EUGENE, Ore. - Four Lutes finished in double figures but it wasn't enough to keep pace with host Northwest Christian University on Saturday evening as the Pacific Lutheran University men's basketball squad came up short 91-84 in a non-conference clash at the Morse Event Center. 

The Lutes (3-5) started the game red-hot, scoring the opening 10 points, including five off the hands of Seth Hall but the host Beacons (6-5) were able to weather the storm, battling back and taking a 27-26 lead with 8:20 left in the first half. Pacific Lutheran regained its advantage on a Hall bucket and built a six-point cushion but Northwest Christian again battled back, hitting a jumper in the waning seconds to tie the game at 40 heading into the halftime break.

In the second half, Northwest Christian scored the opening five points and never looked back, building a double-digit cushion on a Kaden Sand three with 12:32 left in the contest. The Lutes battled back, slicing teh deficit to just four with 2:03 left in the game on a Seth Hall basket but the Beacons drained six free throws in the final 25 seconds to preserve the win. 

"We got off to a great start with a lot of energy on both ends of the floor," said Head Coach Chad Murray. "Unfortunately, we weren't able to sustain it as the game wore on. We had some difficulties throughout the game with various aspects that continue to hold us back. The physical effort is there, but mentally we seem to lose focus at times and teams have been really taking advantage of that." 

Jordan Thomas led the Lutes with 23 points and eight rebounds while also netting three steals and three assists. Hall poured on 21 points, including three treys while Leighton Kingma chipped in 15 points. Conor Geiger was the fourth Lute in double figures, netting 12 along with seven boards.

"Seth was really good tonight. He is learning how we do things daily and has really progressed recently. We leaned on Jordan heavily again tonight and he battled as well. I thought Leighton did a nice job on the offensive glass in the second half and Conor also rebounded well."

PLU enjoyed a 17-6 advantage in second chance points but Northwest Christian's depth proved decisive with the Beacons owning a 53-9 edge in bench production. 

The Lutes return to the hardwood on Friday, hosting Northwest Indian College at 7 p.m.