PARKLAND, Wash. – In the hunt for its first Northwest Conference men's basketball regular season title since 1986, Pacific Lutheran shut down visiting Whitworth 64-48 on Friday night at Olson Auditorium.
The 20th-ranked Pirates (17-4 overall, 10-3 NWC) were forced into season lows for points and shooting percentage (33.3%) by the Lutes (16-6, 11-2). Three games remain in the regular season and Whitworth will try to bounce back on Saturday night at Puget Sound.
"I have to give credit to PLU for playing a great defensive game," said Whitworth head coach Damion Jablonski. "I thought we matched that defensive effort for much of the game, but in the end we couldn't get enough of our shots to fall."
PLU led early, taking a 9-6 lead on a basket by Brett Williams. The Pirates tied the game 12-12 on a basket by Jerry Twenge and went up 17-14 on Twenge's three-pointer midway through the first half. Unfortunately for Whitworth, they got stuck on 17 points for the next five minutes. Rowan Anderson's three-pointer gave the Bucs their final lead at 23-21 with 4:38 left. PLU scored the next seven points and took a 28-26 lead into halftime. Whitworth made only 11-28 (39.3%) in the first half, while the Lutes were 11-24 (45.8%), including 3-7 from three-point range.
Things did not get any better for Whitworth in the second half. After the Pirates pulled within 36-33 on Rowan Anderson's three-pointer, the Lutes went on a 9-2 run, going up 45-35 on a layup by Jordan Thomas. By the time Thomas hit one of two free throw with 2:42 left, the margin was up to 56-42. Whitworth struggled even worse to make shots in the second period, making only 9-32 (28.1%), including 2-12 (16.7%) from three-point range.
Twenge led Whitworth with 12 points and JT McDermott added 11. Liam Fitzgerald led the team with nine rebounds, but PLU finished with a 34-30 edge in rebounding. The Pirates' shooting woes even came at the free throw line, where they made only 3-11 (27.3%).
Seth Hall scored 19 and grabbed eight boards, while Thomas, the reigning NWC Player of the Week, finished with 18 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots. PLU made 50% (23-46) from the field.
"Even though this isn't the story I wanted to write, it's still our story and there is more to be written," Jablonski said.
