LMU @ Portland, Thursday 2/9, 8pm

PilotDrummer wrote:Hopefully we will see improvement on 1) Free-throws and 2) minimizing turnovers, as those were the big deals against BYU, it seems like.

Portland Pilots (6-18, 3-8 ) vs. LMU Lions (15-9, 8-3)

Date: Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012
Tip-off: 8:00 p.m.
Location: Portland, Ore.
Arena: Chiles Center (4,852)
Television: CSN-NW
Radio: 800 AM
Overall Series: 40-45
At UP: 25-15
At LMU: 13-25
At Neutral: 2-5
Last: LMU 62, POR 59 (January 28, 2012 at LMU)

COMING UP
• Portland (6-18, 3-8 WCC) looks to even the season series against West Coast Conference rival Loyola Marymount (15-9, 8-3) on Thursday at the Chiles Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. and the game will be televised live on Comcast SportsNet Northwest with Scott Lynn and Bob Weiss calling the action.
• The Lions edged the Pilots by a 62-59 margin on Jan. 28 in Los Angeles. A Jarred DuBois three-pointer with 17 seconds left in regulation proved to be the game-winner.
• All Portland basketball games will be broadcast live on True Talk 800 AM, with a 30-minute pregame show. Bill Johnson will provide the play-by-play and an audio simulcast will also be available on www.PilotsVideo.com.


TICKETS
• Tickets are still available for Portland’s two remaining home games.
• Fans can get tickets through all Ticketmaster outlets, online at ticketmaster.com, or through the Pilot Box Office (M-F, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.). Tickets may also be purchased at the door 90 minutes prior to tipoff each game. Call the Pilot Box Office at (503) 943-7525 with any questions.


ABOUT LOYOLA MARYMOUNT
• The Lions (15-9, 8-3 WCC) scored 60 second half points, including 10-for-13 from the three-point line, to erase a 16-point deficit and earn a 90-88 win over San Francisco on Saturday.
• LMU also knocked off Pepperdine (67-57) last Thursday and have now won five of its last six games.
• On Jan. 28 in Los Angeles, Portland dropped a 62-59 heartbreaker to the Lions when Jarred DuBois hit a three-pointer with 17 seconds remaining to break a tie and win the game.
• The Lions are tied for third in the WCC with BYU, sitting a half-game behind Gonzaga for second place.
• LMU is 7-2 overall on the road this season, including a perfect 5-0 in WCC road contests. The Lions remaining road games are against the Pilots, Gonzaga and No. 16 Saint Mary’s.
• Signature non-conference wins for the Lions came against UCLA (69-58) and Saint Louis (75-68), while an 82-68 romp at BYU was a key league win. LMU also lost games to Florida State (77-61) and Harvard 77-67.
• Senior F Drew Viney, who was named to the WCC Preseason All-Conference Team, is averaging 15.7 points per game. Sophomore PG Anthony Ireland adds 15.1 ppg and is third in the WCC with 4.9 assists per game.
• Max Good is in his fourth season as the head coach of the Lions and posts a 47-71 overall record.
• Portland owns an 8-5 record over LMU under head coach Eric Reveno.
• The Pilots won both regular season meetings a season ago, but the Lions knocked UP out of the WCC Tournament with a 72-68 win in the quarterfinals.


LINEUP NOTES
• Senior PG Eric Waterford (knee) is out for Thursday.
• Sophomore C Riley Barker has missed the last 17 games (knee) and is also out.
• Head coach Eric Reveno has used eight different starting lineups this year.
• Sophomore Ryan Nicholas is the only Pilot to start all 24 games this year, while 11 different Pilots have started at least one game.
• Three different freshmen have started at least four games.

blacksheep wrote:I'm not sure what Ken Pomeroy thinks because I 'm too cheap to send him money, but RealTimeRPI has UP winning tonight.

PurpleGeezer wrote:The WCC is a curious place when a 2-7 team with a 262 RPI is favored over a 7-2 team with a 110 RPI.

PilotNut wrote:Let's hope we can execute down the stretch and grab the W!

Viney leads four players in double figures through 24 games, although he's appeared in just 14, posting 15.7 ppg on the strength of his 46.0 percent shooting behind the three-point line. Ireland checks in with 15.1 ppg and is also the one who gets his teammates involved the most with his 117 assists. Defensively, the Lions enter this week as one of the nation's top three-point shooting defenses, allowing opponents to make good on only 28.9 percent of their chances.

For all the years that the Lions have been beaten up by the rest of the WCC, now is the time for them to exact some revenge and seeing as how the team is 7-2 on the road (in WCC play), it shouldn't be that tough of a time for them in Oregon tonight.