Portland Pilots (7-8, 0-2 WCC) at Saint Mary's (14-2, 2-0 WCC)
Date: Friday, Jan. 2, 2026
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Place: Moraga, Calif.
Arena: University Credit Union Pavilion
TV: ESPN+
Live Coverage Links: Video | Stats

Portland Pilots (7-8, 0-2 WCC) at San Francisco (9-6, 1-1 WCC)
Date: Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026
Time: 4:00 p.m.
Place: San Francisco, Calif.
Arena: War Memorial at The Sobrato Center
TV: ESPN+
Live Coverage Links: Video | Stats

THIS WEEK
• The Pilots (7-8, 0-2 WCC) hit the road for a pair of West Coast Conference games. Portland visits the Saint Mary's Gaels (13-2, 2-0) on Friday at 7 p.m. and then head to the San Francisco Dons (9-6, 1-1) on Sunday at 4 p.m.

GAME COVERAGE
• All WCC games are aired live on ESPN+
• Pilot radio this season includes all men's and women's basketball home games, as well as select road games, streamed live on PortlandPilots.com with Jason Swygard calling the action. Neither game this weekend will be on the radio.
• Live coverage links for Portland games can be found at PortlandPilots.com.

LAST TIME OUT: Santa Clara 92, Pilots 85 (Dec. 28, 2025 — Portland, Ore.)
• Joel Foxwell erupted for 20 points and 15 assists and Timo George was a perfect 7-for-7 from the field for 14 points in the first half, but suffered a shoulder injury seconds before halftime and was unable to return.
• Cameron Williams added 17 points and five rebounds for the Pilots, while Jermaine Ballisager Webb helped out with 10 points and two blocks off the bench.
• The Portland defense forced 14 Santa Clara turnovers which turned into 19 points. The Pilots shot 58.6 percent from the field and Santa Clara finished at 54 percent overall. The game had four ties and 10 lead changes.
• After going down 11-0, the Pilots stormed back to take a 44-40 lead.
• The Pilots went up eight before SCU took control midway through the second half. Foxwell buried a corner three to make it 83-82 with 2:34 to go, but the Broncos scored the next six points and kepts the Pilots at arm's length down the stretch.

HOME VERSUS ROAD STATS
• Portland has been a different team at home versus on the road with the Pilots going 7-4 in home games and 0-4 on the road this season. At home, the team is scoring 86.5 points and allowing 78.5 for a +7.9 scoring margin. In road games the Pilots are scoring 64.5 points and giving up 90.0 for a -25.5 margin.
• UP is shooting 50.9 percent from the field with 21.8 assists at the Chiles Center, while struggling to 43.7 percent from the floor with just 10.8 assists in away games.
• Rebounding is another notable stat with Portland posting a +5.7 rebounding margin at home versus -6.3 in away games.

FRESHMAN PHENOMS
• Freshman PG Joel Foxwell picked up his third WCC Freshman of the Week award on Dec. 15 after his 11-point, 15-assist effort in the win over Kent State. The 15 assists matched the program record established by fellow Aussie Tyler Robertson in a Dec. 10, 2022 home win against New Orleans.
• He recorded his fourth 20-point game and matched the assists record of 15 in a superb performance against Santa Clara on Dec. 30. The 15 single game assists are tied for fourth most in a game this year nationally and Foxwell is the lone player with two or more 15-assist games in the country.
• He now has three double-doubles on the season and has dished out 10 or more assists five times. He is the WCC leader in assists per game (7.5), which also ranks fourth nationally and No. 1 among freshmen. Foxwell also leads the Pilots in scoring (13.6) and is No. 2 in points per game among WCC freshmen.
• Freshman F Timo George has been a consistent force for the Pilots. He is the team's No. 2 scorer (12.5), which is third among league freshmen, while his 4.9 rebounds per game are also second among WCC freshmen. He has reached double figures in 11 of 15 games despite playing just 19.9 minutes per game.
• George is two field goals made shy of NCAA qualification in FG percentage. His 69.5 percent from the field would rank No. 4 nationally and lead the WCC. He was 7-for-7 from the field with 14 points and four rebounds at halftime vs. Santa Clara on Dec. 30 before suffering a shoulder injury and not returning.
• Portland players have garnered 13 WCC Freshman of the Week honors over the last three seasons, which is nearly one out of every three opportunities and five more then the next closest institution.

WILLIAMS DOING WORK
• Junior F Cameron Williams recorded his third 20-point game of the season in a Dec. 14 win against Kent State. He followed with a season high 11 rebounds at Oregon and added 10 points and seven rebounds at UCSB.
• Williams, a first team JC All-American and national champ with Trinity Valley JC last season, has adjusted well to the Division I level. He is shooting 55.4 percent from the field and 76.1 percent at the foul line. His 11.6 points are third on the roster and his is grabbing a team-high 5.4 rebounds per game.

BALLEW, BALLISAGER WEBB PROVIDING BOOSTS
• Sophomore G Mikah Ballew and senior C Jermaine Ballisager Webb are the two most experienced returners from last year's roster.
• Ballew moved into the starting lineup for the last eight games is averaging 11.3 points this season, including 10 double figure games. Ballew's 29 three-pointers made are second on the roster.
• Ballisager Webb has been a consistent interior presence on both sides of the ball. He is averaging 6.9 points and 3.1 rebounds in 15 minutes off the bench overall but has played good minutes the last five games averaging 8.2 points and 4.8 rebounds.

ABOUT THE RETURNERS
• Portland returns six players from last year's roster, three of which redshirted.
• Mikah Ballew averaged 4.9 points as a freshman in 31 games. Jermaine Ballisager Webb started eight games, appeared in 29 and averaged 4.3 points and 1.8 rebounds while shooting 64 percent from the field. RS-sophomore G Kelson Gebbers played 19 games and averaged 1.7 points and 1.1 rebounds.
• Carlin Briggs, NaVaughn Long and Preston Lee each utilized their redshirt season. Briggs is returning from a knee injury and working his way back into playing shape. Long made his debut against Willamette and recorded two rebounds with a pair of assists. Lee also debuted against the Bearcats and scored five points with a steal.

BUILDING A WINNING ROSTER
• The Portland coaching staff focused on building the 2025-26 roster with experienced players from winning programs and Portland's five transfers fit the bill.
• Junior transfers Garrett Nuckolls and Cameron Williams were the top two scorers for Trinity Valley JC, which won the JUCO Division I national title last year.
• Riley Parker was a starter and team captain for St. Francis, which won the Northeast Conference Tournament to reach the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
• Senior F Matúš Hronský spent three years with Duquesne and played in two NCAA Tournament games in 2024, while sophomore C James O'Donnell was a key contributor for San Francisco, who won 25 games and played in the NIT.
• Additionally, Portland's three true freshmen all played for high level clubs or have national team experience: Timo George prepped at IMG Academy in Florida, Joel Foxwell played with pros in the Australian NBL and NBL1, while Dante Censori-Hercules competed at Hodan Prep, which has multiple alums playing in the NBA.

INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR
• Portland's current roster features players from seven different countries including nine international student-athletes.
• The Australian pipeline continues to flow with four Pilots hailing from Down Under: Riley Parker, James O'Donnell, Carlin Briggs and Joel Foxwell.
• Throughout his five-year tenure with the Pilots, Legans has had nine different Aussies on the roster and 21 total international players from 12 different countries.

STAFF UPDATE
• Portland added two new assistant coaches to staff this offseason in Mark Berokoff and Anthony Separovich, while Decclan Mclean was promoted to an assistant coach after serving two years as a graduate assistant.
• Berokoff brings vast experience to the bench with more than 400 career wins along with multiple state and national championships as a head coach. Berokoff most recently served four seasons as head coach at NAIA Oklahoma City University.  He led Randall University to three national titles and five national semifinals appearances in nine years (2012-21) at the National Christian College Athletic Association Division II level while serving as both head coach and athletic director.
• Separovich and Mclean are Australians that have helped solidified a strong pipeline for the Pilots Down Under. Separovich served as the AUSA Hoops Program and Recruiting Director from 2022-25. He was instrumental in recruiting, mentoring and guiding boys and girls players from Australia to earn college scholarships in the U.S. More than 500 student-athletes represented AUSA in AAU Tournaments across the U.S. in 2025. He helped place more than 100 student-athletes at U.S. colleges over the past three years, including a record 50 in 2024.

NATIONAL TEAM DUTY
• Four different players have been regular representatives on their home country's national teams either at the youth or senior level.
• Jermaine Ballisager Webb (Denmark) played on youth national teams from U15 on and represented the Senior National Team this Summer at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 European Pre-Qualifiers. He averaged 10.8 points and 4.8 rebounds over four games as Denmark secured a qualifying spot.
• Timo George (Netherlands) helped the Netherlands U20 National Team to a fourth-place finish at the 2024 FIBA EuroBasket where he averaged 12.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. He also represented the Netherlands at the U18 European Championships in 2023.
• Matúš Hronský (Slovakia) represented Slovakia at the 2021 U20 European Championships where he averaged 15.8 points in five games. Hronský also played for Slovakia's Senior National Team at the 2021 World Cup where he scored eight points in four games.
• Dante Censori-Hercules (Canada) also trained this Summer with the U-19 National Team.

ABOUT SAINT MARY'S (13-2, 2-0 WCC)
• The Gaels opened league play with road wins at LMU (78-73) and Pepperdine (72-45). SMC has notable wins against St. Thomas, North Texas, Wichita State, Virginia Tech, Davidson and Northern Iowa. Losses came to Vanderbilt and Boise State.
• Paulius Marauskas leads the WCC in scoring (18.3) and Andrew McKeever is the league leader in rebounding (9.5).
• Head coach Randy Bennett is in his 25th season and has led SMC to 12 NCAA Tournament and seven NIT appearances.

PORTLAND-SAINT MARY'S SERIES HISTORY
Series: SMC leads 76-30
H / A / N: 22-30 / 7-41 / 1-5
Streak: Portland L16
Last: Saint Mary's 79, Pilots 66 (Feb. 19, 2025 at SMC)

WE'RE RIVERBOAT PILOTS, NOT AIRPLANE PILOTS!
• Though a 1935 student contest resulted in the nickname "Chinooks" (after the Native American tribe that inhabited the area, and the largest of the salmon species in the Willamette River), the "Pilots" was chosen by presidential fiat. From that day forward, The Bluff had a new mascot, and he was Wally Pilot.
• When the University changed its name from Columbia University (its earliest sports teams were known as the Cliff dwellers or the Columbias), to the University of Portland in 1935, the name and University had already begun to adapt a more "nautical motif," suitable for a campus site overlooking the Willamette River. At the same time, the Pilot athletic teams became associated with Wally (a stylized riverboat pilot), and the pilot's wheel became the logical logo.
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