Setting the Scene: The Lutes are back inside Olson Gymnasium for the third time in the last nine days, hosting Oregon rival Pacific University.
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 have dominated the all-time series, winning 90 of the 131 meetings since the series began during the 1939-1940 season. That includes having won four straight.
Last season, the Lutes slipped past the Boxers 74-72 inside Olson Gymnasium while rolling to a 97-84 victory in Forest Grove.
About the Lutes: It's been a week of several highs and a few lows for the Lutes (8-8, 2-5 NWC) who are hitting the halfway point of the Northwest Conference slate. PLU steamrolled Willamette University 102-86 last Friday behind a 30-point performance from Sean McCurdy but fell victim to a last second putback at the buzzer on Saturday, getting edged 69-68 by Lewis & Clark College.
PLU's returned to the win column on Tuesday, erasing a 15-point deficit and getting a layup from Brandin Riedel with just over four seconds left for an 81-80 victory over arch-nemesis University of Puget Sound.
Brandin Riedel is the team-leader in scoring, averaging 13.3 points per game while also hauling in 5.5 rebounds per game. Sam Noland adds 12.6 ppg while Jackson Reisner has a team-high 44 treys and adds 12.3 ppg. Sean McCurdy chips in 11.4 ppg and 6.9 rebounds per game while Shane McGaughey-Fick dishes out 2.9 assists per game.
About the Boxers: Pacific (9-6, 4-2 NWC) heads into the weekend riding a two-game win streak.
The Boxers snapped out of a two-game skid last Friday with an 83-78 home victory over Puget Sound. Pacific had a big opening half, shooting a blazing 65.7 percent from the floor to build a 18-point halftime advantage. The visiting Loggers battled back but Pacific did just enough to hold on for the win. Jacob Bolger paced Pacific with 26 points and 10 rebounds.
Last Saturday it was a 106-84 win over host Willamette in Salem. It was the fourth time this season the Boxers have hit the century mark with Bolger scoring 21 and hauling in 13 rebounds, one of five Pacific players in double figures.
Truman Young is the Boxers' leading scorer, averaging 14.5 points per game with a team-high 51 threes on the season. Bolger adds 13.9 ppg and 5.5 rebounds per game while Lucas Winkler contributes 10.3 ppg and a team-best 6.1 rpg. Jared Cattle is the fourth Boxer in double figures, adding 10.2 per game.
Home Cooking: The Lutes have turned Olson Gymnasium into a tough place for opposing teams to play. Pacific Lutheran has won 20 of its last 26 home games, including 10 of its 11 home dates during the 2021-2022 season. That includes a 64-61 thriller over Gustavus Adolphus that saw Jackson Reisner drain a buzzer-beating three for the win.
PLU additionally has won 15 of the last 19 NWC games played inside Olson Gymnasium and 24 of the last 30 NWC games played in Tacoma.
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 Home Game:
Feb. 3: PLU hosts George Fox 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