Pilots sweep Pacific with comfortable win
Tigers look like a tired, beat-up group
Breaking open a tie game, Portland ended the first half on a 15-4 run and then scored 10 of the first 12 of the second half to build a 19-point lead three minutes into the frame in a comfortable 81-73 victory over Pacific. Pilots built leads as large as 21 and led by 16 with just under five minutes left and 11 with 2 minutes left in a tidy road effort: just 3 turnovers, shooting 52% from the floor and limiting second chances.
The match did get somewhat close near the end - Tigers got it to five with 38 seconds left after some uncharacteristic free throw misses by Portland’s Max Mackinnon who entered the game shooting 90%+ from the stripe but the Pilots were able to hang on for the win.
Notwithstanding the Tigers late run - helped by a pair of threes by 6’2” Seth Jones, Pacific looks like a tired group that was a step slow all afternoon, struggling to convert in transition, sloppy with the ball and getting beat up inside, led by Pilots veteran guard Chris Austin. The Pilots continually posted up their 6’4” dynamo and Austin went to work initially against 6’4” Lamar Washington followed by others (Jefferson Koulibaly, Jones, even Elijah Fisher), none of whom were a match for the strong, crafty two man who finished with 24 points - many exploiting Tigers defenders on isolations in the post - and 7 rebounds.
Portland also took advantage of a Pacific group that clearly lacks any reasonable rim protection and struggled all afternoon guarding the ball. Transition “d” was also an issue yesterday, with several missed Tigers lay-ups at one end immediately turning into easy Pilot scores at the other end. Washington especially was limited on the defensive end, clearly working with an injured right ankle that he appeared to aggravate late in the first half.
6’7” Elias Ralph also got up gingerly after a second-half defensive possession - Ralph has struggled offensively down the stretch of the season - yesterday he was just 4 for 13 from the field including 0-5 from three. In the Tigers most recent seven games, Ralph is 3-19 from three and just 8 of 29 from the floor in Pacific’s last three games.
Defensively, the Pilots packed the paint and outside of some late makes from downtown, Pacific had no answers from the perimeter. While the Tigers finished with 7 offensive rebounds, several of those came late as “one and done” was typical during the important portions of the game when the Pilots took over.
With the loss, it is becoming more likely that the Tigers are destined for the 10 vs. 11 game in the WCC tournament. Currently tied with Pepperdine, Pacific (4-13) needs a win over Santa Clara next Saturday at home and for the Waves to lose their final two games (at Portland, home to Washington State) to avoid that first day match-up vs. San Diego. But getting their top players healthy appears to be the immediate need as Pacific prepares for Senior Night against Santa Clara (19-10, 11-5) next Saturday at 5 PM PT. The Broncos are the likely #4 seed in the WCC tournament.