PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (1-1)
at SAN DIEGO TOREROS (1-1)

Tuesday, November 12, 2024, 7 p.m., Jenny Craig Pavilion (5,100), San Diego, CA
Live Stream: ESPN+ • Play-by-play: Jack Cronin • Analyst: Braden Suprenant
Live Stats: www.ViksLive.com
 

OPENING TIP

Portland State will begin a stretch of four in a row and five of the next six games on the road when it meets up with the University of San Diego on Tuesday night. The Vikings and Toreros will face off in San Diego for the second year in a row in a 7 p.m. game that airs on ESPN+.
           
PSU (1-1) comes off a resounding 131-84 victory over NAIA Evergreen State on Thursday. Though heavily favored to win the game, the Vikings performance was eye opening. PSU shot .684 from the field and .517 from three-point range in amassing the third-highest point total in school history. PSU's win marked a fourth straight at home dating back to last season.
           
Eight players scored in double figures as everyone available saw significant action. JR G Ismail Habib had the biggest night with a career-high 29 points, including 9-11 from three-point range. SR F Hayden Curtiss added 17 points (7-8 FG) and six rebounds, while SR G Qiant Myers handed out 14 assists to go with 10 points and two blocked shots.
           
Because of the lopsided victory, the Vikings are averaging 111.5 points per game, shooting .590 from the field as a team and averaging 13.5 three-pointers. One might say those numbers are merely reflective of a mismatch win over a small college. That's only partly true. Keep in mind, the Vikings rolled up 92 points on .485 shooting and 12-27 from three-point range against Washington State. So, big offense may be the new normal for the 2024-25 Vikings. That will be determined against more similar opponents like those to be in encountered in San Diego, then Milwaukee, St. Thomas, Wofford, Utah Tech, Seattle and Denver over the course of the next month.
           
The Toreros (1-1) have also played two games - both at home - losing to Rider, 68-67, then defeating Boston University, 74-60.
 
San Diego hosted and defeated the Vikings, 69-65, last season. The West Coast Conference school has won five in a row over PSU dating back over 24 seasons.
 

GAME NOTES: PORTLAND STATE vs. SAN DIEGO

• ALL-TIME SERIES: San Diego leads the all-time series, 7-1, and has won five in a row. Last season the Toreros won 69-65 in a game played in San Diego. USD is 5-0 at home against the Vikings.
• LAST SEASON: Dec. 5, 2023 at San Diego, USD 69, PSU 65: Portland State came back to lead from double-digit deficits in both the first and second halves and take leads, but San Diego was able to come away with the victory, 69-65... the game was tight down the stretch with ties at 50, 52, 54, 57, 59 and 62... the Toreros' Wayne McKinney had 12 points in the final eight minutes, and a key assist with 32 seconds to play as San Diego held off the Vikings. McKinney finished the night with career-highs of 21 points and five assists to lead San Diego to the win... Isaiah Johnson came off the bench to lead PSU with 16 points and six rebounds. Bobby Harvey, also coming off the bench, had 15 points and six rebounds.
• PORTLAND STATE vs. THE WEST COAST CONFERENCE: Portland State is 42-82 all-time against current members of the West Coast Conference... the Vikings also play University of the Pacific this season.
• COACHES: Vikings Coach Jase Coburn (Arizona State, 2006) is in his fourth season as Head Coach and is 44-52 overall. Coburn is 0-1 against San Diego. He spent eight previous seasons on the Park Blocks as an Assistant and Associate Head Coach... the Toreros are coached by Steve Lavin (San Francisco State) in his third season. Lavin is 30-36 overall and 1-0 against the Vikings. Also a head coach at St. John's and UCLA, Lavin has a career record of 256-169 in 14 seasons.

 

SCOUTING SAN DIEGO

• The University of San Diego is a member of the West Coast Conference. USD was 18-15 last season, 7-9 and 5th in the WCC.
• San Diego is off to a 1-1 start to the season after two home games, beating Boston University and losing to Rider. The Toreros allow 70.5 points and give up 64.0 points per game.
• Transfer guard Kjay Bradley Jr. is averaging 26.0 points, 5.0 assists and 3.0 steals while shooting .568 from the field. Sophomore forward David Simon averages 13.0 points and sophomore forward Santiago Trouet averages 11.5 rebounds to lead the team.

 

HOT SHOTS

• SHARING THE WEALTH: When you score 131 points, no matter against whom, everyone is hot. The 131 points scored were the third-most in school history (142, see below) and the most in 46 years. PSU's .684 shooting percentage came up just short of the school record (.688) and the 35 assists were just short of the school record as well (38)... players with career-scoring highs were JR G Ismail Habib (29), SR C Tre-Vaughn Minott (12) and JR F Isaac Brice (10)... SR G Shane Nowell was a perfect 6-6 from the field for 13 points, to go with six rebounds, three assists and three steals... SR F Hayden Curtiss was 7-8 from the field for 17 points.
• Q-RATING: SR G Qiant Myers has established himself quickly as the Vikings' primary ball-handler. Myers had 10 assists at Washington State and 14 against Evergreen State. The 14 assists matches the most in the Big Sky Conference era (1996-present). PSU's school record is 19 assists in a game by Terry Adolph in 1977... Myers is averaging 12.0 points, 12.0 assists and has a shooting slash line of .667/.667/.800. His +/- through two games is a team-best +53... as of Monday morning his 12.0 assists ranked first in the nation.SPLASH BROTHERS: Yes, it's very, very early, but its still remarkable that PSU has six players averaging double figures and eight averaging 9.0 or more... the Vikings are shooting .590 from the field and .482 from three-point range while making 13.5 threes per game... PSU's top nine scorers are all shooting .500 or better from the field... SR F Hayden Curtiss (12-16 FG, 3-3 3-pt) and SR C Tre-Vaughn Minott (6-8 FG) lead the team at .750 from the field. SR F Isaiah Johnson is shooting .733 (11-15).
• WATCHING TV: SR F Tre-Vaughn Minott made his first career start at Washington State. Though he played only nine minutes, Minott had seven points, five rebounds and two blocked shots - all career bests at PSU... coming off the bench against Evergreen State, Minott had new career highs of 12 points and six rebounds with two blocks in 15 minutes of action.
• THIS LOOKS FAMILIAR: Trademarks of Jase Coburn-coached teams have been forcing turnovers and bench production. PSU forced 21 Cougar turnovers and 23 Geoduck turnovers for a remarkable 81 points off turnovers in the two games.... the Vikings have 104 bench points in 165 bench minutes played so far.

 

POINTS, POINTS, POINTS

Portland State scored the third-most points in school history on Thursday. Here are the highest scoring games all-time:
 
1. 142-85 vs. Southern Oregon, 2-9-77 (Freeman Williams, 71 points)
2. 133-110 vs. Rocky Mountain, 2-3-78 (Freeman Williams, 81 points)
3. 131-84 vs. Evergreen State, 11-7-24 (Ismail Habib, 29 points)
4. 130-92 vs. British Columbia, 12-27-68 (Leon Edmonds, 46 points)
t5. 125 twice
t7. 124 four times, most vs. D1 opponent: Eastern Washington, 130-124, 3ot loss
 
Most vs. D1 opponent, regulation: 115-100 win over Boise State, 1-24-72
Most vs. Big Sky opponent, regulation: 108-56 win over Montana, 3-1-08
 

EVERYBODY PLAYS, (NEARLY) EVERYBODY STARTS

One thing has become apparent during Head Coach Jase Coburn's tenure at Portland State; everybody plays. And nearly everybody starts at some point as Coburn routinely adjusts lineups based on a myriad of factors. In his 96 games as head coach, Coburn has started 37 different lineups. In the season opener against Washington State, four of the five starters were new for PSU. Here is a look at Viking starters through the years:

• 2024-25: 2 different lineups, 6 of 11 players started
• 2023-24: 14 differents lineups, 11 of 12 players started
• 2022-23: 9 different lineups, 9 of 13 players started
• 2021-22: 12 different lineups, 11 of 14 players started

 

MEANINGLESS TRIVIA

• Portland State was picked to place sixth in the Big Sky Conference Preseason Coaches Poll and seventh in the Big Sky Conference Preseason Media Poll. The Vikings were sixth in 2023-24.
• PSU is 12-17 in season openers since reinstating basketball and joining the Big Sky Conference in 1996-97... the Vikings are 25-4 in home openers over the same span.