Portland State University (#13, East, Boise pod)
vs Xavier (#4)
Fri., 3/20 at 7:25 pm
Vegas Line: +10.5
General Profile
Location: Portland, Oregon
Conference: Big Sky, automatic
Coach: Ken Bone, hired 2005. Record at PSU = 77-48
08-09 Record: 23-9 (11-5)
Last 12 Games: 8-4 (won 6)
Best Win: At Gonzaga, 77-70, on 12/23/08.
Worst Loss: vs Cal Poly, 62-65, on 12/17/08 (six days before winning at Gonzaga).
Off. Efficiency Rating: 107.4 (79th)
Def. Efficiency Rating: 103.0 (201st)
Nuts ‘n Bolts
Star Player(s): Jeremiah Dominguez (12.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 1.8 spg)
Unsung Hero: Jamie Jones (8.9 ppg, leads team in rebounding at 5.9 rpg)
Potential NBA Draft Pick: None.
Key Injuries: No significant injuries.
Depth: 34.5% (87th nationally); percentage of minutes played by reserves
Achilles Heel: Defense. Opponents shoot 45.5% from the field which ranks 271st nationally.
Will Make a Deep Run if…: They can forget about the TV cameras; if they can hit their 3s (they shoot 38%, 33rd nationally); and if they maybe catch Xavier napping.
Will Make an Early Exit if…: The rest of the roster doesn’t contribute a little more. PSU will throw a lot of guys at you but they have four guys averaging double-figures, and that barely.
NCAA History
Last Year Invited: 2008; lost to Kansas in the 1st round
Streak: Two years.
Best NCAA Finish: 2008, as above.
Historical Performance vs. Seed (1985-present): n/a
Other
Distance to First Round Site: 428 miles
School’s Claim to Fame: Considered one of the nation’s “greener” colleges; called a “college with a conscience” by the Princeton Review; Holly Madison (“The Girls Next Door”) went there.
School Wishes It Could Forget: The fate of MLB pitcher and alum Steve Olin, killed in a boating accident during spring training of 1993.
Prediction: It’s possible to catch Xavier a little complacent to start games sometimes, but even though PSU will be a popular pick for a R1 upset due to lack of national focus on Xavier during the season, in the end the Musketeers will probably be too much for the Vikings to handle.
Major RTC stories: Checking in on the Big Sky
Preview written by Rush The Court.