Pilots vs. Portland St. Saturday @ 5:15 -- a doubleheader

by DoubleDipper Wed Dec 26, 2012 11:04 am

The Pilots (5-7) lost to PSU (6-4) at the Stott Center 64-49 on December 2nd, but since then the UP women have compiled an impressive 4-0 record as the young team starts to come together at just the right time.

The Pilots begin WCC play on January 3 at home against Santa Clara, so this post Christmas break tune-up will be a great opportunity for the team to gauge their improvement over the last four weeks.

The Vikings last game was an impressive road win over Weber State 74-60 in Ogden on December 22, so they are a very tough team…..even on the road.

The Pilots last game on December 21 was a 19 point win over Oregon in the Chiles Center.

I think we can expect a very competitive game on Saturday @ 5:15 preceding the men’s game @ 7:30.

by DoubleDipper Wed Dec 26, 2012 11:06 am

Kari Luttinen, WCC Player of the Week for the second straight week!

Portland sophomore guard Kari Luttinen is the West Coast Conference Player of the Week for the second straight week after leading the Pilots to a home win over the Oregon Ducks. Luttinen scored a game-high 22 points against the Ducks as Portland cruised to a 68-49 victory last Friday at the Chiles Center.

Luttinen scored 15 points in the first half to help the Pilots pick up their fourth straight win. The Seattle, Wash., native hit three three-pointers against the Ducks and connected on nine field goals overall. Luttinen also matched a career high with five steals as she helped the Pilots hold the Ducks to just three points during the game’s final 12 minutes. Oregon managed only 14 points in the entire second half.

Luttinen leads the Pilots in scoring (13.5 ppg) and she’s averaging 20.0 points per contest during UP’s current four-game winning streak.

by DoubleDipper Thu Dec 27, 2012 4:49 pm

According to RealTimeRPI….

RPI:
PSU – 177
UP – 205

Strength of Schedule:
PSU – 232
UP – 155

Predicted Final Score:
UP 74 PSU 69

by DoubleDipper Sun Dec 30, 2012 8:50 pm

A disappointing loss to a good team, but it was winnable to the very end.

When PSU was “allowed” to go on that 21-2 it just showed the immaturity of a UP team still learning to play together and understand each player’s individual role.

Portland dominated the paint claiming an edge in both rebounds (41-32) and points in the paint (40-22), but PSU converted 21 UP turnovers into 27 points….just enough to overcome a UP 11 point lead to pull out the 64-61 win.

The Pilots are vastly improved from just five weeks ago, but will the team be able to continue its evolution and maturity into WCC play? I think they’ll get better, but so are the rest of the teams in the WCC.

I’m still thinking they’ll have to play Wednesday in Las Vegas at the beginning of the WCC Tournament, but hoping for better…..the question is, do they have the will and leadership to do the work it will take for a higher finish?

by wrv Mon Dec 31, 2012 4:53 pm

The Pilots were extraordinarily turnover prone, both at the point and with passes from the forwards. The number of unforced errors in this game led to the loss. It is a shame. Cassandra Thompson played quite a ballgame, dominating in the post. We made a valiant effort at the end to pull victory from this turnover fest, but it was too little too late.

Pilots vs. Portland St. Saturday @ 5:15 -- a doubleheader

Pilots vs. Portland St. Saturday @ 5:15 -- a doubleheader

Re: Pilots vs. Portland St. Saturday @ 5:15 -- a doubleheader

Re: Pilots vs. Portland St. Saturday @ 5:15 -- a doubleheader

Re: Pilots vs. Portland St. Saturday @ 5:15 -- a doubleheader

Re: Pilots vs. Portland St. Saturday @ 5:15 -- a doubleheader