MALIBU, Calif. – The Portland men's basketball team fell to the Pepperdine Waves 94-93 on the road Saturday on Jevon Porter's buzzer-beating shot as time expired in double overtime. The game ended in bizarre fashion as the Waves escaped in a heartbreaking loss for the Pilots.
Portland led by five with 12.7 seconds left in double OT, but the Waves made a layup to pull within three. After a pair of missed UP free throws, Jay Yoon made a layup and was fouled with 1.6 seconds remaining. He missed the free throw and Kristian Sjolund corralled the rebound. The buzzer went off, but the referees went to an official review and determined that Sjolund was fouled with 0.6 seconds left and then was charged with a Flagrant 1 foul after the play.
With Sjolund fouled out, Jack Perry came on to make 1 of 2 free throws and give UP a 93-91 lead. Houston Mallette then made 1 of 2 to make it 93-92. Pepperdine executed an out of bounds lob to Porter who pushed it in from eight feet as the buzzer sounded.
The Pilots (12-14, 4-7 WCC) had three players score in double figures, led by Tyler Robertson, who had a double-double with a career-high 35 points and 14 rebounds. Mike Meadows tacked on 19 points from the bench and Sjolund helped out with 16 points.
Robertson pulled down four offensive rebounds to pace the Portland offense which grabbed 15 boards and turned them into 11 second chance points.
The Portland defense caused its share of mistakes in Saturday's game, forcing 18 Pepperdine turnovers while committing 17. Those takeaways turned into 14 points on the other end of the floor. Juan Sebastian Gorosito led the way individually for the Pilots with two steals.
How It Happened
Portland started out the scoring by going on a 9-0 run, culminating in a three from Moses Wood, to take an early lead with 17:38 left in the first half. The Pilots then surrendered that lead and entered halftime down 36-35.
Pepperdine kept widening its lead after intermission, constructing a 42-35 advantage before Portland went on a 7-0 run, finished off by Sjolund's three, to even the score at 42 all with 16:28 to go in the contest.
At the end of regulation, Sjolund was fouled on a three-pointer trailing 70-67 with 6.7 seconds left and buried all three to force the first overtime. Then the Pilots overcame a six-point deficit in the overtime period as Meadows drilled a tough three-pointer with the less than seven seconds to force a second overtime.
Robertson and Meadows continued to make the big plays in the second overtime before Pepperdine stole the win late.
Game Notes
» Tyler Robertson notched an impressive double-double for the Pilots with 35 points and 14 rebounds.
» Portland lost on a last-second shot by Jevon Porter.
» Portland rallied from a one-point 36-35 halftime deficit to force overtime before ultimately coming up short.
» Tyler Robertson, Mike Meadows, and Kristian Sjolund combined to account for 75 percent of the Pilots points.
» The Portland bench made an impact by adding 28 points to its scoring output.
» The Portland defense forced 18 turnovers.
» Portland cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 15 offensive boards in the game.
» Tyler Robertson led the Pilots with a game-high 35 points.
» Portland got a game-high 14 rebounds from Tyler Robertson.
Up Next
The Pilots return home to host a pair of WCC games next week. The Pacific Tigers visit on Thursday for a 6 p.m. tip-off and then Portland hosts No. 22 Saint Mary's on Saturday at 3 p.m. Visit PortlandPilots.com for tickets and game coverage information.