By The Numbers presented by KDOT: #SKCvPOR | Aug. 18, 2018

"By The Numbers" is a season-long series sponsored by The Kansas Department of Transportation, giving a statistical preview of every Sporting KC match.
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18,196   The number of people injured on Kansas roads due to drunk driving from 2006-2016.

Another crucial Western Conference clash beckons on Saturday as second-place Sporting Kansas City (11-6-6, 39 points) returns home to battle the fifth-place Portland Timbers (10-5-7, 37 points) at Children's Mercy Park. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. CT with a limited number of tickets available via SeatGeek.com. FOX Sports Kansas City Plus, FOX Sports Midwest Plus and FOX Sports GO will air three hours of live coverage beginning at 7 p.m. CT, while listeners can catch the action on Sports Radio 810 WHB (English) and ESPN Deportes KC 1480 AM (Spanish).

Manager Peter Vermes' men enter the weekend high on confidence, having secured two straight shutout road wins to jump from fifth to second in the West. Portland, meanwhile, has lost two on the trot after going a club-record 15 games unbeaten from April to August. We take a statistical look at the matchup in our newest edition of By The Numbers.

Head-to-Head

• Sporting KC has lost just one of its last nine regular-season meetings against Portland (4-1-4) since 2014.
• Sporting KC has shut out Portland in seven of the last nine regular-season meetings, which have produced just nine combined goals between the teams.
• Sporting KC is 6-3-4 all-time against Portland in the regular season, including a 2-1-2 record at Children's Mercy Park.
• Across all competitions, the home team in the series has won just two of the last 12 meetings.
• Portland midfielder Diego Valeri has scored in two of his last four appearances versus Sporting KC.
• Sporting KC forward Daniel Salloi scored his first career MLS goal the last time these teams met at Children's Mercy Park, a 1-1 draw on July 1, 2017.
• As a member of Sporting KC, goalkeeper Tim Melia has conceded just one goal in five regular season appearances against Portland. He has a 0.20 goals against average and a 95.7 save percentage in those five games.

Portland Timbers

• 2018 MLS record: 10-5-7, 37 points (5th in West)
• 2018 MLS away record: 3-4-4 (15 GF, 21 GA)
• Last MLS match: L 1-4 at D.C. United on Aug. 15
• Last five MLS matches: 2-2-1, 7 points (T-W-W-L-L)
• Portland went on a club-record 15-game unbeaten run from April to August, racking up 10 wins and five ties. This was the sixth-longest streak in MLS regular season history.
• Portland's unbeaten streak was snapped in a 2-1 home loss to Vancouver Whitecaps FC last Saturday. The Timbers suffered their second straight loss on Wednesday, falling 4-1 at D.C. United.
• Portland was unbeaten in five straight away matches (3-0-2) before losing to D.C. United on Wednesday.
• Portland has an 8-3-0 record in one-goal games this season. Their eight one-goal wins are tied for the most in MLS.
• Reigning MLS MVP Diego Valeri leads Portland in goals (nine) and assists (10), while newcomer Samuel Armenteros is second on the team with eight goals.
• Valeri ranks second in MLS with 71 chances created.
• Defender Larrys Mabiala is the only Portland player to play in every minute of the regular season thus far. He is second in MLS with 115 clearances and tied for third with 61 interceptions.
• Midfielder Diego Chara ranks second in MLS with eight yellow cards and fifth with 42 fouls committed.
• Goalkeeper Jeff Attinella boasts a 9-2-5 record and a 1.06 goals against average this season, with each of his losses coming in the last two games.

 Sporting KC

• 2018 MLS record: 11-6-6, 39 points (2nd in West)
• 2018 MLS home record: 6-2-3 (24 GF, 14 GA)
• Last MLS match: W 2-0 at LAFC on Aug. 11
• Last five MLS matches: 2-2-1, 7 points (T-L-L-W-W)
• With 11 games still to play, Sporting KC already has more regular-season goals this season (41) than it did last season (40).
• Sporting KC has won back-to-back road games for the first time since March and April of 2016.
• Sporting KC has scored multiple goals in nine of its last 12 games across all competitions.
• Sporting KC leads MLS in shots per game (16.9) and passing accuracy (84.1%) while ranking second in average possession (58.1%).
• Sporting KC has conceded four goals in the final 15 minutes of matches this season, tied for the fewest in MLS.
• Forward Johnny Russell leads Sporting KC with 17 combined goals (nine) and assists (eight) in all competitions.
• Forward Daniel Salloi has 15 combined goals (nine) and assists (six) this season in all competitions, more than any other MLS Homegrown Player.
• Forward Diego Rubio leads MLS with four goals as a substitute. Sporting KC has received a club-record 11 goals from substitutes this season in all competitions.
• Midfielder Ilie Sanchez leads MLS with 831 successful passes in the attacking half and ranks seventh with 40 chances created from open play.
• Midfielder Roger Espinoza has a team-best and career-high eight MLS assists this season.
• Graham Zusi leads MLS defenders with 44 chances created and ranks second in the league in touches (1,989).
• Goalkeeper Tim Melia is tied for first in MLS with nine shutouts.

Milestones and Miscellany

• Defender Matt Besler is one shy of his 291st appearance for the club in all competitions, which would tie current assistant coach Kerry Zavagnin for the most in Sporting KC history.

Recent #SKCvPOR regular season meetings

• Regular season record vs. Portland: 6-3-4 (12 GF, 10 GA)
• Regular season home record vs. Portland: 2-1-2 (7 GF, 5 GA)

Team stats (2018 regular season)

MLS rank in parenthesis (source: Opta)