Poor Shooting Dooms Bearcats as Willamette Loses to Lewis & Clark

By Robert McKinney, Athletics Communications Director, (503) 370-6110

SALEM, ORE. -- Lewis & Clark College held Willamette to 20.8% field goal shooting, including just 15.2% in the first half, as the Pioneers downed the Bearcats, 67-39, in a Northwest Conference men's basketball game at Cone Field House on Tuesday, Feb. 10. L&C owned a 37-15 lead at halftime.

The Pioneers improved to 13-9 overall, including 8-5 in the NWC. Willamette fell to 8-14 overall, 6-7 in the NWC.

L&C was led by Serg Ovchinnikov, who scored 15 points and grabbed nine rebounds. Carl Appleton provided a double-double with 13 points and 11 boards.

Willamette's top scorers wereBrandon Luedtke (Jr., F, Meridian, ID/Mt. View HS) and Bridger Harlington (Jr., Wing, Lake Tapps, WA/Auburn Riverside HS) with eight points each. Luedtke grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds.

The Bearcats scored the game's first four points on a jumper by Harlington just six seconds into the game and a layup by Luedtke with 18:33 left in the half.

Lewis & Clark did not score until Appleton hit two free throws at the 15:51 mark to pull within 5-2. A 3-pointer by Jason Luhnow 28 seconds later sent the Pioneers in front 5-4. L&C expanded its lead to 16-4 before Willamette scored again on two free throws by Nico Troplent (Fr., Wing, Los Angeles, CA/Cathedral HS) with 9:43 remaining before halftime.

The Pioneers added four more points on layups by Kristian Grobecker and Jonathan Boddie for a 20-6 margin, before Talanoa Smith (Sr., G, Pago Pago, American Samoa/Tafuna HS) hit a jumper for WU when the clock reached 5:16. The Bearcats went 13:17 between field goals.

L&C outscored the Bearcats 17-7 over the remainder of the half. The Bearcats connected on just 5 of 33 shots in the first 20 minutes, including 1 for 9 on 3-pointers. The Pioneers shot 39.5% from the field in the first half (15 for 38).

Willamette was unable to significantly reduce Lewis & Clark's lead in the second half. The Bearcats shot 30% (6 of 20) during the period, while L&C hit 36.0% of its field goals (9 of 25). The Pioneers outscored WU 30-24 over the final 20 minutes.

Led by Appleton's 11 boards, Lewis & Clark outrebounded Willamette, 49-43. The Pioneers forced 19 turnovers by the Bearcats, leading to 12 points. WU caused 12 turnovers by L&C.

The teams combined for 15 blocked shots, led by the Bearcats with nine blocks. Kyle McNally (Sr., F, Salem, OR/Sprague HS) of WU topped all players with five blocks and now has 54 blocks on the season. Luedtke and Dylan Critchfield (Fr., Post, Broomfield, CO/Standley Lake HS) also blocked two shots for the Bearcats.

Willamette will play at home for the third consecutive game on Friday, Feb. 13, when the Bearcats are set to take on Pacific Lutheran University. Tipoff at Cone Field House is scheduled for 8 p.m. (PST).