Hall of Fame
Led by Hall of Famers Brooks Meek and Whitney Brake, the 1997-98 men’s basketball team ranks as one of the top teams in program and school history. They entered the year ranked fourth in the Nation and moved up as high as No. 3 overall - after starting 5-0. After finishing tied for second in the conference in the regular season, they defeated George Fox (91-77) and Pacific Lutheran (79-61), to win the Northwest Conference of Independent Colleges (NCIC) Conference Tournament. They were seeded 10th at the NAIA Division II Tournament. In the first round, senior Jeff Flowers converted a 3-point play with under 20 seconds to go, to give Lewis & Clark a two-point lead, and they held on to defeat St. Joseph’s College of Maine 84-82. The team went on to defeat Holy Names College 87-76, before falling to eventual runner-up Oregon Tech (100-89) in the Quarterfinals. The 1997-98 team ranks tied for fourth in program history in overall wins (22-7) and tied for second in conference wins (13-5). They are one of just four men’s basketball teams in school history to make it to the third round of a National Tournament. Four starters finished the season averaging double-figures and Meek (1st Team), Brake (2nd Team) and Flowers (2nd Team) all earned spots on the All-Conference Team. Meek and Brake were both named All-Americans and head coach Bob Gaillard was tabbed the NCIC Co-Coach of the Year.
