by Zachary Knecht
Featured Image: Photo by Weber State Athletics
Portland State Weber State Recap
Thanks to a massive first half, the Weber State Wildcats trampled the Portland State Vikings 84-68 at home. This Wildcat team fired on all cylinders as they knocked out the Vikings cold Thursday.
With the win, Weber State improves to 9-10 on the year, tied for third in the conference at 4-2, while Portland State falls to 8-11, slipping to 2-4 in the Big Sky.
Team Leaders
Like most games, Steven Verplancken Jr. and Dillon Jones took the reigns for Weber State as their top two producers. Verplancken Jr. was the point leader for the Wildcats, showcasing a 19-point, four-rebound, one-assist stat line. He dominated the most Thursday from beyond the arc, hitting five of his six threes, while Jones collected another double-double on the year with 17 points and 14 rebounds. He flirted with a triple-double also, dishing out eight assists on the night.
Cameron Parker was the lone Viking to surpass double-digit points on the night with 13. He also grabbed five boards and three rebounds in the loss. Off the bench, Bobby Harvey impressed, hitting three of six three-point shots on his way to a nine-point game.
All-Around Effort
This entire Wildcat team impressed on Thursday. While Verplancken Jr. and Jones were the leaders, it is not to take away from the performance of the rest of this roster. Five Weber State players exceeded double-digits on the night, including Verplancken Jr., Jones, Junior Ballard (11), KJ Cunningham (11), and Alex Tew (10). The ‘Cats hit 57.4% from the field and an incredible 55.6% from three en route to their dominating victory.
Not only did Weber State excel offensively, but they limited a top-scoring threat in the conference. Coming into Thursday’s game, the Vikings were averaging 77.7 PPG, but the Wildcats stifled their efforts to the tune of 39.2% shooting from the field and 26.7% from three. Weber State’s defensive might was too much for the Vikings to bear.
Rebounding Domination
While turnovers were not Weber State’s friends, losing the battle 17-13 to the Vikings, rebounding was a key factor in the win. The Wildcats stole nearly double the boards of Portland State, grabbing 40 rebounds to the 22 of their opponents, asserting their dominance in a difficult conference war. Jones played a vital part, as always, but the rest of this team pulled their weight as well, with six other players snagging at least three boards. With a play like this, the Big Sky may not be out of reach for a gritty team like Weber State.
What’s to Come
The Wildcats will stay home at the Dee Events Center to face off against the Sacramento State Hornets in another conference duel.
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| Weber State Starters | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | MIN |
| Steven Verplancken Jr., G | 19 | 4 | 1 | 6-10 | 5-6 | 30 |
| Dillon Jones, F | 17 | 14 | 8 | 7-12 | 0-3 | 29 |
| KJ Cunningham, G | 11 | 3 | 3 | 4-6 | 1-1 | 24 |
| Alex Tew, C | 10 | 3 | 0 | 5-6 | 0-0 | 22 |
| Dyson Koehler, F | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1-6 | 0-2 | 17 |
| Bench | ||||||
| Junior Ballard, G | 11 | 3 | 2 | 3-5 | 3-4 | 22 |
| Zahir Porter, G | 5 | 4 | 2 | 2-5 | 1-2 | 23 |
| Daniel Rouzan, F | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 13 |
| Handje Tamba, C | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 5 |
| Keith Dinwiddie Jr., G | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 4 |
| Louie Jordan, F | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 9 |
| JJ Louden, G | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 |
| Cole Lake, G | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 |
| Team Total | 84 | 40 | 18 | 31-54 | 10-18 |
| Portland State Starters | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | MIN |
| Cameron Parker, G | 13 | 5 | 3 | 3-9 | 0-0 | 29 |
| Hunter Woods, G | 8 | 4 | 0 | 3-5 | 0-2 | 16 |
| Mikal Starks, G | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2-4 | 1-2 | 21 |
| Jorell Saterfield, G | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1-9 | 0-2 | 25 |
| Jacob Eyman, F | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 13 |
| Bench | ||||||
| Bobby Harvey, G | 9 | 5 | 0 | 3-7 | 3-6 | 24 |
| Isiah Kirby, G | 8 | 1 | 3 | 3-8 | 0-3 | 26 |
| Isaiah Johnson, F | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 21 |
| Hayden Curtiss, F | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 8 |
| Trey Wood, F | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 3 |
| Kendall Munson, F | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 6 |
| Emmanuel Taban, G | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 8 |
| Team Total | 68 | 22 | 8 | 20-51 | 4-15 |