Challenge in Music City in Nashville

by DoubleDipper Thu Nov 27, 2014 1:10 pm

UP will play 3 games in about 36 hours in the inaugural Challenge in Music City when they take on Murray St. at 5:30 PST on Friday; Drake at 3:00 PST on Saturday; and Valparaiso at 11 AM PST on Sunday before catching an afternoon flight back to PDX to make it to classes on Monday.

There is no video stream of the games, but we'll be able to get live stats and audio from the UP website. The Saturday and Sunday games will also be on 910 AM....without Bill Johnson who will be covering the Linfield football playoff game in Texas.

For now, KenPom favors #94 Murray St. to beat the #113 Pilots by a couple of points in the opener, but he has UP coming back to beat #271 Drake and #153 Valpo in close games.

Although officially neutral site games, the Murray St. Racers will have a number of fans in attendance and will be playing in a place that is very familiar to them. The Racers will have the advantage of knowing the Muni well after playing there many seasons in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament. MSU is 9-6 in the building having played 11 OVC tournaments and they've made trips to the NCAA Tournament in 1995, 2004 and 2012 after winning at the Muni.

Cameron Payne and Jarvis Williams lead the Racers in the scoring department, each with a little more than 18 points per game. They're first and second in the OVC. Payne, the OVC Preseason Player of the Year, has 19 assists and 16 steals in the first four games. Murray St. is coming off a very physical game against #37 Xavier which they lost 89-62.

by NoPoNeighbor Thu Nov 27, 2014 5:23 pm

Five games in nine days... We'll need production from numerous players over this stretch, not just Bailey, Wintering and Gerun. Bobby Sharp will need to build on the momentum from the SIUE game, and van der Mars really needs to get it going. Warm-up time is over.

by **PilotNut** Thu Nov 27, 2014 8:18 pm

Pilots Visit Nashville for the Challenge in Music City

On the Web: http://portlandpilots.com/news/2014/11/27/MBB_1127143527.aspx
Dates: Nov. 28-30, 2014
Location: Nashville, Tenn.
Arena: Municipal Auditorium
TV/Video: None
Radio: Sports 910 (KMTT)
Audio/Stats: PortlandPilots.com

FRIDAY, NOV. 28
Drake vs. Valparaiso, 3:00 p.m. (PT)
Portland vs. Murray State, 5:30 p.m. (PT)

SATURDAY, NOV. 29
Portland vs. Drake, 3:00 p.m. (PT)
Valparaiso vs. Murray State, 5:30 p.m. (PT)

SUNDAY, NOV. 30
Portland vs. Valparaiso, 11:00 a.m. (PT)
Murray State vs. Drake, 1:30 p.m. (PT)

PORTLAND vs. MURRAY STATE
Overall Series:.................... MSU leads 2-0
Last Meeting:. MSU 71, POR 49 (1984-85)

PORTLAND vs. DRAKE
Overall Series:....................... DU leads 1-0
Last Meeting:.... DU 66, POR 44 (1982-83)

PORTLAND vs. VALPARAISO
Overall Series: Valpo leads 1-0
Last Meeting: VU 63, POR 52 (1967-68)

THIS WEEK
• The Pilots travel to Nashville, Tenn. for the Challenge in Music City over Thanksgiving weekend.
• Portland will face Murray State on Friday, Drake on Saturday and Valparaiso on Sunday.

GAME COVERAGE
• Friday’s game will be audio streamed live on PortlandPilots.com beginning with a 20-minute pregame show.
• Portland’s Saturday and Sunday games, as well as all remaining games this season, will be aired live on Sports 910 (KMTT) with pregame coverage beginning 30 minutes prior to tip-off. Ben Creighton will fill in on play-by-play and Jason Brough will be the radio analyst this weekend.
• Radio simulcasts and live statistics will be available on PortlandPilots.com.

CHALLENGE IN MUSIC CITY OPPONENT NOTES
• Murray State (2-2) is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference and won the CIT last season... Head Coach Steve Prohm relies on sophomore point guard Cameron Payne (18.5 ppg).
• Drake (1-3) went 0-3 without starting guard Gary Ricks, but knocked off IUPUI 73-60 in Ricks’ first game back... Head Coach Ray Giacoletti former was the head coach at Eastern Washington and Utah, and most recently was an assistant at Gonzaga... Reed Timmer leads the Bulldogs in scoring (14.3 ppg).
• Valparaiso of the Horizon League is coached by Bryce Drew... The Crusaders lone loss was a 56-41 decision at Missouri... Alec Peters (19.6 ppg) leads three players averaging double figures.

by Guest Thu Nov 27, 2014 8:31 pm

PilotNut was 3-0 this year and someone else goes and creates not only a game thread, but an entire WEEKEND thread.

This worries me. I'm going to go shovel snow to channel my angst.

by will2014 Thu Nov 27, 2014 8:55 pm

Thought guys might be interested in this.

www.latare.com/musiccity

We will have complete coverage of the Challenge in Music City including interviews, photos, fan photos, video clips and more. We already have reports up on all four teams. Good luck and welcome to Music City.

by Guest Thu Nov 27, 2014 9:36 pm

Here's a preview of the game from College Court Report: Game of the Day

by DoubleDipper Thu Nov 27, 2014 10:29 pm

up7587 wrote:Here's a preview of the game from College Court Report: Game of the Day

Good analysis....not available for the report were the Las Vegas odds.

Las Vegas has started out favoring the Racers by 2.5 points over the Pilots.

by Guest Fri Nov 28, 2014 1:58 pm

Xavier outrebounded Murray State by a 56-23 margin on Monday. That's an eyepopping number...and if the Pilots can exploit that with Voldy, van der Mars, and Barker even close to as much as Xavier did, it's going to give UP a chance at a pretty significant non-conference win.

DoubleDipper wrote:Las Vegas has started out favoring the Racers by 2.5 points over the Pilots.

The "Vegas line" also known as whatever Pomeroy predicts, plus or minus 0.5?

by DoubleDipper Fri Nov 28, 2014 2:27 pm

DeanMurdoch wrote:Xavier outrebounded Murray State by a 56-23 margin on Monday. That's an eyepopping number...and if the Pilots can exploit that with Voldy, van der Mars, and Barker even close to as much as Xavier did, it's going to give UP a chance at a pretty significant non-conference win.

I watched that game....Xavier was just plain big and tough, and the Racers literally played race-horse basketball up and down the court and many of the rebounds they captured were longer rebounds that caromed off the rim. They did not seem big, and as I wrote in another thread, it would appear they can be scored on inside IF UP doesn't dawdle under the basket allowing them to collapse inside.

by **PilotNut** Fri Nov 28, 2014 5:21 pm

Reminder: Tonight's Murray State game audio is being streamed at www.portlandpilots.com, and will NOT be on Sports 910 (every game after this will be on 910 AM, however).

by **PilotNut** Fri Nov 28, 2014 7:16 pm

PILOTS WIN 64-61! Very Happy

by Geezaldinho Fri Nov 28, 2014 7:18 pm

WHOOP!

Huge win

by Guest Fri Nov 28, 2014 7:20 pm

Glad to see a botched inbounds play (really? Rolling Eyes

) didn't hurt, as the Racers missed the shot to win it.

And great to see Bobby Sharp is back!

Another D-1 road win, with a hostile crowd, big for the team.

by PurplePrideTrumpet Fri Nov 28, 2014 7:22 pm

Brough dropped truth bomb after the last inbound play. Still goes down as a win.

D1 teams from the City of Portland are now 8-0.

by **PilotNut** Fri Nov 28, 2014 7:22 pm

The Pilots showed grit and toughness down the stretch (other than a certain in-bounds play Mad

) to gut out the win. It was great to see (hear?) van der Mars break out... along with Sharp. Again, Kevin Bailey was clutch, hitting big shots and FTs down the stretch.

We really did NOT want that game to go to OT without Wintering.

Great win for the Pilots!

by newpilotfan Fri Nov 28, 2014 7:25 pm

PilotNut wrote:The Pilots showed grit and toughness down the stretch (other than a certain in-bounds play ) to gut out the win. It was great to see (hear?) van der Mars break out... along with Sharp. Again, Kevin Bailey was clutch, hitting big shots and FTs down the stretch.

We really did NOT want that game to go to OT without Wintering.

Great win for the Pilots!

As a team we're figuring out how to win games. These gritty games are going to pay huge dividends down the stretch in conference play. Basketball

by wrv Fri Nov 28, 2014 7:28 pm

Reveno let us know in whom he places confidence right now . . . used seven only.

Go Pilots

by Guest Fri Nov 28, 2014 7:55 pm

wrv wrote:Reveno let us know in whom he places confidence right now . . . used seven only.

Go Pilots

Everyone else on the bench is a freshman, transfer or Xubi, so nobody with experience there. Tomorrow's opponent is Drake, who lost to Valvo by 20. Hopefully some of the new guys can play against Drake, so the starters have some legs left for Valpo on Sunday.

by Guest Fri Nov 28, 2014 8:10 pm

Wasn't able to listen to this one besides about a five-minute stretch in the second half, but I did have the live stats rolling.

Needless to say I wasn't impressed with what was obviously a turnover on the inbounds pass following the FT that made it 62-61, but obviously they were able to survive. Always nice to come away with a teachable moment without putting an ugly "L" on the board.

Lucky to survive that tonight, no rest for the weary with Drake up next tomorrow. Coach Scott's preparation of this team will be put to the test with all five starters at 30+ minutes in the first of three games in three days!

Nice win over a quality team, and based solely on a quick look of the stats it seems that all cylinders aren't clicking yet. Pressley with 0 points and he's a candidate to go off at any point, but sure nice to see Sharp hit a few key shots down the stretch and van der Mars contribute with 10 & 13.

by wrv Fri Nov 28, 2014 8:19 pm

So Murray State was 35 in RPI according to ESPN. If so, given that this is there 2nd loss, they are about to take a nose dive. Interesting to see where we will end up after the weekend and whether we end up ahead of our friends at Murray State?

by Geezaldinho Fri Nov 28, 2014 8:26 pm

Warren Nolan has the ~~113~~ 116 right now.

And they are 1-3

Valpo just drifted up to 113.

We went from 250 something to 183.

It would be nice if our competitors won some games.

http://www.warrennolan.com/basketball/2015/rpi

by Guest Fri Nov 28, 2014 8:34 pm

wrv wrote:So Murray State was 35 in RPI according to ESPN. If so, given that this is there 2nd loss, they are about to take a nose dive. Interesting to see where we will end up after the weekend and whether we end up ahead of our friends at Murray State?

I read somewhere that ESPN actually calculates its RPI incorrectly, or at least differently from how the NCAA calculates it. The CBS one matches up with the NCAA - http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/bracketology/nitty-gritty-report

I'd guess this win would move the Pilots from .4401 (240th) to around .4900 (175-ish).

Let's hope RPI discussions are still relevant in March.

Edit: Geez's link above not only calculates it right, but seems to have been updated immediately afterwards. Nice.

by Guest Fri Nov 28, 2014 8:34 pm

About that ELOB fail, it was a full court pass attempt, that was picked off. So the Racers had very 10 seconds to get back up court. They were only down 1, but ended up with a 3pt attempt that missed. Jason Brough pointed out the Pilots still had 2 TOs to use, so it was ill advised to go for the long bomb in that situation if they couldn't get a clean inbounds and get fouled.

Unless of course that was the called play.

by **PilotNut** Fri Nov 28, 2014 8:58 pm

Pilots Hold on to Defeat Murray State in Thriller at the Challenge in Music City

On the Web:
http://portlandpilots.com/news/2014/11/28/MBB_1128143716.aspx

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Portland Pilots improved to 4-0 with a thrilling 64-61 victory over the Murray State Racers Friday night on the first day of the Challenge in Music City hosted at the Municipal Auditorium. In front of a partisan crowd from nearby Murray State, the Pilots got a game-high 23 points from senior guard Kevin Bailey to secure the win in a hostile environment.

The game featured three ties, seven lead changes and neither side led by more than seven points as it came down to the final seconds. Bailey’s jumper gave Portland a 62-60 lead with 28 seconds left, but Murray State guard Cameron Payne had a chance to tie it at the free throw line. He made one of two and then the Racers forced a Pilot turnover, but Jeffery Moss missed a three-point try and Bailey secured the rebound. He made two free throws with 1.1 seconds remaining and then Portland stole the inbounds pass as time expired.

The Pilots open the season with four straight wins for just the sixth time in program history and second during head coach Eric Reveno’s tenure. His 2009-10 Pilots cracked the Associated Press Top 25 with a 5-0 start.

Playing against the Racers (2-3) – whose fans travelled well to a familiar facility that hosts the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament annually – Portland had many clutch performers.

The Pilots went with a short bench and played just seven players on the night. Senior guard Bobby Sharp provided a lift off the bench with a season high 13 points, including 11 in the second half. With Portland trailing 42-37, Sharp erupted with three consecutive jumpers, – including two three-pointers – in less than two minutes to give the Pilots a 47-46 edge.

Senior forward Volodymyr Gerun then converted a three-point play and Sharp buried another triple to put Portland up 54-48 with 5:54 left.

Senior center Thomas van der Mars finished with his first double-double of the year with 10 points and 13 rebounds, including a clutch putback with 3:23 remaining for a 60-56 lead. Murray State tied it with a T.J. Sapp jumper setting up the nail-biting conclusion.

Bailey got off to a fast start with 11 first half points, while van der Mars pulled down 10 rebounds in the first period.

The Racers led a majority of the first half before van der Mars hit back-to-back baskets to ignite an 8-0 run and give the Pilots a 30-29 lead at the break.

The Pilots shot 45 percent from the field, finished 15-of-18 at the foul line and outrebounded the Racers by a 33-29 margin. Murray State shot 43 percent overall, but made just 8-of-13 free throws.

Portland will have a quick turnaround and face the Drake Bulldogs on Saturday at 3 p.m. (PT) before concluding the Challenge in Music City against Valparaiso on Sunday at 11 a.m. (PT). Valparaiso knocked off Drake 66-46 in Friday’s early game.

NOTES: Portland’s 1995-96 NCAA Tournament Pilots opened with a 6-0 record, while the school best start to a season is 13-0 during the 1978-79 season… Portland also opened with 4-0 records in 1964-65 and 1983-84.

Newspaper Box Score

Portland vs Murray St.
11/28/14 7:30 PM at Nashville, Tenn. - Municipal Auditorium
At Nashville, Tenn. - Municipal Auditorium

PORTLAND 64, MURRAY ST. 61

PORTLAND (4-0)
BAILEY, Kevin 7-12 7-8 23; SHARP, Bobby 5-8 0-0 13; GERUN, Volodymyr 4-7 4-5
12; VAN DER MARS, Thomas 4-8 2-2 10; WINTERING, Alec 2-6 2-3 6; PRESSLEY,
Bryce 0-6 0-0 0; BARKER, Riley 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 22-49 15-18 64.

MURRAY ST. (2-3)
PAYNE, Cameron 6-16 4-6 18; SAPP, T.J. 4-8 3-5 13; MOSS, Jeffery 4-9 1-1 11;
WILLIAMS, Jarvis 3-7 0-1 6; SEYMOUR, Justin 2-5 0-0 5; RAMBO, Tyler 2-3 0-0
4; LANGSTON, Wayne 1-2 0-0 2; FAIRELL, Jonathan 1-1 0-0 2; FLOMO, Kedrick
0-3 0-0 0. Totals 23-54 8-13 61.

Portland...................... 30 34 - 64
Murray St..................... 29 32 - 61

3-point goals--Portland 5-15 (SHARP, Bobby 3-5; BAILEY, Kevin 2-6;
WINTERING, Alec 0-1; PRESSLEY, Bryce 0-3), Murray St. 7-25 (MOSS, Jeffery
2-5; SAPP, T.J. 2-6; PAYNE, Cameron 2-7; SEYMOUR, Justin 1-4; FLOMO, Kedrick
0-3). Fouled out--Portland-WINTERING, Alec, Murray St.-None.
Rebounds--Portland 33 (VAN DER MARS, Thomas 13), Murray St. 29 (WILLIAMS,
Jarvis 7). Assists--Portland 12 (PRESSLEY, Bryce 7), Murray St. 12 (PAYNE,
Cameron 5). Total fouls--Portland 15, Murray St. 17. Technical
fouls--Portland-None, Murray St.-None.

by DoubleDipper Fri Nov 28, 2014 10:02 pm

In the simplest terms....turnovers (14) almost lost it for UP, but free throws (15-18) won it. I think Alec now knows how good some of the other D1 sophomore point guards are!

The game was expected to be close (the closing Las Vegas line was Murray St. by 3), and Rev went in knowing that he would probably use only 7 players, but also knowing he would worry about the next two games later....this was the game they needed to win today!

If there were a choice between Drake and Valpo tomorrow....I think the Drake matchup gives UP the best chance of winning playing a longer bench

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