Re: 2023-24 Schedule

by NoPoNeighbor Sun Nov 12, 2023 9:31 pm

Here's a question I'm not sure I'm ready to hear the answer to: What's become of the Purple Pride Pep Band? Are they... gone forever? If so, my enjoyment of the average home game goes down by a solid 20%.

by Sound Voltex Mon Nov 13, 2023 10:29 am

CREDIT UNION 1 WCC MEN'S BASKETBALL FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK – TYLER HARRIS, FR., G – PORTLAND
Harris garnered a record-breaking collegiate debut in leading the Pilots to a 3-0 record to open the season. Harris became the first freshman in Portland history to debut with a double-double, finishing with 17 points and 12 rebounds in a 78-73 win against Long Beach State. He followed with 20 points and nine rebounds in an 89-72 win against Lewis & Clark before capping the weekend with a 22-point, 12-rebound effort in a 76-65 win against UC Riverside. Harris shot 67 percent from the field, 60 percent from three-point range and 93 percent at the foul line. He added four blocked shots on the week.

Also Nominated: Rory Hawke, SMC; Braden Huff, GON; Aaron McBride, LMU; Cord Stansberry, PEP

https://wccsports.com/news/2023/11/7/athlete-awards-win-first-2023-24-wcc-mens-basketball-weekly-honors.aspx

by PilotDrummer Mon Nov 13, 2023 1:12 pm

NoPoNeighbor wrote:Here's a question I'm not sure I'm ready to hear the answer to: What's become of the Purple Pride Pep Band? Are they... gone forever? If so, my enjoyment of the average home game goes down by a solid 20%.

The extremely short version is that there is no budget for the band in the athletics budget this year. Last year, the choice (correctly, in my opinion) was to prioritize the limited budget for the WCC season rather than the possibility of Vegas, but that limited budget did not make it through the multiple rounds of cuts for this year.

This year is season 22 for me and I'd be lying if I didn't say it is disappointing. I wouldn't count out the band being around this year, and that's a discussion I leave to Dr. Murphy and the fine folks in athletics. I'll be spending more time just...watching.

by Sound Voltex Mon Nov 13, 2023 4:10 pm

3) Portland Pilots
Record: 3–0
KenPom: 142 (+18)
Last week: W 78–73 vs. Long Beach State, W 89–72 vs. Lewis & Clark (D3), W 76–63 vs. UC Riverside
This week: 11/15 vs. Tennessee State, 11/18 at Nevada

Gonzaga’s Ryan Nembhard and Saint Mary’s Aidan Mahaney are preseason Naismith Player of the Year watchlist honorees, but overall, pound-for-pound, the Pilots might just have the best backcourt in the WCC.

Tyler Harris (19.7 ppg, 11 rpg and WCC Freshman of the Week), Vukasin Masic (15.7 ppg, 5 rpg, 3 apg), Tyler Robertson (15 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 5 apg), Chris Austin (7.3 ppg) and Juan Sebastian Gorosito (3.7 apg off the bench) are all listed as guards.

They can play small, but big. Harris is 6-foot-8, Robertson is 6-foot-6, Masic is 6-foot-5 and Austin is 6-foot-4. Only Gorosito at 6-foot-1 won’t present a size mismatch, and he’s the only one of those four not in the starting lineup.

It’s a versatile lineup that can exploit mismatches over-and-over-and-over again in Shantay Legans’ uptempo offense.

Each of the first two years of the Legans era brought early season excitement to the Rose City, and not just because of the years of doldrums which came before. Could this be the year the Pilots can keep that early season momentum rolling into WCC play?

https://medium.com/wills-wcc-blog/wcc-power-rankings-opening-week-over-reactions-8a7488993d70