Men's basketball has to work to keep winning despite an explosive start to the season
By David Thompson
There is an old Merle Haggard song that goes, "If we make it through December, everything's going to be all right."
In terms of the University of Portland men's basketball program, this was the outlook after an impressive November that saw the Pilots sitting at 5-1 and ranked 25th in the nation.
Portland had placed itself in the national spotlight after impressive wins against UCLA and Minnesota at the 76 Classic in Anaheim, California.
At the time, they were 3-1 against BCS schools and 2-0 against mid-major schools.
But for how consistent the Pilots were in November, they were equally inconsistent in December.
The next two games included a four point loss at home to cross town rival Portland State and a 20 point defeat at Idaho.
Since then, the Pilots have alternated wins and losses beating Denver, Idaho and Army all at home while losing at Washington and Nevada.
Portland also added a victory over Division II Evergreen.
Portland opened the WCC schedule with one of the most anticipated games of the year that faced the Pilots against the perennial powerhouse Gonzaga. Portland came up a Jared Stohl three-pointer short of sending the game into overtime.
The Pilots are currently 10-7 following the first road trip of WCC play that included a 63-54 win at San Diego and a heartbreaking 72-77 loss at Saint Mary's.
The Pilots are next in action tonight in the Chiles Center against Loyola Marymount and again on Saturday against Pepperdine. Both games are scheduled for a 7 p.m. tip off.
