TACOMA, Wash. — The Pacific Lutheran University men's basketball team outscored the Northwest Conference Regular Season Champions in the second half but it wasn't enough to dig out of an early hole as the Lutes fell 76-63 to Whitworth University on Friday night inside Olson Gymnasium.

Ben Tellez continued to be a scoring machine, leading all players with 22 points on the night. It's the reigning NWC Player of the Week's 10th straight game scoring at least 19 points. Last time out he dropped 40 with a school record 12 three-pointers. Whitworth (20-4, 14-1 NWC) kept the senior quiet from beyond the arc but he thrived at the free throw line, scoring 12 points at the charity stripe while also finishing with four steals.

A Jamie McGrail layup with 6:28 left in the first half made it a four-point contest at 22-18 but the visiting Pirates scored 17 of the final 23 points of the half, boasting a 39-24 edge at the break. The Lutes (11-13, 5-10 NWC) outscored Whitworth 39-37 in the second half but the Pirates maintained control throughout, owning at least a 12-point edge over the final 20 minutes of play. 

"We knew coming into the game that in order for us to have a chance we would need to shoot the ball from three really well and also keep them off the glass," said Head Coach Chad Murray.

"We weren't able to do either one of those things in the first half and that allowed them to have a pretty comfortable halftime lead. I'm really proud of the way our guys competed in the second half. We were able to shoot it a little better and compete on the glass. It just came down to a lack of physicality and size."

Cam Rice and Caleb Berry joined Tellez in double figures, both scoring 10. Rice also had a team-high six rebounds and five assists while Julian Brown tallied three steals. 

The Lutes wrap up the season tomorrow evening, hosting Whitman College at 5 p.m.