BOX SCORE

PORTLAND, Ore. - The Lewis & Clark men's basketball team moved into a two-way tie for fourth place in the Northwest Conference standings on Tuesday night with a 79-70 win over the Linfield Wildcats. 

The Pioneers are now 13-7 on the season and 6-5 in the NWC. Linfield falls to 3-17 overall and 1-10 in conference. The win moves Lewis & Clark into a two-way tie with George Fox, who lost to Pacific tonight, for the fourth and final play-off spot with just five games remaining in the regular season.

Sophomore Randall Jackson was the games leading scorer, knocking down 20 points off the bench for Lewis & Clark. Jackson was a perfect 6-for-6 from the free-throw line, while hitting 7-of-14 from the floor. Kurt Parker netted 15 points for the Pios, while Justin Leathers scored 14 in the victory. Bradley Carter led all players with 11 rebounds and two blocks. 

Tanner Brill, Ryan Potter and Adam Myren each scored 15 points for the Wildcats, while Chris Dirks netted 12. 

Ben Neves hit the games first basket with a three pointer just 30 seconds into the game. The Pioneer lead was short-lived as the Wildcats quickly surged ahead 10-4. The Pioneers responded with a 7-0 run over the next four minutes with Serg Ovchinnikov scoring five of the seven points. With the game tied at 21-21, Parker pulled the Pios ahead for good with a three pointer at the 3:27 mark. Lewis & Clark took a slim 33-30 lead into halftime. 

Lewis & Clark opened the second half on a 7-0 run, which included a dunk by Leathers, further extending its lead. Linfield managed to pull within four points with 15:43 to play, but that would be as close as they'd get the rest of the way. Lewis & Clark took its largest lead on back-to-back free-throws by Parker with 7:51 to go, making it a 65-47 contest. 

Lewis & Clark hits the road for its next game, taking on the Willamette Bearcats on Friday, Feb. 14 at 8 p.m.