career free throw percentage, and she compiled 1,069 career points.
• Portland has been to four NCAA Tournaments (1994-97), two WNIT's (1998 & 2009) and one WBI (2010).
 
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS
• The LMU Lions have won three straight games, and they're averaging 65.7 points, while allowing 68.5.
• Four Lions are scoring in double digits, led by Chelsey Gipson at 13.0 ppg; Jasmine Jones (8.1 rpg) is the team's top rebounder.
• Charity Elliott is in her eighth year as head coach at LMU.
• The Pepperdine Waves are fourth nationally in turnovers per game (11.5) and they're 23rd in blocks (5.1).
• The Waves are scoring 66.4 points per contest, they're allowing 66.6, and Paige Fecske (12.6 ppg) is the team's top scorer.
• Kristen Dowling is in her first year as head coach of the Waves.