PORTLAND, Ore. – The University of Portland men's basketball program has announced its non-conference schedule for the 2023-24 season. The Pilots will host seven home games, have road trips to Nevada, North Dakota State and North Dakota, a crosstown meeting with Portland State, as well as previously announced events at the Jerry Colangelo Classic and at the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic.

The schedule officially tips off with a Portland doubleheader at the Chiles Center on Monday, Nov. 6. The UP women host San Diego State at 5 p.m. followed by the men against Long Beach State at 7:30 p.m. Three more home games follow against Lewis & Clark (Nov. 8), UC Riverside (Nov. 12) and Tennessee State (Nov. 15).

Portland hits the road for the first time with a visit to Nevada on Saturday, Nov. 18, before returning to host Willamette on Nov. 25.

The Pilots travel to crosstown rival Portland State on Tuesday, Nov. 28 and will look to beat the Vikings for the fifth consecutive time.

That is followed by the final two non-conference home games featuring Mountain West Conference opponents Wyoming (Dec. 1) and Air Force (Dec. 3).

The team hits the road again for a trip to North Dakota State (Dec. 7) and North Dakota (Dec. 9) before traveling to Phoenix, Ariz. for a matchup with 2023 NCAA Tournament participant Grand Canyon on Saturday, Dec. 16.

Portland will then take part in one of the highest profile multi-team events in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic from Dec. 21-24. The Pilots take on host Hawai'i to open the tournament at 8 p.m. on Dec. 21 and then will face either Georgia Tech or UMass next. The opposite side of the bracket features TCU, Nevada, Temple and Old Dominion.

West Coast Conference play will start the first week of January with the official league schedule expected to be announced soon.

Head Coach Shantay Legans and the Pilots will bring back several key players including two-time All-West Coast Conference guard, Tyler Robertson. Robertson averaged 15.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and a WCC-best 5.2 assists per game last season.

Chris Austin, who averaged 14.2 points for the Pilots during the 2021-22 season, will return to the active roster next year after redshirting this past season with a broken leg. Juanse Gorosito earned All-WCC Freshman Team honors, broke the Pilot freshman record for three-pointers made (63) and started 12 games, while center Vasilije Vucinic started 10 games. Portland is also eager to integrate Vukasin Masic (Maine transfer) and freshman Bol Dengdit who are coming off redshirt seasons and expected to be key contributors.

An intriguing group of newcomers includes transfers Alimamy Koroma, Thomas Oosterbroek, Noah Jordan and Yuto Yamanouchi-Williams, as well as freshmen Tyler Harris,  Vincent Delano, Cyprian Hyde, Kelson Gebbers and Jude Harris.

Season tickets can be reserved by visiting PortlandPilots.com/mbbtickets or contacting the Pilot Box Office at (503) 943-7525 or emailing taylord@up.edu.

2023-24 UP MEN'S BASKETBALL NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE
Nov. 6  vs. Long Beach State^, 7:30 PM
Nov. 8 vs. Lewis & Clark, 6 PM 
Nov. 12 vs. UC Riverside, 2 PM
Nov. 15 vs. Tennessee State, 6 PM
Nov. 18 at Nevada, TBA 
Nov. 25 vs. Willamette, 5 PM
Nov. 28 at Portland State, TBA
Dec. 1 vs. Wyoming, 6 PM
Dec. 3 vs. Air Force, 2 PM
Dec. 7 at North Dakota State, TBA
Dec. 9 at North Dakota, TBA
Dec. 16 vs. Grand Canyon#, TBA
Dec. 21 at Hawai'i*, 8 PM
Dec. 22 vs. Georgia Tech/UMass*, 8/10:00 PM
Dec. 24 vs. TCU/Nevada/Temple/Old Dominion*, TBA

Home games in bold
^Doubleheader with the women
*Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic (Honolulu, Hawai'i)
# Jerry Colangelo Classic (Phoenix, Ariz.)