THE LANCER JOUST TOURNAMENT

 

PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (3-0) at CALIFORNIA BAPTIST LANCERS (2-0)

Friday, November 17, 2023, 7 p.m. • CBU Events Center (5,050), Riverside, CA

vs. CAL POLY MUSTANGS (1-2)

Saturday, November 18, 2023, 2:30 p.m. • CBU Events Center (5,050), Riverside, CA

vs. ST. THOMAS TOMMIES (2-1)

Sunday, November 19, 2023, 2:30 p.m. • CBU Events Center (5,050), Riverside, CA
Live Stream: ESPN+ on Friday,
    YouTube on Saturday (https://youtube.com/live/6fH_cOwnNnU?feature=share)
    YouTube on Sunday (https://youtube.com/live/HU7SOHqlABM?feature=share)
Live Stats: www.ViksLive.com

---

OPENING TIP

Portland State will play in The Lancer Joust Tournament hosted by California Baptist, a three-day, four-team tournament, this weekend in Riverside, CA. The Vikings, 3-0 after one week of play, will take on the host Lancers on Friday, then Cal Poly Saturday and St. Thomas on Sunday.
     
Portland State will try to maintain the momentum that has gotten it off to a fast start in the 2023-24 season. At 3-0, the Vikings are off to their best start since beginning 4-0 in the 2017-18 season.           Last week, PSU beat Air Force and UC Santa Barbara on the road, then came home to defeat Linfield in its home opener.
     
This week's tournament will provide a solid challenge against three teams from three different Division I conference. California Baptist is currently 2-0, Cal Poly is 1-2 and St. Thomas is 2-1. It wraps up a stretch of six games in the first 14 days of the season. The Vikings then have a week off before resuming play at home on Nov. 28.
     
Last season, Portland State picked up a win at California Baptist, 74-72, and lost at Cal Poly, 72-49. The Vikings have never played St. Thomas.
     
PSU's good start to the season can be attributed to depth, good defense and aggressive, scrappy play. Although the Vikings have been out-rebounded through three games, they hold a +7.0 turnover margin and allow only 61.0 points per game. PSU has gotten to the free throw line 71 times compared to 44 for their opponents. Although they haven't quite found their shooting touch with a .417/.299/.676 slash line, the Vikings have handled the ball well with only 9.3 turnovers per game and averaged 11.0 offensive rebounds.
     
One media outlet, Field of 68 Media Network, had the Vikings ranked 24th in their mid-major Top 25 this week (UC Santa Barbara was 18th).
     
The Vikings took a 70-53 win over Division III Linfield on Sunday. In that game, SR F KJ Allen had 18 points, seven rebounds and five steals. Allen now leads the Vikings in scoring (12.3) while SR G Jorell Saterfield averages 10.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists.
     
This weekend's games will be played at the Events Center at California Baptist. Friday's game is at 7 p.m. and will be live streamed on ESPN+. PSU plays at 2:30 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. Those game will be live streamed on YouTube (details to be announced). Live statistics will be available at www.ViksLive.com.
 

COMING UP

After the opening stretch of six games, PSU will get a week's rest. The Vikings follow with six more non-conference games, three at home and three on the road, leading into the Christmas holiday. PSU's next home game is Nov. 28 against University of Portland.
     
In all, Portland State plays 13 non-conference games (one comes in January), with four at home, seven on the road and two neutral site contests.

 
GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. CALIFORNIA BAPTIST

• ALL-TIME SERIES: Portland State leads the all-time series 1-0 with the only meeting coming last season in Riverside.
• LAST SEASON: Dec. 22 at Riverside, CA, PSU 74, CBU 72: A key blocked shot by Jacob Eyman followed by a driving hoop from Jorell Saterfield with 8.2 seconds left gave Portland State a thrilling road win at California Baptist. The Vikings took a 13-point lead midway through the second half, then had to hold off a Lancers' rally to pick up the win... A number of Vikings made contributions as four players scored in double figures. Cameron Parker led the way with 15 points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals  and a blocked shot. Eyman pitched in a season-high 12 points on 6-8 from the field, six rebounds and two blocked shots. Saterfield and Woods each had 10 points and six rebounds in the game... Portland State finished 26-58 from the field (.448) and 19-22 at the free throw line (.864). California Baptist used free throws to help its second-half comeback, making 19-22 after halftime and 25-29 overall (.862). But the Lancers were only 20-58 from the field (.345) and had 17 turnovers... CBU was led by 14 points from Reed Nottage and 13 points from Taran Armstrong.
• PORTLAND STATE vs. THE WESTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE: Portland State is 18-15 all-time against current members of the Western Athletic Conference. Head Coach Jase Coburn is 1-1 against the WAC.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Jase Coburn (Arizona State, 2006) is in his third season as Head Coach and has a 29-36 record overall. He is 1-0 against California Baptist. Coburn spent eight previous seasons on the Park Blocks as an Assistant and Associate Head Coach... the Lancers are coached by Rick Croy (San Francisco State, 1999) in his 11th season. Croy is 219-96 overall, including 0-1 against the Vikings.

 

SCOUTING CALIFORNIA BAPTIST

• California Baptist is a member of the Western Athletic Conference located in Riverside, CA. The Lancers were 17-16 last season, 8-10 and eighth place in the WAC.
• The Lancers are 2-0 on the season with wins over San Francisco State and Jackson State.
• Junior guard Dominique Daniels Jr. leads the team in scoring at 23.5 points per game and has made 11-19 three-point field goals. Junior guard Brantly Stevenson averages 13.5 points. Junior forward Hunter Goodrick is averaging 12.5 rebounds per game.

 

GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. CAL POLY

• ALL-TIME SERIES: The all-time series is tied 5-5. Cal Poly has won three of the last four, including 72-49 last season in San Luis Obispo.
• LAST SEASON: Dec. 10 at San Luis Obispo, CA, CP 72, PSU 49: When Portland State made eight of its first 12 shots from the field and led 24-19 midway through the first half, the Vikings were looking good. But, PSU went cold the remainder of the game and the Mustangs took advantage, defeating the Vikings. After that early hot streak, the Vikings made only 6-32 shots over the remainder of the game... In addition to the lackluster shooting, the Vikings were out-played on the glass. Cal Poly had a 42-20 rebounding advantage. PSU finished 14-44 from the field, a .318 mark, compared to 26-53 for Cal Poly (.491)... Isiah Kirby led Portland State with 12 points in 21 minutes off the bench. Cameron Parker scored 10 points... Brantly Stevenson paced the Mustangs with 20 points.
• PORTLAND STATE vs. THE BIG WEST CONFERENCE: Portland State is 30-42 all-time against current members of the Big West Conference. The Vikings beat UC Santa Barbara last week 82-76... Head Coach Jase Coburn is 1-4 all-time against the Big West.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Jase Coburn (Arizona State, 2006) is in his third season as Head Coach and has a 29-36 record overall. He is 0-2 against Cal Poly. Coburn spent eight previous seasons on the Park Blocks as an Assistant and Associate Head Coach... the Mustangs are coached by John Smith (Dominican, 1994) in his fifth season. Smith is 27-91 all-time, including 2-0 against the Vikings.

 

SCOUTING CAL POLY

• Cal Poly is a member of the Big West Conference located in San Luis Obispo, CA. The Mustangs were 8-25 last season, 1-18 and 10th place in the Big West.
• The Mustangs are 1-2 on the season with a win over LaVerne and losses to Denver and Wyoming.
• Senior guard Jarred Hyder leads the Mustangs with 16.3 points per game. Close behind him is Senior guard Kobe Sanders at 16.0 points per game.

 

GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. ST. THOMAS

• ALL-TIME SERIES: The two teams have never met.
• PORTLAND STATE vs. THE SUMMIT LEAGUE: Portland State is 4-10 all-time against current members of the Summit League. The majority of the games were against North Dakota (4-9) when that program was part of the Big Sky Conference... PSU will also play Kansas City of the Summit League later this season.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Jase Coburn (Arizona State, 2006) is in his third season as Head Coach and has a 29-36 record overall. He has never faced St. Thomas. Coburn spent eight previous seasons on the Park Blocks as an Assistant and Associate Head Coach... the Tommies are coached by Dr. Johnny Tauer (St. Thomas, 1995). Tauer is in his 13th year and has a 249-85 record.

 

SCOUTING ST. THOMAS

• St. Thomas is a member of the Summit League located in St. Paul, MN. The Tommies were 19-10 last season, 9-9 and tied for fourth in the Summit.
• The Tommies are 2-1 this season with wins over Idaho State and North Central, and a loss to California.
• Senior forward Parker Bjorklund leads the team in scoring at 13.7 points per game and grabs 5.0 rebounds. Senior guard Raheem Anthony averages 10.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists.

 

WHO IS HOT

• THE BENCH BUNCH: Portland State averaged 27.9 points per game off the bench last season to rank 12th in the nation. Nothing has changed so far this season as PSU gotten 24, 37 and 29 bench points, respectively, in the first three games of the season... SR F KJ Allen had 18 points (6-8 FG, 6-7 FT), seven rebounds and five steals in 24 minutes off the bench against Linfield.
• IN A HURRY: Portland State has 42 fast break points in three games... last year, PSU averaged 15.1 points on the break to rank 11th in the nation.
• KJ's FTs: SR F KJ Allen knows how to get to the free throw line. And he knows how to make free throws. Allen is 19-22 at the charity stripe this season (.864), ranking among the top 10 in FTM and FTA in the nation.
• BOARDS, NOT BORING: JR F Isaiah Johnson grabbed a team and career-high 13 rebounds at Air Force. He came back to grab a team-high eight boards against UC Santa Barbara. Johnson leads the team with 7.3 rebounds this season.

 

VIKING MAINSTAY

SR G Jorell Saterfield has started all 34 games of his Viking career. He is the Vikings' top returning scorer at 13.1 points per game last year and was named to the preseason All-Big Sky Conference team this fall.

• Saterfield has led the Vikings in scoring twice and averages 10.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists.
• Saterfield has made 70 three-pointers in 34 games as a Viking (70-206, .340).

 

BOBBY 3-BALL

SR G Bobby Harvey has kept his three-point shooting consistent over his one-plus seasons at Portland State. Harvey has made five threes in the first three games. That makes 30 consecutive games he has made a three-pointer. He is five games shy of the PSU record of 35 straight games with a three, held by Brian Towne (1997-98).

• Harvey has made 62 three-pointers in 33 games as a Viking (62-164, .378).

 

OUTDOOR NAME, INDOOR GAME

SR F Hunter Woods has a decidedly outdoor-sounding name. But he excels at the indoor game of basketball. Woods has averaged 9.6 points and 4.8 rebounds in 34 career games as a Viking. Against Linfield he passed the career milestone of 1,000 points. Woods scored 676 points in 84 games at Elon. He now has 327 in 34 games at Portland State for a total of 1,003.

• In 34 games at Portland State, Woods has 47 steals and has made 51-142 three-point field goals (.359).

 

IT'S NOT WHO STARTS...

JR F Isaiah Johnson did not start in the first two games, and in fact has only started five of his 34 games as a Viking. But he has proven to be one of the most valuable players on the team.

• Johnson is averaging 8.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 blocked shots in 24 minutes per game.
• Last year Johnson averaged 7.3 points, 3.0 rebounds, had 28 steals and 23 blocked shots while coming off the bench.

 

READY WHEN YOUR NUMBER IS CALLED

Continuing the trend of last season, Head Coach Jase Coburn went deep into his bench in the first three games. The Vikings have 258 bench minutes out of 600 total minutes, getting 90 points and 49 rebounds from the backups.

• The bench is shooting better than the starters. PSU shoots 33-72 (.458) off the bench and 40-104 (.385) from the starters.
• Last season, PSU's bench logged 36% of the total minutes and 37% of the points. The Vikings ranked 12th in the nation in bench scoring at 27.9 points per game. Bench players (330-698, .473) out-shot the starters (505-1,167, .433) from the field and had 52 of the team's 105 blocked shots (49%).