Setting the Scene: The Lutes are still in the hunt for a spot in the 2023 Northwest Conference Tournament, hosting crosstown rival Puget Sound tonight inside Olson Gymnasium in the final home game of the year.
Online Ticketing: The Lutes have made it easier for fans to attend home sporting events, signing a deal with HomeTown Ticketing to be the department's official electronic ticket provider. Lute fans can now purchase basketball tickets online at GoLutes.com/tickets or on the HomeTown Ticketing mobile app available on iOS and Android devices.
Series History: The Lutes and Loggers have battled 151 times on the hardwood since the 1940-41 season with PLU holding an 80-71 advantage in the series. The Lutes have won nine straight in the series, including back on Jan. 17 when Brandin Riedel hit the game winning layup with 4.1 seconds left for an 81-80 Lute win.
About the Lutes: The Lutes (12-11, 6-8 NWC) find themselves in a must-win situation, sitting a game out of fourth place with two games to play. Pacific Lutheran led with 4:13 to go against Lewis & Clark before the host Pios scored eight of the next nine and held the lead the rest of the way, prevailing 95-92. The Lutes were red-hot the following night, blowing the doors off Willamette, 89-61.
Sam Noland led the Lutes with 26 points in the loss to L&C while Jackson Reisner added 21, hitting five of his six three-pointers. Shane McGaughey-Fick had a career-night posting 17 points.
The following night, McGaughey-Fick had his first career triple-double, scoring 16 with 10 boards and 10 assists. Brandin Riedel was dialed in, hitting all 13 of his shots from the floor and scoring a career-high 29 points.
Brandin Riedel is the team-leader in scoring, averaging 14.5 points per game while also hauling in 5.5 rebounds per game. Sean McCurdy chips in 13.3 ppg and a team-best 7.6 rpg while Noland and Reisner both average 13.0 ppg.
About the Loggers: Puget Sound (17-6, 10-4 NWC) has already punched its ticket to the NWC Tournament and heads into Olson Gymnasium riding a four-game win streak. The Loggers closed out January with a 77-75 road setback to Whitworth in Spokane but have caught fire and are undefeated in the month of February. That includes wins over Willamette (89-78), George Fox (93-83), Linfield (80-60), and Pacific (76-55).
Mussie Teclemariam is the Loggers top offensive threat, averaging 14.0 points per game while also grabbing 6.7 rebounds per game. Liam Ruttledge adds 12.5 ppg with Taj Phillips contributing 12.0 ppg and 4.8 rpg. Grant Erickson is the fourth Logger in double figures, landing 11.6 ppg and 6.7 rpg.
Home Cooking: The Lutes have turned Olson Gymnasium into a tough place for opposing teams to play. Pacific Lutheran has won 22 of its last 29 home games, including 10 of its 11 home dates during the 2021-2022 season. That includes a 64-61 thriller over Gustavus Adolphus back on Dec. 30 that saw Jackson Reisner drain a buzzer-beating three for the win.
PLU additionally has won 17 of the last 22 NWC games played inside Olson Gymnasium and 26 of the last 33 NWC games played in Tacoma.
Thank You Seniors!
Seniors by the Numbers:
51 wins over the past 4 seasons (59 wins for 5th year seniors Jordan and Trey)
36 NWC wins over the past 4 seasons
2 NWC Tournament Appearances
1 NWC Title (2021-2022)
New Look Lutemobile for 2023
The new Lutemobile is here! In the first week of January, the Lutes' bus partner Bellair Charters, unveiled its newest PLU branded bus as it took the men's and women's hoops teams to Oregon.
Academic Attaways: The Lute men's basketball team is getting it done on the court and in the classroom this academic year. As a team, the men's basketball program boasted a 3.19 team GPA during the 2022 fall semester.
NWC Preseason Coaches' Poll
The NWC office released its annual coaches' poll on Nov. 22 with the defending Co-Champion Lutes picked to finish third with 48 points. Co-Champion Whitworth sits atop the poll with 63 points and seven of the nine first place votes. Whitman is second with 56 points and the remaining two first place nods.
Pacific is fourth with 41 points followed by Lewis & Clark (34 points). Co-Champion Linfield was pegged a distant sixth with 32 points followed by George Fox (26 points), Puget Sound (14 points), and Willamette (10 points).
Stay connected to your favorite teams by downloading the official mobile app of the Pacific Lutheran University athletic department powered by SIDEARM Sports, available in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.
Featuring real-time news alerts, schedules, exclusive multimedia content, gameday details and more, the new PLU Athletics app is free and compatible with both iOS and Android devices.
To download the app to your smartphone or tablet, visit the Apple App Store (DOWNLOAD LINK) or Google Play (DOWNLOAD LINK) and search for "PLU Athletics."
Trailblazing NIL the D3 Way: PLU Athletics continues to lead the way nationally in Name, Image, and Likeness, unveiling the Luteville Marketplace on August 31 through the department's partnership with Opendorse. Learn more about the deal here: LINK. But don't stay on the sidelines, get involved and connect with PLU student-athletes on the Luteville Marketplace: LINK
The Luteville Marketplace is the first dedicated NIL marketplace in Division III on the Opendorse platform that directly connects student-athletes with fans, supporters, and business partners in an easy to use website.
Next Game:
Feb. 17: PLU vs. Pacific in Forest Grove, Oregon at 8 PM
PLU Non-Discrimination Policy: Pacific Lutheran University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, disability or age in its programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Title IX Coordinator Jennifer Childress-White; 253-535-7361; TitleIX@plu.edu