Whitworth men lose grip on first place in NWC falling to Pacific Lutheran

From staff reports

The Northwest Conference first-place men’s basketball showdown Friday night between Whitworth and Pacific Lutheran took a different turn than their first meeting this season.

Seth Hall and Jordan Thomas combined for 37 points and 16 rebounds as the host Lutes came away with a 64-48 victory against the Pirates in Tacoma.

Whitworth scored more than twice as many points in the first game, a 97-69 win on Jan. 15 in Spokane.

Jerry Twenge led Whitworth (17-4 overall, 10-3 NWC) with 12 points and JT McDermott scored 11.

The Pirates shot just 33.3% from the field (20 of 60), including 5 of 24 from beyond the 3-point arc. They were also only 3 of 11 from the free-throw line.

Hall had 19 points and eight rebounds for PLU (16-6, 11-2), which is a half-game ahead of Linfield. Whitworth dropped a game back in third place.

Women

Whitworth 78, PLU 71: Megan Dorney scored 19 points, one shy of her season high, grabbed eight rebounds and had three assists as the Pirates (9-13, 4-9) snapped a two-game losing streak.

Olivia Mayer added 16 points and a team-high nine rebounds. Madison Hagen and Kimberly Dewey scored 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Josie Napoli led the Lutes (6-14, 3-10) with 18 points.

Whitworth never trailed and led 44-32 at the half.