PORTLAND, Ore. -- The Lewis & Clark Pioneers opened conference play by hosting the Pacific Lutheran Lutes at Pamplin Sports Center Friday night, losing 71-63. The first half was offensively slow for the Pioneers as they struggled to hit shots and consistently had their attempts to the net smothered. With 2:30 left to play in the first, Lewis & Clark was battling with a 20-point deficit. They went into the halftime break 38-25.

The Pioneers saw a big momentum shift over the course of the second half, with scoring efforts led by Jack Henderson. The junior guard logged a career-high 32 points, the most points scored by an individual player in a game this season. He scored 19 in the second half alone, the only Lewis & Clark player in the game to hit double digits. Three back-to-back buckets in the final four minutes of play helped the Pioneers close the gap to just two before the Lutes pulled out of tying range on free throws from Seth Hall.

Jalen Lowery and Ryan Cibull each put up eight, while Brenden Patrick and Solomon Davis combined for 12 rebounds. Patrick and Cibull had three assists each. 

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Key Moments

After a struggle to score in the first half, the Pioneers ramped up their defensive intensity in the second, forcing eight turnovers and holding Pacific Lutheran to a 38 percent field goal percentage, a nearly a 10 percent drop from the previous half. Henderson's scoring efforts led the way, especially in the last 10 minutes of play. He sunk back-to-back three's with just under eight minutes on the clock and followed up with a drive to the rim that kept the Pioneers within eight points. Davis hit a key basket from beyond the three-point line and Patrick contributed a layup off a steal from Cibull to continue chipping away at the gap. At 3:38 to play Henderson hit a three, off an assist from Cibull to bring the Pioneers within four. Back-to-back Lutes turnovers put the ball in Henderson's hands again with two minutes left to play, and a layup made it a single possession game.

Deeper Look

• Grant Stewart contributed one point and three rebounds
• The Pioneers shot 71.4 percent from the free-throw line
• The bench contributed 10 points
• Patrick is averaging 15.5 points per game, putting him in the top five in the conference
• Lowery is in the top 10 for defensive rebounds in the conference
• Henderson shot 65 percent in field goals
• Ryan Trunkett saw four minutes of playing time and contributed three points

Looking Ahead

The Pioneers hit the road tomorrow to play the Linfield Wildcats. Tipoff is at 6 p.m.