San Diego - Saturday 1/28 - 7pm - ROOT TV

Not a lot of excitement for this game....not even a pregame article on the UP Athletics website as of noon today.

But it is the first time the Pilots have played the Toreros this season....and it will be the first home game, outside the Gonzaga game, with Andre Ferguson standing-in for Alec.  It should give Coach Porter a good opportunity to see if the Pilots have a chance of winning another game this season, or if the team will simply play out the string while preparing for next year.

Next year could bring some improved rebounding with Phil and Joseph a year older and the addition of the two power forward recruits, Stone and Diabate, but this year's numbers are abysmal....and if it doesn't improve it won't matter who is at point guard.

Various websites are predicting anywhere from a USD win by two, to a Pilots win by three....so it could be close, but whatever the result, the Pilots must prevent second chance points to have a chance.

Initial first half thoughts:

- Marshall is finally back!!!
- No center action at all this half. Taylor and Marshall the only forwards, everyone else was guards.
- Lot of 3-point action than I expected. Tyson looked like he got his groove back. USD has some of the best 3-point shooters though, and it definitely showed. Gotta watch the distance.
- For a few seconds during play, the stream randomly cut to a camera at the SMC-SCU game, which kinda threw me off.
- That flagrant by Tyson at the end giving USD a 4-point play, probably not the best way to end the half.
- Some iffy offense moments from Ferguson and Johnson that lead to turnovers though the announcers made a good point that it gets fixed over time with experience. Rebounding problems again, 2:1 rebounds ratio favoring USD.

68-52 USD

At the rate these types of games are going, I think the last hope we'll probably ever get to see a win is the next Pacific game.

Scoring droughts continued. Zero efforts at offensive rebounding until the last few minutes. Random fouls at the end of defense plays where I thought we were going to get the ball back but nope, goes back to USD instead.

The biggest surprise was no action at all from any bigs and Maker and hardly any rotations from the bench besides one or two guards. Interesting experiment, considering I think Barreno and Hartwich have been decent enough in past games (or maybe they need rest? idk), but I don't think it made much of a difference. That USD Neubauer guy was able to make too many plays over Tyson due to the height advantage. Everyone just ran out of steam at the end.

Not playing the bigs was the coaching strategy to react to USD's lack of bigs.  IMO it didn't work at all, and I was sorry we didn't at least play Smoyer a little ILO Tyson. D'Marques only contributed 6 points and 2 rebounds, and did not score the last 30 minutes of the game. Plus Gabe only got 1 rebound for the game, and only 6 points.  So there was no inside presence at all.  That's how you get outrebounded 37-14 by a team with no bigs.

Bunch of us sitting around in the Pilot House wondering if you older and wiser Pilot Nation writers feel the way we students do about tonight's game....the coach didn't even try to win, and he was negligent in looking after his players welfare.

If he had wanted to win he would have substituted with someone who had at least a decent chance of grabbing a rebound, and if he had cared for the players welfare he would have substituted when it was obvious the guys on the court were just too worn out to get it done.

It was so obvious to even the most casual observers (there are quite of few of those in the student section) the team was playing on worn-out legs for most of the second half after playing 3 games in 5 days.  The excuse I've heard before is the "short bench," but as only 6 played while another 6 in uniform did not even get off the bench, that excuse is just bull.

Our first year with this coach, but the consensus is he's got a lot to learn about coaching at the college level...and if he's looking to come in last in the WCC so he can get the first draft pick....it just doesn't work that way in college ball.

I think you'll agree there was a very strong student turnout for tonight's game despite the downward trend of the team since Alec's injury, but we're questioning our need to be there if there is no commitment toward winning from the coaching staff.

We oldsters feel the same way. We could not understand why Coach Porter did not use Hartwich or Smoyers (or Maker). In fact, some were chanting "Joseph, Joseph!", but it fell on deaf ears. Porter's strategy was to adjust to USD's lineup. In the second half, we should have made them adjust to our "big" lineup. It could not have produced anything worse than the 68-52 loss.

PilotFan66 wrote:We oldsters feel the same way.  We could not understand why Coach Porter did not use Hartwich or Smoyers (or Maker).  In fact, some  were chanting "Joseph, Joseph!", but it fell on deaf ears.  Porter's strategy was to adjust to USD's lineup.  In the second half, we should have made them adjust to our "big" lineup.  It could not have produced anything worse than the 68-52 loss.

They better get one of the Santa Clara/Pacific home games or this will close on a 17 game losing streak for the season.  Amazing.  I think they will beat Pacific at home, but probably will end up losing the rest.  

He does have a lot to learn about coaching in college and he's seriously undermanned.  Tough combination.

StudentPilot wrote:Bunch of us sitting around in the Pilot House wondering if you older and wiser Pilot Nation writers feel the way we students do about tonight's game....the coach didn't even try to win, and he was negligent in looking after his players welfare.

If he had wanted to win he would have substituted with someone who had at least a decent chance of grabbing a rebound, and if he had cared for the players welfare he would have substituted when it was obvious the guys on the court were just too worn out to get it done.


I think you'll agree there was a very strong student turnout for tonight's game despite the downward trend of the team since Alec's injury, but we're questioning our need to be there if there is no commitment toward winning from the coaching staff.

The age of the internet seems to produce a false sense of competence among many and, equally, the perception of a right to criticize and disrespect everything. I am not sure whether this post is a manifestation of an unearned claim of knowledge, but I can be sure that Coach Porter was not trying to lose, nor were the staff uncommitted in any sense.

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.

StudentPilot wrote:Bunch of us sitting around in the Pilot House wondering if you older and wiser Pilot Nation writers feel the way we students do about tonight's game....the coach didn't even try to win, and he was negligent in looking after his players welfare.

Haha, well older, that's for sure!

Probably nothing as sinister as not trying to win or intentionally mistreating his players, but it is difficult to understand why the coach stayed with a strategy that was obviously not working past the 30 minute mark when none of the players seem to have enough strength in their legs to put up a good shot or stay with the USD players on defense.

In his postgame interview Coach Porter complained about the team's rebounding, saying, "We had too many possessions where we needed to have multiple efforts and we didn’t have it" and "We can’t give teams extra possessions like that, we just can’t.”  Porter went on to say, "the small guys just gotta get rebounds for us."

Coach Porter was as animated with the refs last night as I recall seeing him (as was the USD coach), so that and the insertion of Jarrel in the lineup would seem to indicate he is still trying to win and is not just experimenting with lineups for next season.

I have been somewhat outspoken in the past on the number of minutes the staff keeps players on the floor (last night it was 40 each for Jackson and Johnson, and 37 for Taylor), so I do agree the coach should have used more than one bench player....by doing so there would have been less fatigue and a greater possibility of grabbing some rebounds.

But in the end, only Coach Porter is paid to make those decisions....

wrv wrote:The age of the internet seems to produce a false sense of competence among many and, equally, the perception of a right to criticize and disrespect everything. I am not sure whether this post is a manifestation of an unearned claim of knowledge, but I can be sure that Coach Porter was not trying to lose, nor were the staff uncommitted in any sense.

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.

But the internet, just like the classroom, does allow one to raise questions that might start a debate or discussion....and I'm glad we, for now, can still do that freely without allowing pompous statements to stifle one's attempt to interact over something so trivial as basketball.

Keep after it StudentPilot, your take on UP and life is refreshing and your open mindedness and questioning will spur you to learn....despite the occasional objections of those who are chronologically senior to you.

DoubleDipper wrote:

wrv wrote:The age of the internet seems to produce a false sense of competence among many and, equally, the perception of a right to criticize and disrespect everything. I am not sure whether this post is a manifestation of an unearned claim of knowledge, but I can be sure that Coach Porter was not trying to lose, nor were the staff uncommitted in any sense.

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.

But the internet, just like the classroom, does allow one to raise questions that might start a debate or discussion....and I'm glad we, for now, can still do that freely without allowing pompous statements to stifle one's attempt to interact over something so trivial as basketball.

Apparently accusing the coach of intentionally losing passes for debate about basketball in DD’s view. I think it more properly labelled an insult, not a debate about basketball. Nothing pompous about my statement—I wonder about the response.

The coach's show is on the radio Monday evening, live at 7PM at 1080 The Fan. Perhaps someone will ask him about his substitution philosophy directly. The show will also be simulcast on delay at CSN (Comcast channel 737) at 9PM.

If you don't want to call directly I bet you could send a question to the radio host, play-by-play guy Jason Swygard. He's @FANswag on twitter.

wrv wrote:Apparently accusing the coach of intentionally losing passes for debate about basketball in DD’s view. I think it more properly labelled an insult, not a debate about basketball. Nothing pompous about my statement—I wonder about the response.

We've heard a lot about opinions, and even facts, being labeled as  insults over the last couple of weeks or more, it's too bad it carries over to a college athletics fan board too.

I once had a high school teacher who told me it's better to get smart than get mad....look and listen before forming opinions, and speak out.

That's what I have tried to do before posting on PilotNation....I wish I could say I'm sorry that some disagree with my thoughts, but it won't stop me from thinking for myself.

up7587 wrote:The coach's show is on the radio Monday evening, live at 7PM at 1080 The Fan.  Perhaps someone will ask him about his substitution philosophy directly.  The show will also be simulcast on delay at CSN (Comcast channel 737) at 9PM.  

If you don't want to call directly I bet you could send a question to the radio host, play-by-play guy Jason Swygard.  He's @FANswag on twitter.

Speaking of the coach's show, for those that have been able to catch it recently, what have the general discussions been about and how has the coach responded to them? Over here, the show starts and ends during my commute home so I can't tune in online (unlike most young 'uns, I have a relatively low data plan for my phone), and we ain't got no CSN over here either. The last show archived was from a month ago.

If coach Porter is intentionally losing games and if his staff are uncommitted, they should all be summarily fired. We should bring in an interim replacement to finish the year.

I do not think Terry Porter has intentionally thrown a basketball game in his life, with the possible exception of a few to his kids on the home court when they were much younger. Terry Porter played 17 years in the NBA. I am confident that he is very competitive, even now.

Before posting, one should consider the dignity of those we accuse of outlandish behavior, perhaps show empathy for others and their struggles. Judgment and plain common sense should be considered before posting disrespectful defamatory comments.

I note that Terry Porter's two sons are enrolled at the U. While I would not advise it, if you value sharing your thoughts as highly as you apparently do, then consider sharing with them directly your view of how their father is not interested in winning games.

This is not to say that coach Porter does not make mistakes . . .

I'm a big Terry Porter fan and still support him 100%. Let's face it, our team just doesn't have the players. Marshall has been hurt. Our bigs have been inconsistent. Tyson has been unable to find his touch. Maker needs some time to develop. Our star point guard is out with a season ending injury.

It would be nice to get something figure out before the end of the season, but it's not likely.

up7587 wrote:The coach's show is on the radio Monday evening, live at 7PM at 1080 The Fan.  Perhaps someone will ask him about his substitution philosophy directly.  The show will also be simulcast on delay at CSN (Comcast channel 737) at 9PM.  

If you don't want to call directly I bet you could send a question to the radio host, play-by-play guy Jason Swygard.  He's @FANswag on twitter.

Kramer is filling in for Coach Porter tonight.

http://www.portlandpilots.com/news/2017/1/30/mens-basketball-kramer-knutson-filling-in-on-tonights-terry-porter-show.aspx

1. Let's get back to being civil. I think this season is beginning to take a toll on us and that is not who we are.

2. I truly believe that what we are seeing is a bit of a personnel issue. Yes, we have injuries. We always spoke of Reveno as being this great recruiter, but for every diamond in the rough we found (e.g., Wintering, Stohl, Nicholas, Raivio, Campbell, Sikma, VDM, K. Bailey) we found several others who didn't quite pan out (e.g, J. Bailey, Rodgers, Waterford, Riley, Cason, Zubizarreta), some who's talent became their downfall (e.g., Mitrovic and Sharp) or lost some real potential talent (e.g, Douglas, Reinsfeld (pains me to say that), Carr). We have to get the right people in here first. In my opinion, this isn't like the soccer or volleyball teams where the potential was always there. I think we have to give Porter some time to set up his team.

That is basically what I have been hearing the coaches say. That they don't have enough players.  And that the ones they do have need to step up and compete more.  They are all being held to very high expectations.  If they can't meet them, they won't play.  

As much as I and probably others want to think it, if the coaches thought the bigs could have provided a competitive advantage vs. USD, then the bigs would have played.  They didn't think they could, so they didn't play them.

It's a tough year, made worse by a promising start.  Hang on and support the team; it'll all be over in 5 weeks.

up7587 wrote:It's a tough year, made worse by a promising start.

Good point. With a new coaching staff, not much should be expected in the first year until they can get "their guys" into the system... we have a lot of roster turnover coming after this season, so I expect much better things next year, and thereafter.

This season, Porter needs to establish his mark and style on the program, so there may be some short term pains that will hopefully turn into gains as soon as next season.

We have a slew of new talent coming in next season... and remember that Jackson, Maker, Ferguson, Johnson and Smoyer are all underclassmen this year.

Fact of the matter is that it is going to be *very* tough for this team to compete without Alec Wintering. Heading into conference play, Alec was playing 40 minutes a game, was the WCC's leading scorer, and ranked among the national leaders in a slew of categories (minutes played, scoring, assists, etc.)

I'm hopeful that this team can bounce back and pick up a couple wins on the remaining WCC slate, but I'm not under any delusions: without Alec, we are in dire straits. With him, maybe we could have hung in there for a middle-of-the-pack finish. But without him? A team as thin as ours simply can't recover from losing its (far and away) best player.

But next year offers hope... two solid players in Taylor and Johnson returning, a really good player in Franklin Porter becoming eligible, promising talents in Smoyer and Maker, and what appears to be a quality recruiting class. Not to mention a coach who will have his first year at the college level under his belt. I remain positive!

up7587 wrote:It's a tough year, made worse by a promising start.  Hang on and support the team; it'll all be over in 5 weeks.

The team exceeded most everyone's expectations during the preseason and then won in Stockton for the first time in ages, so Pilot fans were pumped and ready for more....but face it, even with Alec in the lineup the WCC is a very tough conference and the opposing coaches do a great job preparing for UP and substituting freely to wear down the Pilots and the their short bench.

For we old-timers, there is always the concern we'll never again see a winning season (maybe that's why Men's Soccer was such a joy for us this year), but as Stonehouse wrote, "next year offers hope...."  

In addition to our vocal support, one thing we fans could do is support the team by donating $$$$ to the 6th Man Fund. As most know, BYU and GU fly chartered aircraft to all their games.....something UP cannot do on a regular basis, but with enough help from us, they could charter at least a handful of flights during the WCC season that would make their lives a whole lot better and their bodies a whole lot more rested.

The coming year is going to have another crazy split travel WCC schedule like this season, but if the Pilots were able to fly home to sleep in their own beds after each game, especially when classes are session, just think of the positive impact that could have on the UP's performance going forward.....or look at it from another perspective, think what a negative affect it has had on the team to recently fly to five games in five cities in 10 days....including six nights at the away sites (2 at USF, 2 at GU, and 2 at PU).

Regardless of their record the rest of the way, the student-athletes, coaches and staff deserve our support.  They work there butts off every day in an attempt to get better.....and the players do well in the classroom, so there is a lot to be proud of.

I agree with those who remind us that a new coaching staff needs a year or two to get going. But I also worry that an abysmal record, even in the first year, is a real deterrent to potential recruits. How many HS juniors who the coaches are keeping tabs on will weed the Pilots out due to our 3-15 WCC record? A 7-11 record looks like a foundation for a promising future. But 3-15 might look like a promise of futility for the foreseeable future.

NoPoNeighbor wrote:I agree with those who remind us that a new coaching staff needs a year or two to get going. But I also worry that an abysmal record, even in the first year, is a real deterrent to potential recruits. How many HS juniors who the coaches are keeping tabs on will weed the Pilots out due to our 3-15 WCC record? A 7-11 record looks like a foundation for a promising future. But 3-15 might look like a promise of futility for the foreseeable future.

I'm another newbie to the WCC scene, but I'm sure there were also times in the past where a team (probably us at one point, too) looked to have "promise" only to fall apart over the next few seasons for one reason or another, and never really fully recover. Also looking at Bennett's coaching history, his first season at SMC was a similar 3-11 WCC record. Then you see it slowly rise over the years to where they are now. Obviously, our hope is that Porter can try and do something similar and then stabilize it. Keyword stabilize.

If winning games is going to be difficult, as appears to be the case, then I would like to see Smoyer and Alec Monsoon get more minutes, assuming the outcome of a particular game is not in doubt.

This coach and staff have pretty much shown us they can recruit: the additional disadvantage of a losing record might not make much difference as suggested by the prior post and Randy Bennet’s example.

Absent transfer out from the current roster, aren’t we full for scholarships next year?