Friday, Nov 8 - UC Davis @ Pilots

I figure it's time to get this one rolling. Here goes -

UC Davis @ Portland
Friday, Nov. 8 - 7:30
Portland Radio - Sports 910
Webcast: www.pilotsvideo.com

Pomeroy
Rankings: UC Davis 231, Portland 191
Projected Score: UC Davis 66, Portland 72 (72% chance of Pilots victory)

All-Time Series
Portland leads 3-0

Portland (0-0)
Exhibition, Oct. 26 - W, 92-77 vs Concordia-Irvine [Box Score]

UC Davis (0-0)
Exhibition, Nov. 4 - W, 81-53 vs. Menlo College [Box Score]

Portland Info
Preview

UC Davis Info
Preview
Game Notes

I posted this a month ago and it mostly seems to still be relevant.

DeanMurdoch wrote:The Aggies are tough to get a read on. Their top returning player is Corey Hawkins, a junior who's been named to several preseason All-American teams already (and they're starting to talk NBA chances over on the Aggie forum).

Also back is another guard, Ryan Sypkens (14.1 ppg, 46% from 3) - and a 6'9" perimeter guy in Josh Ritchart. But beyond Hawkins, Sypkens, and Ritchart...anyone's guess, really. Tyler Les (son of Jim Les) is now expected to redshirt for the season given the glut of guards on this team - former USF guard Avery Johnson is on the team this year as well.

They played a three-guard system last year and with the season-ending injury to their pretty good PF J.T. Adenrele back in August, it's pretty much guaranteed they'll do the same. Heck, they're so thin down low that you might see them with four guards on the floor at any given time.

Two things are certain about the UC Davis game...van der Mars, Barker, Nicholas, and Gerun will give the deep Pilots front court a big advantage down low, and whoever draws the task of guarding Hawkins will have their hands full.

Their starters tonight - Ritchart (6-9), Nujic (6-8 ), Sypkens (6-4), Hawkins (6-3), Graham (5-10)
Off the bench (9+ minutes) - Lemar (6-4), Betu (6-2), Funtarov (6-8 ), Bozner (6-8 ), Dueck (6-8 )

Most important question: Will there be pasta?

NoPoNeighbor wrote:Most important question: Will there be pasta?

Answer coming soon, but my guess is yes....  
 
Remember, there is a women's game against Eastern Washington beginning at 5:15 and the men are scheduled to tipoff at 7:30, so it will be a great opportunity to get out and support both Pilots teams.

NoPoNeighbor wrote:Most important question: Will there be pasta?

Stay tuned for official, official confirmation on the time, but you can count on there being a pasta pre-game. 99% sure it will start at 6:30 (one hour before the predicted tip-time of 7:30 for the men's game), though there's a slight possibility it could start prior to the women's game.

Hey guys, looking forward to the game on Friday.  This year we have the ability to build off of a decent season.  

We lost JT Adenrele to a season-ending knee injury, but this team is going to be fun to watch.  Stop on by our message board if you want, aggiesportstalk(dot)com.  Go Ags!

What's the latest with David Carr? Will he play in this one?

CaptWhip wrote:What's the latest with David Carr? Will he play in this one?

According to this article written by Jim Beseda for portlandpilots.com, there's still no timetable for Carr's return.

DeanMurdoch wrote:

CaptWhip wrote:What's the latest with David Carr? Will he play in this one?

According to this article written by Jim Beseda for portlandpilots.com, there's still no timetable for Carr's return.

We'll see how Wintering does! Thanks.

Of note from UCD’s exhibition game box score against Menlo was UCD’s poor 3 point shooting (4-19), high number of rebounds (53), and their incredible number of blocked shots (9)....6 by 6’9” wing Josh Ritchart.   But I don’t know the level of competition they got from Menlo.
 
This should be a good test for both teams….it would be great to see the Pilots get off to a positive start, gain some confidence, and then build on it during the team’s trip to Oregon State next week before having to head to Michigan State.
 
After watching practice a number of times, and watching the game against C-I, it is apparent to me the absence of David Carr will put a lot of pressure on Alec to avoid fouling under the new interpretation/emphasis on hand checking and physical play.  He’s young and will may play more minutes than he normally would…..fatigue can lead to silly fouls.  Bryce is the obvious backup to Alec, but I wonder if we’ll see Aitor.
 
Oh, and who will be able to slowdown UCD’s Corey Hawkins?  He ranked 13th in the nation in scoring last season averaging 20.3 points per game……
 
Pound the ball inside and kick it out when needed for the open shot!!  On defense, play as a team and communicate....just like in practice.  

Hey!

I've missed you guys!

Looking forward to tonight!

DoubleDipper wrote:Of note from UCD’s exhibition game box score against Menlo was UCD’s poor 3 point shooting (4-19), high number of rebounds (53), and their incredible number of blocked shots (9)....6 by 6’9” wing Josh Ritchart.   But I don’t know the level of competition they got from Menlo.

Well, Menlo College's starting five was 6-7, 6-5, 6-3, 6-2, and 6-0....and only one guy came off the bench for Menlo that was taller than 6-4, so I doubt a 53-39 rebounding advantage for UC Davis against a team like Menlo will translate into the same kind of advantage for the Aggies tonight. Lurking on the UC Davis forum, it appears that rebounding was their Achilles heel LAST year, and they've lost their guy Adenrele since then. Anything less than a significant edge on the glass for the Pilots would be a complete surprise to me.
 

DoubleDipper wrote:Oh, and who will be able to slowdown UCD’s Corey Hawkins?  He ranked 13th in the nation in scoring last season averaging 20.3 points per game……

I think that's the burning question. Not like he's a chucker, either - over 50% from two-point range last year and over 40% from three-point land. He'll be a tough one to handle.

Who does the coaching staff see as our go-to defenders, to match-up with the other team's best? Thieleke? Pressley? Bailey?

I wrote a preview for WestCoastConvo.com but its not being posted til 7, so here it is:

Portland Pilots (0-0) vs. UC Davis Aggies (0-0)
The Opponent:
The Portland Pilots open the 2013-2014 with a home bout against the Aggies of UC Davis. UC Davis will lean heavily on Jr. Corey Hawkins as he tries to top his first season as an Aggie after transferring from Arizona State. The 6-3 guard is the son of former NBA All-Star Hersey Hawkins, and averaged over 20 ppg last season for the Aggies en route to a 14-17 season. Last season UC Davis was extremely efficient on the offensively and that should continue this season.
Keys for the Pilots:
The Pilots will look to take advantage down low with a solid frontcourt rotation led by Senior Ryan Nicholas and Junior Thomas van der Mars. Look for Voldy Gerun and Riley Barker to also see quality minutes for the Pilots. Portland should have an advantage on rebounding on both sides of the court, and if they look to start the season with a W they will need to not only rebound effectively but also take care of the ball. Freshman PG Alec Wintering should get the start for Portland as Junior David Carr is recovering from a concussion suffered in practice last week and he will be a asked to be a steadying presence on a team that averaged 15 turnovers a game and a -3.2 turnover margin last season.
X-Factor Matchup
Korey Thieleke vs. Corey Hawkins. Senior guard Korey Thieleke will try to do something that didn’t really happen last season and that is contain Hawkins. Thieleke is the Pilots most athletic defender and had some success last season on the defensive end of the court. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Jr. Kevin Bailey matched up on him but there will definitely be an emphasis on stopping the Aggies best scorer.
The Games within the Game:
Can Alec Wintering stay out of Foul Trouble?
Will Tanner Riley or Bobby Sharp present a consistent outside threat for the Pilots?
Can Bryce Pressley make the next jump up after a solid freshman campaign?




Also interesting to note that last time we played UC Davis, (November of 2010) Tanner Riley was the leading scorer.

Menlo wasn't a very good team. Our weakness is our inside presence, especially without JT Adenrele. Our guards are going to look to push whenever possible.

We shot poorly against Menlo, something that is going to click and when it does, look out. If it happens tonight I hope the facilities crew has extra light bulbs because Sypkens, Hawkins and Ritchart will shoot out the lights.

I am excited basketball is back!

Don't get your hopes too high for the online broadcast. I'm trying to watch the girls game and the feed is as crappy as it's always been. Too bad they didn't improve in this area. Makes it hard for fans that can't get to the game to get behind the team.

I'll start--


I bet you didn't see this coming...

BOOM! Century mark!

I don't think I've ever seen us breach triple digits, and I've seen a lot of games over the years.

Wow...was only able to catch a bit of the game here and there so looking forward to seeing some reactions on here.

Bailey 29, Nicholas 27? Wow...and if you had told me the Pilots were going to be outrebounded by UC Davis before the game, I wouldn't have liked UP's chances to win this one.

Great start.

Nice to open with a chalupa night.

This team is WAY quicker than the last couple years. Not much you can say about Bailey and Nicolas but WOW!

And Sharp has the quickest release I have seen in a very long time.

I’ll second the wows regarding Bailey, so athletic, and Nicolas. Bobby Sharp is a weapon .  .  .though he may be known for another skill, I suspect he may set a single season record for the number of times any Pilot has wiped his hands on the soles of his shoes per minutes played . . .

NoPoNeighbor wrote:Who does the coaching staff see as our go-to defenders, to match-up with the other team's best? Thieleke? Pressley? Bailey?

Tonight, Pressley and Bailey. Korey did not play much.

Nicholas scored 27 points. And he was NOT our leading scorer. Amazing!

DTLegend wrote:I wrote a preview for WestCoastConvo.com but its not being posted til 7, so here it is:

Portland Pilots (0-0) vs. UC Davis Aggies (0-0)
The Opponent:
The Portland Pilots open the 2013-2014 with a home bout against the Aggies of UC Davis. UC Davis will lean heavily on Jr. Corey Hawkins as he tries to top his first season as an Aggie after transferring from Arizona State. The 6-3 guard is the son of former NBA All-Star Hersey Hawkins, and averaged over 20 ppg last season for the Aggies en route to a 14-17 season. Last season UC Davis was extremely efficient on the offensively and that should continue this season.
Keys for the Pilots:
The Pilots will look to take advantage down low with a solid frontcourt rotation led by Senior Ryan Nicholas and Junior Thomas van der Mars. Look for Voldy Gerun and Riley Barker to also see quality minutes for the Pilots. Portland should have an advantage on rebounding on both sides of the court, and if they look to start the season with a W they will need to not only rebound effectively but also take care of the ball. Freshman PG Alec Wintering should get the start for Portland as Junior David Carr is recovering from a concussion suffered in practice last week and he will be a asked to be a steadying presence on a team that averaged 15 turnovers a game and a -3.2 turnover margin last season.
X-Factor Matchup
Korey Thieleke vs. Corey Hawkins. Senior guard Korey Thieleke will try to do something that didn’t really happen last season and that is contain Hawkins. Thieleke is the Pilots most athletic defender and had some success last season on the defensive end of the court. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Jr. Kevin Bailey matched up on him but there will definitely be an emphasis on stopping the Aggies best scorer.
The Games within the Game:
Can Alec Wintering stay out of Foul Trouble?
Will Tanner Riley or Bobby Sharp present a consistent outside threat for the Pilots?
Can Bryce Pressley make the next jump up after a solid freshman campaign?




Also interesting to note that last time we played UC Davis, (November of 2010) Tanner Riley was the leading scorer.

Pilots did a good job of limiting Hawkins.  They did not have the advantage down low.  UCD outrebounded them, and also had good scoring at the rim. They did do a good job of taking care of the ball, with only 8 turnovers, and non of the headshakers we've seen the last couple years.  Wintering played well, but picked up 4 fouls that limited his minutes (man, they are calling some ticky tack stuff this year).

Korey had only 5 minutes. Bobby Sharp is an outside threat, shooting 4 - 10, and 2- 6 from distance. Tanner did not play a lot of minutes, either, only 9. Bryce was VERY solid, with 7 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists and 0 turnovers playing 32 minutes.