EVERGREEN STATE GEODUCKS (0-1) at PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (0-1)

Friday, November 12, 2021, 7:30 p.m. • Viking Pavilion (3,094), Portland, OR
Live Stream: ESPN+ • Play-by-Play: Matt Richert • Analyst: Devon Pouncey
Live Stats: www.ViksLive.com
Complete notes and stats in pdf

---

The Viking Podcast With Jase Coburn will be released on Thursday at GoViks.com

---

THE OPENING TIP

Portland State will get comfortable with the opening of the 2021-22 basketball season over the course of the next two weeks as the Vikings play three straight home games. PSU begins that stretch with Evergreen State of the NAIA this Friday evening at Viking Pavilion. The game tips off at 7:30 p.m. as the backend of a doubleheader with the PSU women's team. It will be live streamed on ESPN+.
     
The Vikings and new Head Coach Jase Coburn opened the season on Tuesday night at Oregon State, losing 73-64. Things looked really good for a long time as PSU led for 25 of the first 30 minutes. The Vikings were up 45-34 with 13 minutes to play but the Beavers got hot, going on a 16-2 run to finally take the lead and control of the game. PSU struggled to shoot down the stretch, hitting just six of the last 24 shots from the field and only two of the last seven at the free throw line.
     
Still, the Vikings and Coburn showed tremendous promise with their battle against last year's Pac-12 Champion and Elite Eight participant. Big contributions came from SR F Khalid Thomas (16 pts, 4 reb, 2 st) and SR F James Jean-Marie (14 pts, 10 reb).
     
The opportunity to play three straight at home against Evergreen State, NCAA III George Fox and then crosstown rival University of Portland will allow Coburn to make adjustments in preparation for an early start to Big Sky Conference play. 
     
Portland State has lost only 12 non-conference home games in the last 13 seasons (59-12). PSU is 29-11 against Division I schools, and 30-1 against lower division schools over that span.

COMING UP

Portland State is in the midst of a three-game home stand. The Vikings will host George Fox on Wedenesday, Nov. 17, then the University of Portland on Tuesday, Nov. 23. Those games both begin at 7 p.m. All PSU home games and Big Sky Conference road games will be live streamed on ESPN+. 

VIKING PAVILION VACCINATION POLICY

Portland State Basketball is welcoming back fans to the Viking Pavilion this season after the 2020-21 season was without spectators due to COVID-19. All attendees to Viking Pavilion ages 12 and older will need to show proof of vaccination, including a CDC-issued Vaccination Record Card (or photo of the card) and corresponding identification.

• In lieu of a vaccination card, attendees may also display documentation of a negative COVID test within the past 48 hours to gain entry.
• Because current PSU students and employees are already required to have proof of vaccine, PSU attendees will need to present their PSU ID to attend events in Viking Pavilion.
• Attendees under the age of 12 will not be required to show proof of vaccine or a negative test.
• PSU students, faculty, and staff can show their valid PSU ID as proof of compliance with the University's COVID-19 campus vaccination policy.
• Fans who have pre-purchased tickets, but choose not to comply with PSU regulations, may request a refund from the box office.
• Masks will continue to be required for spectators 5 years and older at all competitions, regardless of location, per the state-wide mandate.

GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. EVERGREEN STATE

• ALL-TIME SERIES: Portland State leads the all-time series, 3-0... all three games have been played at PSU and the Vikings have won by an average of 23 points... the most recent meeting was a 98-65 Viking win on Dec. 23, 2013.
• PORTLAND STATE vs. LOWER DIVISION SCHOOLS: Portland State is 52-2 all-time against lower division programs since joining the Big Sky Conference and Division I in 1996-97 (26th season)... Evergreen State is an NAIA member of the Cascade Collegiate Conference... PSU has one other game against a lower division school, George Fox, on Nov. 17.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Jase Coburn (Arizona State, 2006) is in his first season as Head Coach. He has spent eight previous seasons on the Park Blocks as an Assistant and Associate Head Coach... the Geoducks are coached by Tim Malroy (Western Washington, 1989) in his eight season. Malroy has a 32-129 all-time record. He has never faced Portland State. 

SCOUTING EVERGREEN STATE

• Evergreen State is an NAIA member of the Cascade Collegiate Conference located in Olympia, WA.
• The Geoducks did not compete during the 2020-21 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They were 3-23 in 2019-20, 0-20 in the Cascade Collegiate Conference.
• ESC started the season with a 93-72 loss at University of Puget Sound on Nov. 7. Senior guard Austin Curry led the team with 23 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and two steals... LaBrandon Price had 14 points and three rebounds... Mitch Wetmore added 12 points, three rebounds, three assists and four steals.
• A Geoduck is the world's largest burrowing clam. Indiginous to the Puget Sound, a geoduck weighs in at over two pounds on average. It's pronounced like gooey-duck. 

THE NEW-LOOK VIKINGS

Portland State was guaranteed to look different in 2021-22 as Jase Coburn has taken over as the Vikings' new Head Coach. On Tuesday night at Oregon State, PSU looked quite a bit different on the court. Although the Vikings have eight returners and seven newcomers, only one returning player was in the starting lineup.
     
SR F Khalid Thomas started and led the Vikings with 16 points (6-13 FG, 4-9 3-pt). He added four rebounds and two steals. Newcomers in the starting lineup included JR Gs Mikal Starks, Michael Carter III and Marlon Ruffin, and SR F James Jean-Marie. All four played more than 20 minutes and made contributions. Jean-Marie opened the season with a double-double, scoring 14 points (5-12 FG, 4-4 FT) with 10 rebounds. Ruffin had 11 points (4-10 FG, 3-6 FT) and four rebounds.
     
Off the bench, JR G Ian Burke played 23 minutes, scoring five points (2-2 FG, 1-1 3-pt) with six rebounds. He splashed a half-court three-point shot to end the first half.
     
SR G Zeke Alley played 25 minutes, scoring four points with three rebounds, three assists and three steals. SO F Jacob Eyman played 11 minutes, grabbing a rebound and blocking a shot.     
 
FR G Paris Dawson was not available to play due to injury but is expected to be ready for Evergreen State. JR G Damion Squire was also not available due to hip surgery, but is expected to return some time in December.
     
The other four Vikings, FR F Hayden Curtiss, SO F Trey Wood, JR G Gio Nelson and FR G Kiimani Holt did not play due to coaches decision. JR G Alexis Angeles is scheduled to redshirt this season. 

THE MORE THINGS CHANGE...

One thing that didn't change from last season is the play JR G Ian Burke. Burke played 23 minutes against Oregon State and did not commit a turnover. In 55 career games, he has only 24 turnovers... Burke made just nine all of last season. 

SHOOTING STAR

SR F Khalid Thomas is the Vikings' top returning scorer (11.2) and rebounder (5.0) and tied for the team-lead in three-pointers last season (32). His career-highs are 25 points, seven rebounds and six three-pointers in a game. Thomas opened this season just as he left off last year, leading the Vikings with 16 points (6-13 FG, 4-9 3-pt) and grabbing four rebounds.

FAST BREAKS

• Jase Coburn was named Portland State's new head basketball coach on April 16, 2021. He is the 14th men's basketball coach in Portland State history and the seventh since PSU joined the Big Sky Conference in 1996-97.
• SR F Khalid Thomas is the Vikings' top returning scorer (11.2) and rebounder (5.0). He also tied for the team lead with 32 three-point field goals and made 29 steals and blocked 14 shots. Thomas shot .451 from the field and .800 at the line while starting all 22 games.
• Despite averaging only 17.1 minutes per game and being a starter for less than half the season in 2020-21, SO C Jacob Eyman ranked third in the Big Sky Conference with 24 blocked shots in 20 games (1.2 bpg). In league games, he led the Big Sky Conference in blocked shots (1.6).
• JR F Gio Nelson, originally a walk-on, was presented with a scholarship from new Head Coach Jase Coburn in May.
• Portland State had five Academic All-Big Sky Conference selections in 2020-21. Four of them return to the team: Alexis Angeles, Ian Burke, Paris Dawson and Jacob Eyman.
• The Vikings have nine Division I transfers on the roster. In the off-season, Head Coach Jase Coburn signed seven transfers - six from Division I schools and one from a Division II school.
• Coach Jase Coburn signed three players that led their teams in scoring last year: JR G Michael Carter III (14.6, Long Beach State); JR G/F Marlon Ruffin (13.1, Omaha); SR G Zeke Alley (19.9, Northwest Nazarene).
• JR G/F Marlon Ruffin was the Summit League Sixth Man of the Year in 2019-20. He was named Summit League honorable mention in 2020-21.
• The Division II transfer is SR G Ezekiel Alley. In a game against the Vikings last season, Alley led his Northwest Nazarene team with 27 points. Alley was named NABC All-District, averaging 19.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game for Northwest Nazarene, winning Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Week honors five times. In two seasons at NNU, Alley shot .444 from three-point range.
• JR G Michael Carter III has a bachelor's degree in Consumer Affairs from Long Beach State... SR G Ezekiel Alley has a degree from Northwest Nazarene in Applied Sciences... SR F Khalid Thomas has completed his degree in Social Science at Portland State.
• JR G Alexis Angeles will redshirt the 2021-22 season.
• Due to hip surgery, JR G Damion Squire is not expected to play until some time in December.
• The NCAA has granted a one season waiver to all basketball players who competed during the 2020-21 COVID-19-impacted season. Therefore all players, whether they competed or not, did not use a year of eligibility (EX: Paris Dawson played in all 22 games but is still considered a freshman).