Pilots @ UW, Saturday 7pm

Here's our chance to bring some of the spotlight back... a win @ UW would look good on the resume.

The game will be televised on FSN-NW at 7pm.

I dont think either team will be overlooking this one...

Oregonian Article

GO PILOTS!

Better see if I can convince the wife to upgrade to the DirecTV Sports Pack so I can watch!!

Funny, I just checked the guide to find the game. Our game is immediately preceded by Portland State @ Washington State. Now that is really gonna confuse people who think UP/PSU are the same thing. I wonder if UW/WSU have the same problem....

mattywizz wrote:Funny, I just checked the guide to find the game. Our game is immediately preceded by Portland State @ Washington State. Now that is really gonna confuse people who think UP/PSU are the same thing. I wonder if UW/WSU have the same problem....

Sad that people confuse the wannabees for the real thing. After all we are The University of Portland like The Ohio State University...right? Hahaha...

Watching that first half was . . . painful. Not a single open shot. Unable to rebound. Turnovers and points neck and neck. Free throws less than 50%. Gave up several threes. Pretty much not a single bright spot.

Major gut check to see how the response is in the second half.

UW 89 - 54 UP

Sh*t.

Not much to say other than I hope the Alumni event in Seattle was a success. The ladder of success has many small falls on the way up. Nobody is thinking that the Pilots are anything other than a tough road or home game.

The alumni event in Seattle was fun. There was free beer, onion rings, jalapeno poppers, and all kinds of stuff. We sang the fight song. We showed up, and we did our part bringing probably about 200 strong. I met DaTruRochin, and the class of 2005 had a really impressive showing.

Unfortunately, the fun stopped there. Between the ticket price and parking, I probably paid over $1 per point that we scored in this thing. The verdict is still out on what kind of road team we'll be this year. On a positive note, we did match them in scoring in the second half. But, it was already garbage time, and the game was really already over. Good turnout. Embarrassing result.

Nice to hear you guys had a good time,would have been nice if the Pilots would have provided more action for you to cheer about.

Idaho and some revenge next?


MesaPilot1

It's gut-check time now. This game reminded me in many ways of the West Virginia game. They are all-around better than we are, in both athleticism and skill. Their length and aggresive defense did not allow us to get into any kind of offensive rhythm. Like Rev said in an interview (I think it was him anyway) they wouldn't have recruited a single player on our roster, but we would have been ecstatic with any one of theirs. They were up in our face and in our passing lanes which led to our 22 turnovers. Most of our turnovers weren't unforced or even necessarily poor decisions - they were just poor decisions against a team with UW's athleticism. We need to learn to recognize that while we can complete those plays against an Eastern Washington or UCLA, we can't get away with it against the West Virginias and Washingtons of the country.

Let's buck up can get some payback against the Vandals. The students should likely have a dismal turnout (many will have gone home for the holidays), so it's up to the rest of us to show up in force and make some noise.

Only a couple of accounts of the game so far? Are people too shellschocked, or embarrased...or is everyone out Christmas shopping?

Looking at the boxscore and the two accounts I have heard, we were clearly handled by a superior team. Our only statistical advantage was in fouls committed. ouch. The point differential only grew by only 5 points in the second half. Did we come out and play better, or did they mail it in and play their bench?

We could really use a good perfomance on Tuesday.

Yeah, I think "embarrassed" is definitely the right word to use mattywizz. There's just not much to write about. The only player who played somewhat decent in the first half was Sikma. I'm not sure how many points we got then. I feel like the refs let the players play a little bit rough in the very beginning of the game. We got mugged once or twice under the hoop, and the guys never seemed to respond. In addition, their length and athleticism just was dominant in the first half of the game. Isaiah Thomas hit more threes than normal, and TJ and Jared could barely get off their shots. They pressed us hard with their perimeter defense and no one responded. Missed shots, steals, turnovers, missed free throws in the bonus. Ugly, ugly, ugly. I wish we'd tried to set a few more picks and screens in the first half. Missing free throws in the bonus is really getting old. The same thing happened in the PSU game. I don't care how high an opponent is ranked. No one can stick a hand in your face during free throws; our players have to knock those down.

In the second half, we made a few runs to cut it to 25, but, UW responded and in the end we lost by more points than we were down at half time. If you're looking for a bright spot there were times when we were able to trade baskets in the second half and get out in transition. But, it was too little too late, and in the end we didn't make up any ground. Basically, we got punched in the mouth and didn't respond by a team that was more talented than we were. I'd like to think that our team has nothing to lose in games like this, but, this game was very demoralizing. One thing is for sure, Rev will be earning his money in practice this week.

Very disappointing result. Not much else to say... If we are going to be a championship caliber team, we need to be keeping these games respectable...

It will be very interesting to see how we respond vs. Idaho, after getting embarrassed at their place and severely humbled in Seattle. There shouldnt be any lingering "pressure" from the ranking, that's for sure.

Let's hope the team and the fans show up for the Idaho game! We are still a good team and will do well once we get to WCC play...

Theres no doubt wegot punched in the mouth last nite and the bully kicked sand in our face, but compare the first ten games last year to the first ten this year.
Last year we were 5 and 5 with a big win against Wash. This year were 6 and 4 with wins over UCLA, Minn. and Oregon. The overall schedule is also tougher, so maybe things aren't so bad, however Rev is gfoing to have to right the ship starting with Idaho.

upsailor wrote:Theres no doubt wegot punched in the mouth last nite and the bully kicked sand in our face, but compare the first ten games last year to the first ten this year.
Last year we were 5 and 5 with a big win against Wash. This year were 6 and 4 with wins over UCLA, Minn. and Oregon. The overall schedule is also tougher, so maybe things aren't so bad, however Rev is gfoing to have to right the ship starting with Idaho.

Interesting perspective. Yeah, I agree...Rev is really going to have to right the ship. We can't rely on things getting better during WCC play. The WCC is tough this year, and we have to bring our A game. If we want to be a WCC contender, we cannot be a team that peaks early and then fades. We need to get back to playing defense with our hands up in peoples' faces and diving on the floor. At our best, our team is made up of overachievers, and we need to give our A-game for success.

Rev may be going through some of the same ennui we are. He sees solutions.

Here are his tweets since that game.

We play Idaho Tuesday night at the Chiles Center. We need a great crowd. In the holiday spirit, send me a DM if you would like some tix.
about 1 hour ago from web


Last night tested our individual/collective toughness. And so does today. These are the days, with no one watching, that determine growth.
about 11 hours ago from web


Simply diagnosing problems does not lead to success. Need to creatively and persistently work on solutions that fit our personnel.
about 12 hours ago from web

Disappointed about the game tonight. UW was impressive but we let it get away. We are learning about ourselves the hard way. Battle on.
about 20 hours ago from web

we might do well to remember that UW was a pretty good, agressive, polished team of good athletes. Our RPI actually went UP by getting trounced by them.

"Need to creatively and persistently work on solutions that fit our personnel....Battle on." --Rev.

I like his attitude. Rev's basketball IQ is just off the charts. One solution that would fit the personnel would be more picks and screens for Stohl and Campbell. Also, we've got to find ways to get Raivio into more mismatch situations that he was in last season when his efficiency rating was just off the charts. He hasn't had as many unstoppable moments when he's carried the team this year...