TACOMA, Wash. - Brandin Riedel saved his best for when it mattered most on Tuesday night for the Pacific Lutheran University men's basketball team. The junior hit the game winning layup with 4.1 seconds left to lift the Lutes to an 81-80 victory over the University of Puget Sound in a wild intracity grudge-match that featured 15 lead changes and 11 ties.

The Lutes (8-8, 2-5 NWC) trailed by as many as 15 points in the game and were staring at a seven point deficit with just over five minutes to go. The gap was chiseled to just a possession on a Sean McCurdy three with 4:13 left before the Lutes seized the lead with 58 ticks left on a pair of free throws from McCurdy. A Logger layup with 31 seconds left gave the lead back to the hosts before a Shane McGaughey-Fick pass was threaded inside to Riedel who spun to the hoop and hit the winning bucket with 4.1 seconds left. UPS (11-5, 4-3 NWC) tried to go coast-to-coast on the ensuing possession but the Lute defense held strong, giving Pacific Lutheran its ninth consecutive win in the crosstown rivalry.

"I know it's just one game but I can't describe how much this win means to us. We've experienced a lot of adversity lately, so to see us battle back from 15 down early in the first half is just an amazing feeling," said Head Coach Chad Murray.

"Brandin was fantastic all night and he came up big when we needed him to. He's becoming a go-to guy for us."

It was a volatile first half that saw the Lutes trail by as many as 15. PLU led 10-9 on a Sam Noland jumper just four minutes into the game before surrendering the next 16 points to the homestanding Loggers. That 15-point Logger lead was quickly reduced with the Lutes hold a two-point lead just 29 seconds before halftime and entering the locker room tied 41-41. The second half featured 12 lead changes with neither team owning a lead larger than seven points.

Sean McCurdy and Jackson Reisner each scored 21 points to pace the Lutes with Riedel adding 18. McCurdy had his fifth double-double of the season, hauling in 11 boards along with his 21 points while Reisner collected 12 of his 21 points from beyond the arc. Riedel was nine-for-13 from the floor with eight rebounds with Noland contributing 14. McGaughey-Fick finished with eight assists while Croix Sweeney was the only other Lute scorer, coming off the bench and scoring seven points.

"We've been in this position a few times this year, coming down to the last possession. Again the guys executed what we wanted them to do and we were able to get that stop that has evaded us a few times this year. The victory shakes will taste great tonight!"

PLU is back in action on Saturday, hosting Pacific University at 6 p.m. inside Olson Gymnasium.