PORTLAND, Ore. – Portland opened West Coast Conference play with a 78-64 victory over the Pacific Tigers Saturday night at the Chiles Center. Five Pilots reached double figures as the Pilots improve to 7-9 overall and 1-0 in league, while the Tigers fall to 6-11 and 0-2 in WCC action.
Tyler Robertson led the way with 19 points, nine rebounds, eight assists and three steals.
Sophomore forward Yuto Yamanouchi-Williams came off his redshirt to make his Pilot debut and performed well. Inserted into the starting lineup, he grabbed a pair of rebounds and drilled a three-pointer on the opening two possessions. Yamanouchi-Williams finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds and a blocked shot in 21 minutes.
Freshman guard Tyler Harris tacked on 16 points and nine rebounds, while Bol Dengdit and Chris Austin added 12 points apiece. Harris pulled down three offensive rebounds to lead the Portland offense which grabbed 14 boards and turned them into 18 second chance points.
How It Happened
After falling behind 20-18, Portland went on an 8-0 run with 7:04 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Harris, to take a 26-20 lead. The Pilots then lost some of that lead, but still entered halftime with a 33-30 advantage. Portland did most of its first half damage in the paint, scoring 18 of its 33 points close to the basket after making just 3 of 20 three-pointers.
Following intermission, Portland kept widening that lead, expanding it to 60-49 before going on a 9-0 run, finished off by Harris' three, to grow the lead to 69-49 with 7:57 to go in the contest. The Tigers narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Pilots still cruised the rest of the way for the 78-64 win. Portland shot well from three-point range in the half, hitting eight shots from deep to score 24 of its 45 points.
Game Notes
» Yuto Yamanouchi-Williams notched a double-double in his Pilot debut with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
» Yamanouchi-Williams came off his redshirt and moved right into the starting lineup.
» This was Yamanouchi-Williams second double-double in as many games versus Pacific. He had 10 points and 15 rebounds against the Tigers last season while at Lamar.
» Portland lit it up from beyond the arc, knocking down 11 treys in the game.
» Portland never trailed in the second half on its way to victory.
» Portland recorded 17 total assists in the game.
» Five Portland players scored 12 or more points.
» Portland had a 44-30 edge on the boards in the win.
» Portland cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 14 offensive boards in the game.
» Tyler Robertson led the Pilots with a game-high 19 points.
Up Next
The Pilots continue action with a pair of WCC road games next week. Portland visits Saint Mary's for a nationally televised contest on ESPNU Thursday at 8 p.m. The Pilots then take on San Francisco on Saturday at 7 p.m. on ESPN+. All Pilot games are available live on the radio on 910 ESPN-Portland.
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