PORTLAND, Ore. – Josh McSwiggan recorded career highs of 37 points and 11 rebounds as Portland pulled away late for a 111-103 season-opening win against Multnomah on Tuesday at the Chiles Center. Sophomore guard Marcus Shaver Jr. added 23 points and nine assists as the Pilots had five players reach double figures.

The run-and-gun Lions entered the contest averaging 133 points per game and 26 three-pointers made per game, along with a 3-0 regular season record against NAIA opponents. They drilled 22-of-50 three-pointers and were led by 39 points from Justin Martin, while Ben Grandle added 34 points. Both players knocked down eight three-pointers.

The Pilots (1-0) shot 56 percent from the field, but struggled to 5-of-20 shooting from three-point range. Portland used its size to gain a 48-32 rebounding advantage and 74-28 scoring margin in the paint.

Junior Franklin Porter finished with 14 points and six assists, while freshman center Theo Akwuba scored 13 points and grabbed seven rebounds for the Pilots. Sophomore Malcolm Porter added 10 points off the bench.

Portland raced out to a 9-0 lead to start the game in the first two minutes and appeared to be on the way to a rout, but Multnomah caught fire and drilled four consecutive three points to take a 42-33 lead and force a timeout.

The Lions drilled 11 first half triples to maintain the lead, but Portland closed the half on a 12-3 run capped by a Shaver Jr. three-point play to make it a 56-54 deficit at the break.

The second half featured 15 ties and five lead changes as Multnomah continued to hit long, contested three-pointers until the finish. A Grandle layup gave the Lions a 92-89 lead with 5:45 remaining, but McSwiggan and Malcolm Porter answered with consecutive layups to re-take the lead. McSwiggan scored twice more at the rim to push the lead to 100-92 with 2:13 left, but Martin buried a deep three on the ensuing possession.

Shaver Jr. and Martin exchanged threes on the next two possessions and then Shaver added a pair of free throws to make it 107-103 with 37 seconds on the clock. Brett Blackstock hit another tough three-pointer, but McSwiggan calmly hit two more at the free throw line to ice the game.

The Pilots will now prepare for the Rainbow Classic hosted by Hawaii this weekend. Portland will face the host Warriors on Friday at 10 p.m. (PT) and then take on the 2018 CBI Champions from North Texas on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. (PT).