PORTLAND, Ore. -- A 3-pointer from Brenden Patrick started the night for the Pioneers as they hosted the Willamette Bearcats at Pamplin Sports Center on Tuesday. The game kicked off the Northwest Conference season's second half, with the Pioneers improving to 7-11 overall and 3-6 in the NWC. 

Zeke Crawford added another 25 points and three blocks to his season, with two assists and three rebounds. He reached a new career-high with 45 blocks. Matt Brown added 19 points and led the team in assists with five, while Ryan Cibull was the third player to hit double figures with 10 points. Kody Kennedy, Daelon Floyd and Crawford all are credited with six rebounds each.

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Key Moments

The first on the scoreboard, the Pioneers established their lead early, climbing as high as 13 points ahead of the Bearcats with 5:06 left in the first. A 3-pointer from Andrew Panicacci put the Pios up 35-22 before Cade Whicker answered with a three for the Bearcats. A rally saw Whicker score nine points and end the half with another 3-point buzzer-beater, heading into the break at 33-42 in favor of the Pioneers.

The Bearcats reduced the deficit to 48-41 with 17:44 left in the game on a 3-pointer from Jack Boydell. Lewis & Clark answered with a 12-run, including two 3-point baskets by Cibull, to move into a 60-45 lead. With the loss, Willamette moved to 1-17 overall and 0-9 in the NWC.

The Pioneers shot 51.4 percent for the game including 55.9 percent in the second half. Lewis & Clark connected on 8 of 25 three-point attempts for 32.0 percent average. Willamette converted 37.5 percent of its field goal tries (28-75) and hit 10 of 33 shots from 3-point range. The Pioneers outrebounded the Bearcats by a 41-37 margin.

Deeper Look

• Crawford tops the conference in blocks with over 24 more than Willamette's Ben Sutton in second place
• The game was a top-five shooting performance for the Pioneers on the season
• The Pios scored 42 bench points to the Bearcats' 16
• Smith had his lowest scoring game since playing Claremont M-S in November, but added four assists 
• He now sits just one shy of Matt Brown, who leads the team in assists with 49

Looking Ahead

The Pioneers head to Forest Grove on Friday to take on the Pacific Boxers for an 8 p.m. game.