TACOMA, Wash. — It was a clash of reigning Northwest Conference Co-Champions on Saturday night and the game lived up the the hype. The Pacific Lutheran University men's basketball team led by double digits early in the contest but visiting Whitworth University battled back, forcing overtime before slipping out of Olson Gymnasium with an 81-80 victory. 

The Lutes (2-4, 0-2 NWC) led by 13 points midway through the first half and owned a four point cushion with 22 seconds left in overtime, but on both occasions the Pirates (4-4, 1-1 NWC) rallied and did just enough to squeak out the win.

A pair of Sam Noland free throws put PLU up four with 22 seconds left in overtime but Whitworth quickly answered with a three to cut the gap to a single point. Jackson Reisner hit a pair of free throws with 9.8 ticks left only to see Whitworth's Rowan Anderson tie the game with a three with five seconds remaining. A turnover and a foul put Diego Jaques at the line with 1.4 ticks left. Jaques missed his first and made the second while a desperation three fell short at the buzzer for the Lutes as the Pirates held on for the one-point win. 

"I'm really proud of the guys for the resilience they showed throughout the second half and into overtime," said Head Coach Chad Murray.

"I've been through some wild finishes and this one is just another to add to the list. This can be a positive for us if we respond the right way. We have a tremendous group of young men that I know will rally around each other and grow from this experience."

The visiting Pirates scored six of the game's opening eight points but the tide quickly shifted to the Lutes. A Jack Williams layup tied the game at 10 before taking the Lutes' took their first lead of the game on another Williams layup with 14:43 left in the first. PLU would play with the lead the rest of the half with a Jordan Thomas layup touching off an 11-0 Lute run to take a 25-12 lead on a Noland three with 10:26 left in the first.
 
The Pirates cut the lead to just four with 1:54 left before halftime but a pair of Thomas layups gave the Lutes a 41-33 cushion at the intermission. 

PLU's advantage was nine with 13:38 left in the second but Whitworth tied the game at 60 with 3:29 left in regulation. The game would remain a one possession game the rest of regulation with a Whitworth free throw with 37 seconds left tying things up at 67 to force overtime.

Overtime was scoreless for almost three minutes before a Reisner three put the Lutes up 70-67 with 2:10 left, a lead that was quickly negated by Whitworth. Tied at 74, Jordan Thomas hit a layup while a pair of Noland free throws pushed the lead to four at 78-74 but Whitworth closed the game on a 7-2 run to seal the win. 

Thomas stuffed the stat sheet for the Lutes with a team-high 19 points, 12 rebounds, four assists, and three steals. Noland added 17 points with Sean McCurdy added 13 points and 11 boards. Reisner had 10 points while Jack Williams had nine along with five rebounds. PLU won the rebounding battle 39-34, including a 14-4 edge on the offensive end but Whitworth enjoyed a 52-36 advantage in points in the paint. 
 
The Lutes return to action on Wednesday, heading to Oregon and resuming non-conference play against Portland Bible College.