Complete notes and stats in pdf

The Portland State Vikings will try to end a three-game losing streak on Thursday night when they host the Utah Valley Wolverines. The Vikings and Wolverines meet in PSU's preseason finale at the Stott Center. Game time is 7:05 p.m. The game will be broadcast on Freedom 970 AM and www.970.am and can be seen via live video stream at www.b2tv.com.
   
Portland State is 6-5 on the season, but has lost its last three games, two of which have been on the road. On Monday night, the Vikings made a game effort, but lost at Nevada, 79-73. PSU's most recent home game was also a loss, 78-67, to Portland last Saturday. That leaves the Vikings at 4-1 at home this season.
   
Utah Valley, a member of the Great West Conference, comes to Portland with a 5-6 record. The Wolverines just ended a three-game losing streak on Monday, beating NAIA Mayville State, 80-60, at home. UVU is 1-4 in road games this year.
   
Thursday's game will be the third meeting in history between the two schools. PSU has won the first two. The teams have not met since the 2007-08 season.
   
After Christmas, Portland State will open Big Sky Conference play at home. PSU hosts Northern Colorado on Wednesday, December 29 at the Stott Center in a 7:05 p.m. game.


PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (6-5) vs. UTAH VALLEY WOLVERINES (5-6)
Thursday, December 23, 2010, 7:05 p.m. @ Peter W. Stott Center (1,500), Portland, OR
Television: None
Radio: Freedom 970 AM, www.970.am • Play-by-play: Tom Hewitt • Pregame Show: 6:30 p.m.
Live Video Stream: www.b2tv.com
Live Stats: www.GoViks.com
All-Time Series: PSU leads 2-0
Streak: PSU has won two in a row in the series.

STORYLINES
• The series: Portland State leads the all-time series, 2-0. The Vikings won 71-69 in a first-ever meeting on Dec. 2, 2006. PSU won 60-53 in overtime at Utah Valley on Dec. 1, 2007.
• The Wolverines: Utah Valley, a member of the Great West Conference, was 12-18 in 2009-10. The Wolverines were 5-7 in conference play. Three starters and five letterwinners return from that team.
• This year: Utah Valley has compiled a 5-6 record, including 4-2 at home and 1-4 on the road. The Vikings and Wolverines have no common opponents. However, UVU has wins over Oregon State (70-68) and Big Sky Conference member Sacramento State (77-52)... junior guard Isiah Williams leads the Wolverines in scoring at 15.0 points per game, hitting a team-high 24 three-point field goals... senior guard Jordan Swarbrick averages 11.1 points and 5.5 rebounds... junior forward Geddes Robinson averages 9.6 points and a team-leading 7.2 rebounds... UVU has an impressive +4.6 rebounding margin this season.
• Head Coach Dick Hunsaker: Dick Hunsaker is in his ninth season at Utah Valley where he has compiled a 153-92 record. He is 320-165 in 17 seasons as a collegiate head coach. Hunsaker is 0-2 all-time against Portland State.

COMING UP: BIG SKY CONFERENCE PLAY
Portland State opens the 2010-11 Big Sky Conference schedule on Dec. 29 against Northern Colorado. The Vikings host the Bears at the Stott Center at 7:05 p.m. PSU was 7-9 in the Big Sky in 2009-10, placing sixth in the conference. The Vikings won a Big Sky Tournament quarterfinal game at Montana State, then lost in the semifinals to host Weber State.
   
PSU enters its 15th season as a Big Sky Conference member. The Vikings won regular season titles in 2004-05 and 2007-08. They won Big Sky Tournament titles in 2007-08 and 2008-09 advancing to the NCAA Tournament.
   
PSU is 116-112 all-time in 14 seasons of Big Sky Conference games, including Big Sky Tournament games.

VIKING HEAD COACH TYLER GEVING
Tyler Geving is in his second season as Head Coach and sixth season overall with the Portland State program. Geving has a 19-24 record with the Vikings. He was 13-19 in 2009-10 and led PSU to the Big Sky Tournament semifinals. Geving is a 1996 graduate of Central Washington and has been in collegiate coaching for 16 years.
   
Geving will face Utah Valley as a head coach for the first time. Geving is 11-14 all-time in non-conference games.
   
The second-year Head Coach is assisted by Andy McClouskey (1st year, Oregon State, 1982), Eric Harper (6th year, Central Washington, 1995) and Anthony Owens (2nd year, Great Falls, 2006). Former Viking player Mickey Polis is the Director of Operations (2nd year, Portland State, 2009).

GAME WEEK ACTIVITIES
VIKINGS ON RADIO: All Portland State basketball games can be heard on Freedom 970 AM and www.970.am. The Viking Pregame Show begins one-half hour prior to tipoff with Tom Hewitt calling all the action.
VIKINGS ON TV: Portland State has three regular season games scheduled to be televised in the Portland area. Two are on Comcast Sports Net: Dec. 5 at Oregon (3 p.m.) and Jan. 2 at Idaho State (1:05 p.m.), while one will be on Altitude TV: Jan. 22 vs. Northern Arizona (6:05 p.m.).
INTERNET STREAMING: Live streaming video of all Portland State home and Big Sky Conference games can be seen free at www.b2TV.com. Live stats for Portland State home games are at www.GoViks.com.
TICKETS: Portland State Basketball tickets are priced from $10-$15 for adults and $7-$10 for juniors and seniors. Tickets can be purchased online at Ticketmaster.com. They are also available to the Portland State ticket office, or at the Stott Center beginning 90 minutes prior to the game. The Portland State Ticket Office is located Smith Memorial Union, 1825 SW Broadway on the Portland State campus or call 888-VIK-TIKS/503-725-3307.

VIKINGS REWIND: NEVADA 79, PORTLAND STATE 73
Chris Harriel and Chehales Tapscott combined for 41 points but it wasn't enough as the Vikings lost to the Nevada Wolfpack, 79-73, Monday at Lawlor Events Center... the Vikings trailed by 12 late in the first half and by eight in the second half before coming back to eventually lead... PSU was down 38-30 with 18:53 left in the game but went on a 15-5 run to take the lead. Harriel scored five in the rally, including a layup with 11:43 left, giving the Vikings a 45-43 lead. Twice, Portland State went up by four points in a game that was close the rest of the way... Tapscott tied the score on a jump shot with 3:12 left, making it 64-64. The Wolfpack's Deonte Burton answered with a three-pointer a few seconds later and Nevada went on 15-9 run to end the game... Harriel had 23 points for the Vikings, hitting 7-13 from the field, 4-7 from three-point range and 5-7 at the line. He also had seven rebounds, three steals and two assists in a solid all-around game... Tapscott added 18 points on 7-11 from the field and 4-4 at the line. The junior forward grabbed five rebounds and three steals... the Vikings shot just 32% in the first half, but stayed in it behind 14 points from Harriel. PSU rallied in the second half, hitting 16-30 shots (.533), as Tapscott scored 16 of his 18. Unfortunately, 20 PSU turnovers led to 24 Nevada points.

FAST BREAKS
WINNING LINES 
• PSU is 4-1 at home this year... the loss to Portland ended a six-game home winning streak.
• The Vikings are 2-4 on the road this season, including 2-0 in neutral site games... PSU was 5-15 in road games in 2009-10, including 2-6 in Big Sky road games.
• Since the start of the 2007-08 season, Portland State is 37-7 at home, including 22-4 in Big Sky Conference games.
• PSU has gone 105-34 in 139 games at the Stott Center since the 1996-97 season. Including home games at Memorial Coliseum (12-6) and the Rose Garden (19-9), the Vikings are 136-49 at home over the past 15 seasons.
• PSU is 32-16 in Big Sky games since the start of the 2007-08 season, 37-17 including tournament games.
• Portland State is 22-22 all-time in overtime games, including 0-2 last season.
• The Vikings are 2-14 against nationally-ranked teams since reinstating the program and joining the Big Sky Conference in 1996-97. That includes wins each of the last two years over ranked teams (Gonzaga in 2008-09, Portland in 2009-10).

HOT:
• JR F Chehales Tapscott has scored 43 points in his last two games, hitting 17-26 from the field (.654) and 8-8 at the line (1.000). Tapscott has made his last 13 free throws and is shooting .505 from the field and .792 at the line.
• Portland State ranks seventh in the nation in free throw shooting (.785).
• SO G Chris Harriel has scored in double figures nine straight games and 10 of 11 this year.

NOT:
• The Vikings have lost three straight games.
• SR G Melvin Jones is 5-23 shooting in his last two games (.217), including 1-13 from three-point range.
• PSU ranks 329th in the nation in field goal percentage defense (.483).
• PSU has made just 7-32 three-point field goals in the last two games (.218).

NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS: Through 11 games, Portland State has built a 6-5 record. And, despite losses in their last three games, the six wins betters last year's total for non-conference wins (5-9)... the most non-conference wins for Portland State since joining the Big Sky Conference is 10 (10-5 in 2008-09). After playing Utah Valley, PSU has two non-conference games remaining this season - Feb. 19 Bracketbuster at home, and Mar. 10 at Seattle.

FREE IS A GOOD PRICE: The Vikings are making frequent trips to the free throw line thanks in part to the slashing styles of SO G Chris Harriel, JR F Chehales Tapscott, JR G Charles Odum, and the physical play of SR F Tree Thomas. The Vikings have shot 261 free throws, making 205, an average of 18.6-23.7 shooting per game for a .785 mark (last year PSU averaged 14.4-20.1, .717)... meanwhile opponents have attempted fewer FTs than the Vikings have made (129-189), an average of 11.7-17.2 per game for a .683 mark... PSU currently ranks seventh in the nation in free throw shooting.

MISSING THE THREE: The Vikings are averaging 6.1 three-point field goals per game and shooting .330 from distance this season. The marks are down from recent years when PSU was regularly among the top long-range shooting teams in the Big Sky Conference. The 6.1 made per game is the lowest rate since 2004-05 and the .330 mark is the lowest since 2003-04. In fact, the Vikings led the Big Sky in three pointers in 2007-08 and 2008-09... PSU is just 7-32 from three-point range in its last two games (.219)... a big part of what is missing is SR F Phil Nelson, who has yet to play this year due to a foot injury. Nelson averaged 2.4 three-pointers per game last year while shooting .387 from the arc.

A SIMPLE ANALYSIS: Portland State is 3-1 when outshooting opponents, 4-0 when outrebounding opponents... the Vikings are just 1-3 when failing to score at least 70 points, and 5-0 when scoring over 80 points.

AND THEN THERE WERE NINE...: Portland State has dressed just nine healthy players for the last seven games. JR G Terry Coleman has not suited up due to a high left ankle sprain. Without Coleman, the Vikings are thin at point guard, needing SR G Melvin Jones to handle a lot of the duty... SR F Phil Nelson has missed the entire season with a left foot injury.

BACK ON THE GOOD FOOT?: Coleman and Nelson hope to return after Christmas. Nelson will have an x-ray of his twice-broken foot this week. If it looks good, he will likely begin working out with an eye on playing next week. Coleman should be returning after Christmas as well.

KEEPING UP WITH MELVIN JONES: With the loss of SR F Phil Nelson for the time being, the play and leadership of SR G Melvin Jones has become even more important for the Vikings. Jones has answered the call, averaging 11.9 points per game, 2.6 rebounds and 3.0 assists. He also has a team-high 24 three-point field goals and is shooting .885 at the line.
SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
• Melvin is averaging 15.8 points in four home games.
• He has seven 20-point games in his career, two this season.
• Jones ranks 15th in the Big Sky in scoring, 10th in assists and third in three-point field goals.
BIG GAMES
• Melvin had a game-high 23 points, hitting 6-11 FGs, 5-9 3-pt FGs, 6-6 FTs, in a win over Pepperdine (11/12). He added five assists and two rebounds... Jones had 18 points, six assists and five rebounds in a win over Lamar (11/20)... scored 23 points (7-14, 4-10, 5-6) in a win over Seattle (12/1)... scored 18 points with four rebounds and three assists in the win over Cal State Fullerton (12/12).

CHRIS-TMAS COMES EARLY: The play of SO G Chris Harriel has been an early Christmas present for Vikings Head Coach Tyler Geving. While the coach knew his talented sophomore was much improved, he probably didn't count on quite this much production. Harriel has already set two new career scoring highs (now 23) and two new career rebounding highs (now 9). Harriel leads the Vikings with 15.6 points per game while averaging 5.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.6 steals.
SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
• Harriel was named All-Tournament at the SMU Invitational after averaging 15.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, shooting 13-26 from the field, 7-13 from three-point range and 13-15 at the line. He also had six assists and five steals.
• Chris ranks eighth in scoring, 15th in rebounding, fifth in free throw percentage and sixth in steals in the Big Sky Conference.
BIG GAMES
• Harriel scored 16 points, grabbed six rebounds and made two steals in the season-opening win over Pepperdine (11/12)... posted a career-high 23 points, seven rebounds, three steals and two assists in a victory over Lamar (11/20)... had 18 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals in beating UC Riverside (11/21)... had 15 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals in a win over Seattle (12/1)... had 12 points, a career-high nine rebounds and four assists at Oregon (12/5)... scored 18 of his 20 points in the second half as the Vikings came from 11 points behind against Cal State Fullerton to win (12/12)... tied his career-high with 23 points (7-13 FG, 4-7 3-pt FG, 5-7 FT), seven rebounds and three steals against Nevada (12/20).

GREAT TAP-SCOTT!: JR F Chehales Tapscott has been as big an impact player as Head Coach Tyler Geving expected. The former NWAACC Player of the Year from Clackamas CC is averaging 13.1 points, a team-high 7.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game... Tapscott posted a career-high 25 points with nine rebounds against Portland on Saturday, and followed that with 18 points, five rebounds and three steals against Nevada.
SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
• Chehales leads the Vikings and the Big Sky Conference with three double-doubles.
• The junior forward ranks second in the Big Sky in rebounding and has led the team eight times.
• Tapscott was named All-Tournament at SMU with 31 points, 21 rebounds and seven assists in three games.
BIG GAMES
• Tapscott had 19 points, 13 rebounds and four assists in the Vikings' win over Lamar (11/20)... posted 12 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and two steals in a win over Seattle (12/1)... had 18 rebounds (7-10 FG, 4-6 FT), 12 rebounds and three blocked shots in the win over George Fox (12/9)... scored a career-high 25 points (10-15 FG, 1-1 3-pt, 4-4 FT) with nine rebounds and two steals against Portland (12/18).

MINI-MICROWAVE: JR G Charles Odum is reminiscent of former Detroit Pistons star Vinnie Johnson (aka The Microwave) in both game and physique. In fact, in a role as the Vikings' sixth man, Odum definitely heats up quickly. As a result, the 6-foot, 205-pounder averages 12.3 points, 2.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, shooting .471 from the field and .782 at the line for the Vikings despite not having a start.
SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
• Odum had 40 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in the Vikings three games at SMU, hitting 13-23 FGs, 3-8 3-pt FGs and 11-15 FTs while playing less than 25 minutes per game.
• Odum has led the Vikings in scoring four times and has two 20-point games despite not starting.
BIG GAMES
• Scored 17 points against SMU (11/19).. had 13 points, five assists and four rebounds in a win over Lamar (11/20)... had a season-high 20 points (6-11 FG, 7-10 FT), six rebounds and three assists in the win over George Fox (12/9)... posted a career-high 21 points (6-10, 8-8) and five assists in the win over Cal State Fullerton (12/12)... scored a team-high 18 points (5-7 FG, 3-3 3-pt FG, 5-6 FT) in a loss to Cal State Bakersfield (12/15).

LOZEAU = HIGH PERCENTAGE: JR C Nate Lozeau has shot 60% or better in six of his last nine games. During that span, Lozeau has made 39-57 shots (.684). For the season, he is shooting a team-best .629 from the field to rank third in the Big Sky Conference... Lozeau has been a solid addition to the team this season after being a redshirt in 2009-10. He is averaging 8.6 points per game in 20 minutes per night.
BIG GAMES
• Lozeau had his first double-double of the season with career-highs of 16 points and 10 rebounds in the win over George Fox (12/9)... had 13 points (6-7 FG, 1-2 FT), five rebounds and a block in the win over Cal State Fullerton (12/12).

A TREE GROWS IN PORTLAND: The other half of the post tandem for the Vikings this season has been SR F Phillip “Tree” Thomas. In just 16 minutes per game, Tree is averaging 7.6 points per game while shooting .459 from the field and .824 at the line. That is a big upgrade from last year's 3.1 points per game.

DANE'S DIMES: A bit of surprise as the starting point guard this season, JR G Dane Johnson has proven his worth, leading the Vikings in assists with 3.5 per game. Johnson had 16 assists in last week's two wins, including a career-high nine against George Fox. Johnson has a solid 38/18 assist-to-turnover ratio this year.

PHIL'S FOOT: For the second time since last January, SR F Phil Nelson has suffered a broken left foot. The loss is a big one for the Vikings, as Nelson was the top returning scorer at 12.9 points and 48 three-point field goals through 20 games last year when he suffered the injury the first time. Nelson reinjured the foot on Nov. 8. He is not expected back until after Christmas... PSU is now 11-11 in the 22 games Nelson has missed since Jan. 30... Nelson has started all 53 games he has played in as a Viking. PSU is 31-22 in those games. The Vikings also lose much-needed size on the floor as Nelson stands 6-8.