PORTLAND, Ore. – Portland shot a season-low 34 percent from the field and dropped a 67-62 home game to the North Dakota State Bison Monday night at Chiles Center.
Kristian Sjolund scored a team-high 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting and Vasilije Vucinic added 12 points on 6-for-11 from the field. The rest of the team went a combined 8-for-43 in the game and the Pilots made just 5-of-19 three-pointers.
Tyler Robertson added nine points, 11 rebounds and seven assists for the Pilots (7-5), while Moses Wood added 13 points and eight rebounds.
Portland out-rebounded North Dakota State 42-36 in Monday's game. The Pilots also grabbed 14 offensive rebounds and scored 12 second chance points.
The Portland defense caused its share of mistakes in Monday's game, forcing 13 North Dakota State turnovers while committing 12. Those takeaways turned into 12 points on the offensive end of the floor. Sjolund's two steals led the way individually for the Pilots.
How It Happened
After falling behind 21-9, Portland went on a 6-0 run with 6:18 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Wood, to narrow its deficit to 21-15. The Pilots continued to close the gap, cutting the North Dakota State lead to 28-24 by the end of the first half.
Portland came out of halftime with an 8-0 run, finished off by Sjolund's jumper, to seize a 32-28 lead with 16:55 to go in the contest. The teams would have six ties and 12 lead changes in the second half before the Bison (2-8).
Jack Perry drilled a three for a 55-52 lead with 5:17 left for the Pilots, but NDSU scored the next eight points. Robertson hit a runner to make it a 60-57 deficit with 1:52 remaining. A pair of free throws by Boden Skunberg made it 64-57 with 32 seconds left, but the Pilots got a three-pointer from Wood, steal and dunk by Sjolund to make it 64-62 with 19 seconds left.
Skunberg made 1-of-2 free throws and Wood had a good look at a deep three to tie it, but came up short. After two more missed Bison free throws, the Pilots were unable to corral the rebound as Skunberg grabbed the second miss and was fouled and he converted both at the stripe to ice the game.
Skunberg finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds to lead four Bison in double figures.
Game Notes
» The Pilots shared the ball well, recording an assist on 64 percent of made field goals.
» Portland lost despite a 42-36 rebounding advantage.
» The Portland defense forced 13 turnovers.
» Portland cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 14 offensive boards in the game.
» Kristian Sjolund led the Pilots with 19 points.
» Portland got a game-high 11 rebounds from Tyler Robertson.
Up Next
The Pilots conclude their homestand on Saturday with a doubleheader on The Bluff. The Pilot women host Portland State at 3 p.m. followed by the men versus New Orleans at 5:30 p.m.
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