The Portland State men’s basketball team opens up home play in the Park Blocks tomorrow night after last weekend’s tough road trip in Seattle. The Vikings (0-3) look to regroup against Cal Poly (0-2), a team undergoing new coaching and philosophy changes of their own.
The Vikings seek their first win of the season against the Mustangs and hope to wipe away the bad memories of last weekend. Though the two teams have played seven times in the last 11 years, Cal Poly resembles little of what Portland State has seen in the past.
“They have a new coach, a new system,” said head coach Tyler Geving. “We’ve played them the last three years, but you have to throw that stuff out the window.”
The Vikings are adding players back to their lineup after a string of early-season injuries, and they should now have the pieces in place to gel as a team. Both junior forward Paul Guede and senior point guard Dominic Waters were injured early and missed crucial practice time in the beginning.
Protecting the ball and sharing the rock are two areas Geving will be looking for Portland State to improve on. Committing 53 turnovers over the course of last weekend’s three games, the Vikings need to cut down on mistakes in order to see success the rest of the season.
Look for senior forward Phil Nelson and senior forward Jamie Jones to pace the Vikings in points and rebounds, while also helping their teammates become more comfortable in their system. Junior guard Melvin Jones can’t be counted out either—he averages a team-best 12.7 points per game so far.
In what should be a confidence-building game, Portland State is likely to concentrate on winning the battle on the glass and taking better shots in order to pull out the now-crucial first win of the season.
“I think we’ve have had a great home-court advantage over the last couple of years,” Geving said. “We play hard at home. We share the ball at home and we need to get back to that.”
First tip-off is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at the Stott Center.