PORTLAND PILOTS (4-1) at PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (2-1)

Tuesday, November 23, 2021, 7 p.m. • Viking Pavilion (3,094), Portland, OR
Television: KRCW (in Portland) • Live Stream: ESPN+ • Play-by-Play: Matt Richert • Analyst: Devon Pouncey
Live Stats: www.ViksLive.com
Complete notes and stats in pdf

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THE OPENING TIP

The preliminaries are over, the Vikings are ready to play some big games.
     
Portland State will have a challenging week of competition as it takes on Portland and Iowa over the next five days. The game with the Pilots is always a big one as the teams battle for city bragging rights. For the Vikings it is particularly big as PSU has lost the last two matchups and it will be the first go round for the two new Head Coaches, Jase Coburn of Portland State and Shantay Legans of Portland.
     
PSU goes into the contest at 2-1 on the season. The loss, in the season-opener came, at Oregon State in a game in which the Vikings led most of the way against a 2021 Elite Eight program. The wins, by an average of 52 points, came against lower division competition in Evergreen State and George Fox. So, Tuesday's contest with the Pilots should be a great measure of where the Vikings are in the first month of the season.
     
As one would expect, the Vikings took care of business in their two wins at home. There was "no drama" according to Coach Coburn, as PSU took big leads early and went on to blow out the Geoducks and the Bruins. The Vikings are showing balance and teamwork early on as four players are averaging in double figures and nine are averaging six points or more. FR G Paris Dawson is averaging a team-best 14.5 points in two games off the bench. Newcomer SR F James Jean-Marie has been a force averaging 14.3 points and 10.3 rebounds with three double-doubles. And, JR G Marlon Ruffin is averaging 14.3 points on .571 field goal shooting. PSU is shooting .505 from the field and .708 at the line.
     
Portland is 4-1, having also lost to a Pac-12 team (Arizona State), beaten a lower division school (Willamette), then taken three wins over a pair of SWAC teams and a MEAC team (Alcorn State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Morgan State).       
 
Portland State will try to continue its non-conference success at home. PSU has lost only 12 non-conference home games in the last 13 seasons (61-12). PSU is 29-11 against Division I schools, and 32-1 against lower division schools over that span.
     
Tuesday night's game will air once again on ESPN+, and will be televised live locally on KRCW. Live statistics can be found at www.ViksLive.com.

COMING UP

Portland State plays at Iowa on Nov. 26. The game tips off at 4 p.m. PT and will air on Big 10+. It will be a first-ever meeting between the two schools. Portland State has played Big 10 opponents only four times in its history and is 0-4 (Indiana, Michigan State, Nebraska, Ohio State).
     
PSU has an early start to its Big Sky Conference season, traveling to Idaho State (Dec. 2) and Weber State (Dec. 4). 

GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. PORTLAND

• ALL-TIME SERIES: Portland leads the all-time series, 38-20. The Pilots lead the series, 14-10, since Portland State resumed its program in 1996-97 and joined the Big Sky Conference (PSU did not have basketball from 1981-96)... PSU is 6-6 in home games against the Pilots and 4-8 in games played at the Chiles Center since '96-'97.
• PSU vs. UP LAST SEASON:  Dec. 5 at Chiles Center: UP 86, PSU 73: The University of Portland went on a 20-5 run to close out the game and beat Portland State.  PSU led on five occasions in the second half and was ahead 68-66 with 5:34 to play. But fouls played a major role down the stretch. The Vikings committed 28 in all, including 16 in the second half as three starters fouled out... Portland took advantage of the fouls, making 20-24 at the free throw line in the second half alone. Ahmed Ali made 12 straight down the stretch as the Pilots took the lead back and pulled away for the win. Ali led the Pilots with a game-high 28 points, including 15-18 at the line... The Vikings did not make a field goal in the last 4:45 of the game... Newcomer James Scott led the Vikings with 21 points. Khalid Thomas scored 13 points with six rebounds and two blocked shots. Elijah Hardy, also a newcomer, had 16 points and a team-high four assists. Ian Burke finished the game with a career-high 10 rebounds.
• PORTLAND STATE vs. THE WEST COAST CONFERENCE: Portland State is 41-77 all-time against the West Coast Conference... Portland is the only WCC opponent this year... the Vikings also play one against the Pac-12, one against the Big 10, two against the Big West and one against the Mountain West.
• HE "JUMPED SHIP": In the off-season, FR F Hayden Curtiss "jumped ship" from the Pilot boat to the Viking ship. He averaged 2.2 points, 2.5 rebounds and led the Pilots with 25 blocked shots last season. On his new Viking Ship, Curtiss has averaged 8.0 points and 4.5 rebounds in the two games he has played.
• 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 Pilots are coached by Shantay Legans (Fresno State, 2004) in his first season. Legans spent four seasons as a Head Coach at Eastern Washington, compiling a 75-49 record. He was 4-2 against the Vikings while coaching the Eagles. 

SCOUTING PORTLAND

• The University of Portland is a member of the West Coast Conference. The Pilots were 6-15 last season, 0-11 in the WCC.
• New Head Coach Shantay Legans was named on Mar. 22, 2021.
• The Pilots have just three letterwinners returning from last season as Legans has brought in 12 newcomers. Three are former members of his Eastern Washington program.
• The Pilots are 4-1 in the early season, having won four straight home games. They average 80.8 points on .484 shooting from the field and .805 shooting at the free throw line.
• Tyler Robertson, an Eastern Washington transfer, has played well leading the Pilots with 17.0 points per game. He also averages 6.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists.
• Moses Woods is averaging 15.6 points and a team-leading 7.6 rebounds. He has made 12 three-points and has an excellent shooting slash line of .511/.444/.909.
• Chris Austin (14.6 ppg) and Mike Meadows (10.6 ppg, 5.2 apg) are also averaging in double figures for the Pilots. 

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. Through the first three games, PSU looked quite a bit different on the court. Although the Vikings have eight returners and seven newcomers, only one returning player has been in the starting lineup.
     
SR F Khalid Thomas has started all three averaging 10.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals.
     
Newcomers in the starting lineup have included: JR Gs Mikal Starks (5.3 ppg, 2.3 apg), Michael Carter III (8.3, 5.0, 2.3) and Marlon Ruffin (14.3, .571 FG%), and SR F James Jean-Marie (14.3, 10.3, .581 FG%). Jean-Marie has opened the season with three straight double-doubles. Ruffin has scored in double figures in all three games.
     
Off the bench, JR G Ian Burke (6.3 ppg, 4.3 rpg, .600 FG%), SR G Ezekiel Alley (6.0 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 5.0 apg), SO F Jacob Eyman  (3.3 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 1.3 bpg), FR G Paris Dawson (14.5 ppg, 12-12 FT) and JR F Gio Nelson (7.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg) have all played big minutes. In two games, FR C Hayden Curtiss has averaged 8.0 ppg, 4.5 rpg. 

WHO IS HOT

• SR F James Jean-Marie has three straight double-doubles and averages 14.3 points and 10.3 rebounds... he is the first Viking with three straight double-doubles since Cameron Forte had a remarkable run of 27.7 points and 15.5 rebounds in three games against Sacramento State, Eastern Washington and Idaho, Jan. 23-30, 2016.
• FR G Paris Dawson scored a career-high 19 points (6-8 FG, 1-2 3pt, 6-6 FT) against George Fox... he is also 12-12 at the free throw line this season.
• Portland State shot .536 (37-69) from the field against Evergreen State, then .577 (41-71) from the field against George Fox. Those are the best two team shooting percentages since the 2019-20 season... the .577 mark is the best since a .591 shooting performance against Northern Arizona on Feb. 14, 2019.
• The Vikings held Evergreen State to 15-65 shooting (.231) and George Fox to 19-58 (.328).
• SR G Ezekiel Alley leads the Big Sky Conference in assists (5.0)... SR F Khalid Thomas leads the Big Sky in steals (3.0).

DOUBLE TROUBLE

SR F James Jean-Marie is expected to be double trouble for opponents as his powerful inside game is complemented by a soft outside shooting touch, not to mention his dominant board work (triple trouble?).

• Through three games, Jean-Marie has three double-doubles. He averages 14.3 points and 10.3 rebounds.
• He shoots .581 from the field, 1-2 from three-point range and .667 at the line.
• Jean-Marie has led the team in rebounding three times.

RESPECT THE SPECS

JR G Marlon Ruffin has found his way into the Portland State starting lineup with a unique look. Ruffin is one of the few collegiate players who wears glasses on the court... and his specs have style.

• Through three games, Ruffin is averaging 14.3 points per game.
• He shoots .571 from the field and .714 at the line.
• Has led the team in scoring once.
• Went for 18 points (6-9 FG, 5-6 FT) in 18 minutes against Evergreen State (11/12).

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 averages 10.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.0 steals per game.
• Scored a team-high 16 points (6-13 FG, 4-9 3-pt) at Oregon State (11/9). 

ONCE THEY'VE SEEN PARIS...

FR G Paris Dawson missed the Oregon State game, but has come back to play well since. Although he played in 22 games last season (8.4 ppg, 32 3-pt FG), Dawson still qualifies as a freshman due to the NCAA's COVID-19 waiver for the season.

• Dawson leads the team in scoring in two games off the bench at 14.5 points per game.
• Scored a career-high 19 points (6-8 FG, 1-2 3-pt, 6-6 FT) in the win over George Fox (11/17).
• He has made 12-12 free throws this season. 

THE MORE THINGS CHANGE...

JR G Ian Burke continues to be a reliable force on the Viking team. In 52 minutes of playing time this season he has only two turnovers. That continues the trend as Burke has just 26 total turnovers in 57 career games at PSU. He made just nine all of last season.

• Burke is averaging career highs of 6.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists. He also has five steals and two blocked shots.
• He is 6-10 from the field, 3-5 from three-point range, 4-6 at the line this season.