We have a chance to be very good this season.

With Ryan Nicholas, Kevin Bailey, and Thomas van der Mars returning, we have the leadership to be a pretty good team. I expect Nicholas to continue to be Mr. consistent, and Bailey should break out a little bit this season.

Both of the European players coming in are supposed to be solid shooters.

I won't be surprised if we can win 20 games, but a lot of that is going to depend on how we do in OOC play. The WCC was good last season, and it will be even tougher this year. We aren't the only team that is trending up. LMU, San Diego, and USF are all supposed to take a step forward this season.

Should be a fun season. Let's fill up the Chiles Center!

I, for one, WOULD be quite surprised if we win 20 games this year. But it would be a great surprise! Both Nicholas and Bailey need to be more consistent if we are going to have a winning record, let alone with 20 games.

Nicholas is clearly the leader of the team, but he still had far too many awful shooting nights: 2-9, 3-11, 2-10, 0-8, 4-15, 2-11, 1-8, 2-10, 3-11... Even though we all love him, he was pretty inconsistent last season. There were 10 games (out of 32) in which he shot worse than 30% from the field. And he was still the team's leading scorer. Let's hope that having more offensive weapons on the floor will help take the pressure off of him. I think the Pilots will be a better team if Nicholas is not THE go-to guy. Nicholas has simply had too many off-nights, and when that happened last year there wasn't anyone to pick up the slack.

NoPoNeighbor wrote:I think the Pilots will be a better team if Nicholas is not THE go-to guy. Nicholas has simply had too many off-nights, and when that happened last year there wasn't anyone to pick up the slack.

Agreed, Ryan should NOT be the go-to guy!!  But if he's been inconsistent with his numbers, I don't think he's been inconsistent with his play or performance.  It's just that no one else on the team stepped up to take the pressure off him last year, and the opposing teams were able to double and triple him on occasion…..killing his numbers and hurting the team’s ability to win.

This year's team is better on PAPER because there will be more support from the perimeter, more lanes opened up because all 5 players will have to be guarded, and there will be added support inside from Voldy and the improved Thomas and Riley.

Before the team left for Spain I asked Rev if he could envision Voldy and Rhino on the court together.....he said it, "Would be something the staff will have to look into".......I don't know if they did.

KB has worked very hard this summer, and he seems more focused (mature) than his first two years, but he’ll still have to prove to me that his potential translates into positive consistency.

As noted, the rest of the WCC has improved also.....IMO it will be preparation and coaching that will have to make the difference.....the question is, will it?

DoubleDipper wrote:...IMO it will be preparation and coaching that will have to make the difference.....the question is, will it?

This is a great point. I think many of us were frustrated that the coaches didn't seem to be able to make adjustments to the offensive scheme mid-season last year once it was evident that the offense was consistently ineffective and stagnant. Let's hope we have an overhauled approach this season at the outset, and that the staff is more willing to make dramatic changes if the need arises mid-season.

Don't leave us hanging...

What adjustments do you think would have worked?

Geezaldinho wrote:Don't leave us hanging...

What adjustments do you think would have worked?

There wasn't much to be done with the roster holes we had, IMHO.  There was some talent in the squad, but I would say it underperformed and there was no depth to step in.

NoPoNeighbor wrote:

DoubleDipper wrote:...IMO it will be preparation and coaching that will have to make the difference.....the question is, will it?

This is a great point. I think many of us were frustrated that the coaches didn't seem to be able to make adjustments to the offensive scheme mid-season last year once it was evident that the offense was consistently ineffective and stagnant.

This might be a good a place to post the West Coast Convo’s ranking of WCC head coaches from a few weeks ago.  I think it’s a fair assessment of the coaches’ ability to recruit and then bring their recruits together to form a successful program.  (IMO it the ranking does not take into account the “Jerk Factor,” otherwise the USF coach would probably top the chart  ).

1. Mark Few USF
2. Dave Rose BYU
3. Randy Bennett SMC
4. Rex Walters USF
5. Max Good LMU
6. Eric Reveno UP
7. Kerry Keating SCU
8. Bill Grier USD
9. Marty Wilson PU
10. Ron Verlin UOP

Here’s our own David Thompson’s look at UP Coach Reveno:

Through seven seasons, Portland Head Coach Eric Reveno has been a great ambassador for the University of Portland. An all-star on Twitter, Reveno has put an emphasis on doing things the right way. He has focused on recruiting high character student athletes who compete on the court and in the classroom.

Also, through seven seasons Reveno has accumulated some wins. He averaged 20 wins a season between 2009-2011, earning the 2009 WCC Coach of the Year award. The problem is that he’s piled up more losses. He’s a combined 96-121 over those seven seasons, and this year could really decide what Portland does moving forward.

As much as the Portland community and fans love Reveno for who he is and the way he goes about business, winning is still the measuring stick for head coaches and unless he puts more W’s on the board, his time in Portland may end sooner rather than later.

I like your optimism, Mr. Dweller! I agree that we do have the chance to make some noise this year... the coaching staff has, at least on paper so far, filled in several of the holes from last season (PG, perimiter shooting). I am really hoping for a break-out season for Thomas... with a supporting cast, I think he could really shine.

We are much improved on paper so far... we will have to see how that translates onto the court. I think the single most significant factor will be the performance (or lack there of) in the PG position... Wintering should be a great addition, but how quickly will he adjust to the D-I level?

PilotNut wrote:I like your optimism, Mr. Dweller!  I agree that we do have the chance to make some noise this year...  the coaching staff has, at least on paper so far, filled in several of the holes from last season (PG, perimiter shooting).  I am really hoping for a break-out season for Thomas... with a supporting cast, I think he could really shine.

We are much improved on paper so far... we will have to see how that translates onto the court.  I think the single most significant factor will be the performance (or lack there of) in the PG position... Wintering should be a great addition, but how quickly will he adjust to the D-I level?  

We were in a number of games last season that we ended up losing. We finally got a true PG, and we picked up some Euro's that are supposed to be able to shoot. IMO, Bailey starts to emerge as our go-to player this year. Nicholas shouldn't be our best offensive player. Love that kid, and nobody on the team hustles like him, but he doesn't have the skill set to be a top offensive threat. Nicholas is Mr. consistent in getting hustle points and rebounds. He'll keep doing that because that's who he is.

For the record, I said it was possible to get to 20 wins. Realistically, I think we get to 16-18. Still, it will be a very nice season in my opinion. And bear in mind that 16-18 wins isn't what it used to be. The league has gotten deeper. SMC is good every year. We've added BYU. Pacific is a fairly solid program (4 NCAA tournament appearances including 2 wins since 2004). These days, 23-24 wins in the WCC is getting teams in the NCAA tournament. We have a ways to go, but I do believe we are trending in the right direction overall.