By Christian Bond, PLU Sports Information Student Writer
McMINNVILLE, Ore. – Linfield's tie-breaking layup with five seconds remaining proved to be the difference maker as the Pacific Lutheran men's basketball team fell 53-51 to the Wildcats in the Lutes' return to Northwest Conference play Friday night at Ted Wilson Gymnasium.
PLU trailed Linfield by five with 2:52 remaining in the game before Jared Christy made a three point shot and followed it up with a pair of free throws to tie it up at 51-51 with 33 seconds to play. Linfield senior Kevin Hurly drove the lane, spun towards the basket and converted a layup with only five seconds remaining on the clock, and the Wildcat defense prevented the Lutes from getting a shot off in the final seconds to close out the game.
"We didn't stop anybody from taking the ball to the basket tonight," PLU head coach Steve Dickerson said. "We were not very fluid offensively. The kids from Linfield played very well, and we didn't. We didn't do the things we normally do. Linfield was partially responsible for it, but we missed opportunities."
Bryce Miller tallied a double-double for PLU, as he had 19 points and 11 rebounds in 34 minutes of action. Christy finished the night with 13 points – included the Lutes' final five of the game – as he shot a perfect 6-of-6 from the free throw line. Dylan Foreman scored 12 points as he made two of his three attempts from three-point range. Vince Romeo led all scorers with 26 points for Linfield, while Mason Rodby grabbed 15 rebounds.
PLU scored the first eight points of the game, but the scoring slowed for the rest of the first half as both teams struggled to shoot the ball. The Lutes shot 28.6 percent (8-of-28) from the field in the first half without a make from three-point range. Linfield shot 14.3 percent (2-of-14) on threes and a mere 10 percent (3-of-30) overall before halftime. Both teams bounced back after halftime, as PLU finished the game at 32.7 percent overall (17-of-52) and Linfield shot 29.8 percent (17-of-57).
The turning point in the game came just over seven minutes into the second half. A three-pointer by Foreman and a free throw by Kyle Sawtell put PLU up 32-24 with 12:26 to play, but Romeo made a three-pointer on Linfield's next possession and the Wildcats proceeded to outscore the Lutes 23-8 over the next seven minutes to take a seven-point lead. An Erik Swartout three-pointer ended the run and made it a four-point game with 5:20 remaining, but it took until Christy's free throws in the final minute before the Lutes tied it again.
"In our league, anybody can beat anybody on any night," Dickerson said. "We didn't take advantage of their first half shooting struggles. Games are not won and lost in the first half, but we definitely could have taken advantage of their early struggles."
Saturday PLU will visit George Fox at 6 p.m. The Bruins have had a rough start to the season, going 3-8 through their first 11 games. The teams have split their matchups each of the last two years.
"I want us to play harder, play better defense and play better offensively," Dickerson said. "I am looking for our guys to bounce back."
