COACHES VS. CANCER CLASSIC Thursday, Friday, Saturday.

Thursday, Nov. 21, 2013
North Texas vs. Columbia, 2:00 PM
Portland  vs. Idaho, 5:00 PM
 
Friday, Nov. 22, 2013
Idaho vs. North Texas, 4:30 PM
Portland  vs. Columbia, 7:00 PM
 
Saturday, Nov. 23, 2013
Columbia vs. Idaho, 4:30 PM
Portland vs. North Texas, 7:00 PM
 
PORTLAND
* The Pilots (1-2) have a win over UC Davis, and losses to Oregon State and No. 1 Michigan State
* UP was picked to finish ninth in the WCC
* Pomeroy ranking: 168
* Sagarin Rank: 220
 
IDAHO
* The Vandals (2-1) have wins over Western Illinois and NW Nazarene and a loss at Oklahoma
* IU was picked second in the WAC
* The Vandals are led in scoring by Portland native Stephen Madison (14.7 ppg)
* Pomeroy ranking: 235
* Sagarin rank: 210
 
COLUMBIA
* The Lions (1-2) defeated Maryland-Eastern Shore before dropping a pair of close games versus Manhattan (71-70) and at then-No. 2 Michigan State (62-53).
* The Lions were picked to finish eighth in the Ivy League
* Pomeroy ranking: 185
* Sagarin: rank: 260
  
NORTH TEXAS
* The Mean Green (2-1) has wins over Northwood and Nicholls State with a 13-point loss at Oklahoma
* Senior G Alzee Williams averages a team-high 20.7 points per game
* The Mean Green was picked to finish sixth in the Sun Belt Conference
* Pomeroy ranking: 220
* Sagarin rank: 269

Any PG update?

CaptWhip wrote:Any PG update?

I think there's a pretty good chance we'll see David start to get some minutes during this three game stretch.....gotta start out easy, build-up his game strength, and see how it goes.

Las Vegas has Columbia favord by 3.5 over North Texas and UP by 8 over Idaho.....Pomeroy also says UP by 8 (77-69), but I think we all know this means virtually nothing.....you've got to play the game!!

I am looking forward to these next 3 games. I am hoping to see good fan support especially from the students. I also want to see how the team responds from a well played but tough physical game against Michigan State. Looking at the rankings (a little early in the season) but all 3 teams are pretty even. I think the home crowd will give the Pilots the advantage in all 3 games.

Pilot2002 wrote:I am looking forward to these next 3 games.  I am hoping to see good fan support especially from the students.  I also want to see how the team responds from a well played but tough physical game against Michigan State.  Looking at the rankings (a little early in the season) but all 3 teams are pretty even.  I think the home crowd will give the Pilots the advantage in all 3 games.

It should be fun. I'm hoping for 3-0!

Good game! Good balanced offense. 8 players scored at least 6 points. Van der Mars dominated. Let's hope he can keep that up.

Wintering making progress, but still makes quite a few ill-advised passes, which often lead to break-aways for the opponent.

Thieleke brought great energy tonight. Good to see him get some good minutes. Tanner Riley also played a lot of minutes, but did not score. You can tell his teammates are really rooting for him to get on a roll. Sharp was a bit off on shooting.

Best news of all, David Carr is back! And scored a tough lay-up within a few seconds of coming into the game.

As for the fan support... lightly attended tonight, as would be expected for a 5pm game. The students were marginal, with most sitting there looking bored. Then there was the one student who obnoxiously and embarrassingly yelled at all the opposing players that they "suck." Gives UP a bad name. I can't figure out why the Pilots have such a hard time getting the student body into supporting the team.

Both big guys did all right tonight. Nicholas was a rebound away from his own double-double. I could watch van der Mars' jump hook all night.

Carr only played 10 minutes but got 4 assists, and that nice layup.

I sure am glad the first two rows of the student section were reserved for Mr. Loudmouth and his friends. You told him he sucks! Hilarious burn, bro!  Sigh...

NoPoNeighbor wrote:.......The students were marginal, with most sitting there looking bored. Then there was the one student who obnoxiously and embarrassingly yelled at all the opposing players that they "suck." Gives UP a bad name. I can't figure out why the Pilots have such a hard time getting the student body into supporting the team.

I would rather have NO student participation if what we got this evening was UP's finest.
 
As for the student (I would NEVER call him a fan) who kept yelling, "You suck #1," do you think he realized he, the student, was indeed wearing jersey #1?
 
With nothing but a chorus of "you suck" or "air-ball," I believe the students sank to a new low for imagination and originality, and did nothing to scout the opposing team for humorous remarks.   The students still have time to improve their game, but they are currently in last place in the WCC IMO.
 
UP prides itself in the number of Fullbright Scholars it turns out…..it's too bad we only get to hear and see those students that appear to be on the other end of the spectrum.

Idaho did not go down easily, but the UP TEAM was a joy to watch.  As the teams have to play three games in three days during the “classic,” it made sense that there were a number of substitutions and different player combinations on the floor…..but the player’s ability to work together and support one another was excellent.
 
I was surprised that Idaho came out double-teaming/harassing Thomas, but that didn’t last long when he found his teammates with passes and started hitting the hook shot he’s been working on all summer.
 
“They were the more aggressive team,” Idaho coach Don Verlin said after the game. “We made a couple breakdown errors and when that happened they were able to get some easy shots and baskets. They just beat the heck out of us in every phase of the game tonight.”
  
The return of David, the addition of Voldy, and the outside threat of Bobby make this 2013-14 a much better model than last year’s team.  The bench is deep and the court is spread……everyone contributes, and everyone has their teammate’s back….it’s fun to watch.

Conflicting event kept me away tonight. Listened to some of the first half on the radio, saw some of the second half on the livestream at PortlandPilots.com (which is a great picture!). Nice to see so many players get double digit minutes.

The crowd looked really sparse. Box score on ESPN says 1,159 in attendance. Really?

up7587 wrote:.....The crowd looked really sparse. Box score on ESPN says 1,159 in attendance. Really?

Yea, that seemed about right....although the hundred or so that surrounded me seemed to be from just one family.  

Also, I tried to use the live stats during the game ( the link on the Schedule page, not the one on the Video page)

No dice. All I got is a "this game hasn't started yet" message.

Geezaldinho wrote:Also, I tried to use the live stats during the game ( the link on the Schedule page, not the one on the Video page)

No dice. All I got is a "this game hasn't started yet" message.

Fortunately, all the stats were posted on the video board for much longer periods than usual for both games today....a much welcome change, IMO.
 
But you'd think UP's scoreboard would list Alec's name as Alec.....not Alex.  I'm guessing it will be fixed by next game....Stoney?

The team stats were up on the board, but none of the individual stats were ever displayed (as they usually are). Why not?

Nice win - didn't watch, mostly because I failed to take note of the earlier tip and tuned in just in time to hear them wrapping up.

Interesting to see Columbia's big man Osetkowski led all Lions with 34 minutes. Four starters over 30 minutes for Columbia, so hopefully that will give the fresher Pilots an advantage tomorrow.

DoubleDipper wrote:The return of David, the addition of Voldy, and the outside threat of Bobby make this 2013-14 a much better model than last year’s team.

Don't forget about the addition of Alec.  His quickness on both ends of the court gives us a dimension we haven't seen in awhile.  With David injured, he was given a big job as the starting PG and has handled it well as a true freshmen.

Pomeroy is liking the Pilots performance to this point…..UP’s ranking has gone from 191 to 181 to 177 to 168 and now to 157 after last night’s game against Idaho.  
 
The two areas of UP’s performance that stand out as needing improvement are 3-point defense and offensive rebounding….but of course the Michigan St. game may have hurt the 3-point stat.
 
From what I saw, Columbia is a VERY good three-point shooting team. I only watched the last 12 minutes of their game against North Texas…..but at one point I believe CU was 12 for 17 behind the arc and they are very good inside as well.
 
Pomeroy ranks Columbia at #181, but interestingly indicates the Pilots will win by only 4 points tonight…...that’s about what he rates two even teams, with the edge going to the home team.
 
Las Vegas favors UP by 7.
 
Expect a number of Columbia fans at the game…..let’s hope UP’s student section can be creative and keep it classy…..is there any chance of that

DoubleDipper wrote:Expect a number of Columbia fans at the game…..let’s hope UP’s student section can be creative and keep it classy…..is there any chance of that

Your post sucks  

edit: added an Internet winky face, just in case anyone thought that I wasn't referring to our friend's go-to insult - which, by the way, came across clearly several times on the webcast.

They don't even need to be creative, as far as I'm concerned. Just focus on cheering FOR the Pilots, rather than demeaning the opponent. And use some of that energy to get the other few dozen students who are sitting on their hands to get involved in the game.

NoPoNeighbor wrote:They don't even need to be creative, as far as I'm concerned. Just focus on cheering FOR the Pilots, rather than demeaning the opponent. And use some of that energy to get the other few dozen students who are sitting on their hands to get involved in the game.

I'll take the other angle and say that at least the "you suck" guy is at the game and showing some level of interest and participation. But if you or any of your buddies are one of the lurkers on this forum, take note of NPN's excellent advice above and just cheer loud for the home side. It's incredible how much positive energy even a smallish group of good fans can lift the atmosphere in a building and provide a boost for the players.

The best chirps can cut right through an opponent without resorting to being vulgar or personally insulting. Best example I can think of involving the Pilots in recent years was the Tanner Riley Anger Meter that the BYU students busted out last year after the minor scuffle at Chiles (briefly, before it was taken away). Funny and relevant, not vulgar.

Great post, DM!  The best cheers/insults are the subtle ones that are not vulgar.  Do a little research (a.k.a. Google).  Find things out from people you know that attend the subject school.  Resorting to vulgarity is lazy and ineffective!

Yeah, lay some academic smack on those Columbia ..uh.. Ivy Leaguers ..uh.. never mind.  

Only six turnovers! Love the way this team is taking care of the ball.

Kind of a similar win to the Idaho game. Real quick start, opposition kind of got back into it, pulled away in the second half and cruised to big win down the stretch.

Having a lot of fun watching this version of the Pilots play this year so far!

Agreed... a much more pleasant team to watch this year. The offense still sputters when Wintering is out, but hopefully Carr getting healthy will help. Thomas had another great game, as did Nicholas. Even the students were pretty good! (Has anyone else noticed the improvement of the Dance Team in actually leading some cheers?!)

Great team defense tonight, as well.