Portland St. @ Stanford preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 29, 2009 ) Portland St. 64, Stanford 83

It has been a difficult week for Stanford, which plays Portland State on Sunday in the seventh-place game of the Phil Knight Invitational in Portland, Ore., looking to move past losses to No. 9 North Carolina, No. 7 Florida and Ohio State. The Cardinal led the Buckeyes by 10 points in the first half of Friday’s 79-71 defeat, but despite a 10-point second-half deficit battled back to get within five points in the final minute.

“When I looked into their eyes, I didn’t feel a sense of defeat at any point,” Stanford coach Jerod Haase told reporters afterward. “There was a belief and a confidence that we were going to find a way to get it done.” Freshman Daejon Davis scored a career-high 15 points, but the Cardinal shot 36.1 percent from the field for the game and went 1-for-10 from 3-point range in the second half. Stanford has allowed 94.3 points per game in its three losses this week, giving up 108 points in the Florida loss. The Vikings, who opened the tournament with a loss to top-ranked Duke, rallied late on Friday but fell short against Butler 71-69.

TV: 9:30 p.m. ET, ESPNU

ABOUT PORTLAND STATE (4-2): Deontae North scored 18 points off the bench for the Vikings, bringing Portland State within two on a 3-pointer with 42 seconds left but missing a 3-pointer with three seconds remaining. In Thursday's loss to Duke, the Vikings led by four points at halftime before faltering in the final 10 minutes. Bryce Canda (16.3 points) and Michael Mayhew (10.8) also spark an offense shooting 41 percent from 3-point range.

ABOUT STANFORD (3-4): Reid Travis leads the Cardinal in scoring at 20.4 points per game, including 21 points against North Carolina and 23 points against Florida. Travis and Oscar da Silva each scored 14 points in the loss to Ohio State, with Travis scoring 11 in the second half. The Cardinal, who also lost to Eastern Washington earlier in the season, will play three of their next four games at home before a Dec. 21 matchup in Sacramento against No. 2 Kansas.

TIP-INS

1. Davis is averaging 11 points in his past four contests.

2. The Cardinal did not make a shot from the field in the final 4:11 of the first half Friday.

3. North scored 24 points against Duke - 20 in the first half - and is averaging 18 points this season.

PREDICTION: Stanford 74, Portland State 68