TACOMA, Wash. — Emmett Holt was on fire on Saturday night. The senior had a double-double, including a career-high 20 points, as the Pacific Lutheran University men's basketball team extended its win streak to four with a 77-60 victory over Pacific University inside Olson Gymnasium.
Holt finished the evening with 20 points and 10 rebounds, shooting seven-for-nine from the floor and a perfect six-for-six from three-point range.
"We finally put a complete game together that allowed us to separate and not have to sweat out a close one," said Head Coach
Chad Murray.
"Emmett was incredible tonight as it capped off a great birthday weekend for him. Going 6 for 6 from three was huge but even more so was the 10 rebounds he had."
The visiting Boxers (9-8, 4-4 NWC) staked an early 7-3 advantage just under three minutes into the game before the homestanding Lutes (8-9, 5-3 NWC) launched a 16-3 run. Holt sparked the run with a three to tie the game before getting treys from both
Ben Tellez and
Charlie Kapranos— the later making it a nine-point Lute edge with 10:28 left in the first half.
Pacific narrowed the gap to just three with 8:32 left in the first and again with 6:16 left in the first but PLU had an answer for the Boxers, scoring 14 of the final 18 points of the period, enjoying a 38-25 lead at the intermission.
Pacific closed the gap to five but was unable to get any closer in the second half with PLU putting the game away with a 16-4 run over a four-minute stretch, turning a six-point buffer into an 18-point cushion.
Joining Holt in double figures was
Miles Nash who added 15 off the bench along with 11 from
Henry Smith and 10 from
Brandin Riedel. Kapranos had a team-best four assists while also adding five rebounds and scoring six points.
PLU shot 52.0 percent (26-for-50) from the floor, including 52.4 percent (11-for-21) from beyond the arc while limiting the Boxers to shooting just 39.1 percent (25-for-64) from the field. The Lutes' depth play a big factor in the game with the PLU bench outscoring the Pacific bench 34-14.
"Over these last four games we have defended and rebounded at a high level. Our rotations are starting to take hold and guys are playing really well within their role. We've also seen multiple guys lead us in scoring or providing sparks in other areas that lead to winning basketball. We have a long way to go but we feel really good about our position so far heading into the second half of NWC play."
The Lutes resume their homestand on Friday night, welcoming Whitman College to Olson Gymnasium. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.
