The Portland Pilots men’s basketball team is set to play the San Diego Toreros on Wednesday, February 11, at Jenny Craig Pavilion in San Diego. The game, scheduled for a 6:30 p.m. tip-off, will be broadcast live on ESPN+. This marks the first of two meetings between the teams this month.
Portland comes into the matchup with a 12-14 overall record and a 5-8 mark in West Coast Conference (WCC) play. The Pilots are looking to extend their current win streak after a narrow victory over Seattle University. In that game, Dante Censori-Hercules scored a putback with 1.9 seconds remaining to secure a 54-53 win. The Pilots overcame deficits of up to 12 points in the first half and eight at halftime before rallying in the second period.
The team’s interior players—James O’Donnell, Jermaine Ballisager Webb, and Cameron Williams—combined for 35 points against Seattle U, helping Portland outscore their opponent 34-18 in points in the paint. Joel Foxwell contributed a crucial three-pointer late in the game.
Earlier this season, Portland achieved an upset over No. 6 Gonzaga, marking its highest-ranked win ever according to the AP Poll and ending long losing streaks against ranked opponents and Gonzaga specifically.
Freshman point guard Joel Foxwell has been recognized as WCC Player of the Week and was named one of five Oscar Robertson Players of the Week by the USBWA after leading Portland to two wins last week. He also collected his sixth WCC Freshman of the Week honor this season. Foxwell leads Portland in scoring (15.3 points per game) and assists (6.9 per game), ranking third nationally in total assists and first among freshmen in assists per game.
Another freshman, forward Timo George, had established himself as Portland’s second-leading scorer before suffering a shoulder injury that ended his season early. George was averaging 12.5 points and nearly five rebounds per game while shooting almost 70 percent from the field prior to his injury.
Cameron Williams has adjusted well since transferring from Trinity Valley Junior College, posting double-digit scoring performances throughout the season and recording his first double-double with Portland earlier this year.
Senior center Jermaine Ballisager Webb has started nine consecutive games for Portland and delivered key performances during recent victories.
Injuries have impacted Portland’s roster depth this season; both Riley Parker (foot) and Timo George (shoulder) are out for the remainder of the year. Head coach Shantay Legans also suffered a torn Achilles while filling in during practice due to player shortages.
Legans’ teams have historically performed well late in seasons; he holds a career record of 63-33 (.656) from February onward over nine years as head coach.
Several Pilots players have international experience representing their home countries at various levels: Jermaine Ballisager Webb played for Denmark’s senior national team; Timo George competed for Netherlands’ U20 squad; Matúš Hronský represented Slovakia; Dante Censori-Hercules trained with Canada’s U19 team.
The current roster includes athletes from seven countries with nine international student-athletes overall. Four players hail from Australia—a trend under Coach Legans’ tenure—which has seen nine Australians join over five years.
This offseason, staff changes included adding Mark Berokoff and Anthony Separovich as assistant coaches while promoting Decclan Mclean internally. Berokoff brings extensive coaching experience at collegiate levels; Separovich previously led recruiting efforts connecting Australian athletes with U.S. colleges.
San Diego enters Wednesday’s contest with a record of 10-16 overall and 4-9 in conference play after dropping three straight games on the road last week. Ty-Laur Johnson leads USD in scoring at 14.6 points per game, while former Pilot Juanse Gorosito adds nearly ten points per contest. San Diego holds an all-time series advantage over Portland (63-37).
Tickets for upcoming home events can be purchased via PortlandPilots.com/Tickets, where additional information about group packages is available by email request.
Fans interested in supporting student-athletes can contribute through the Pilot Athletic Fund. Updates on University of Portland athletics are accessible through the official website or social media channels including Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
