PORTLAND, Ore. — Alec Wintering had 19 points and Portland handed Cal State Fullerton its fourth straight loss with a 65-60 victory on Saturday night at the Far West Classic.
Bryce Pressley added 15 points and nine rebounds for the Pilots (6-7), who open West Coast Conference play on Monday against Loyola Marymount.
Khalil Ahmad had 25 points for the Titans (6-5), while Tre Coggins added 17. Jamar Akoh had a career-high 18 rebounds.
The Far West Classic is a reboot of the popular holiday tournament that was a fixture in Portland for some 40 years before its demise nearly two decades ago.
Portland opened the tournament with a 92-82 loss to Weber State on Friday night, while the Titans fell to Oregon State 82-69. Oregon State faced Tulsa in the late game on Saturday to conclude the event at Portland’s Moda Center.
Fullerton jumped out to an early 13-5 lead on Ahmad’s 3-pointer, but Portland knotted the game at 22 on Pressley’s 3 and the Pilots led 31-28 at the half.
Portland pushed the lead to 45-37 on Pressley’s jumper, and Wintering made it 57-48 with a 3-pointer and 6:09 to go.
Ahmad’s layup closed the Titans to within 59-55 with 1:42 to go, and his free throws with 39 seconds got them even closer at 60-57. It was as close as Cal State Fullerton could get.
Fullerton holds a 7-6 advantage in games against Portland, although the two teams have not met since 1998.
In its heyday, the Far West Classic was considered the premier holiday basketball tournaments on the West Coast. The eight-team tournament brought players like Gary Payton, Magic Johnson and John Stockton to Portland.
