PORTLAND, Ore. – Lewis & Clark College men's basketball overcame a slow start to cut a 10-point first-half deficit to three at halftime, but Whitworth University scored 53 second-half points and grabbed the 90-75 Northwest Conference road win in Pamplin Sports Center.  
 
THE BASICS
 
Whitworth 90, Lewis & Clark 75
(Lewis & Clark 5-7, 1-2 NWC)
(Whitworth 8-5, 4-0 NWC)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
Griffin Datcher IV was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field, including a three to lead the Pioneers with 15 points. The junior added three rebounds, a block, a steal, and an assist.
 
Sophomore Kody Uyesugi scored 11 of his 13 points in the first half with three baskets from way downtown that pulled Lewis & Clark within a point with just under four minutes left before halftime.
 
Juniors Sam Henderson (10 pts / 4 rebs) and Mikey Medlock Jr. (10 pts / 4 assists) rounded out the Pioneer's double-digit scoring.
 
Nikko Echalas scored seven points and grabbed a steal over a 35-second span late in the second half as the senior finished with nine points, two rebounds, two assists, and a steal on the night.
 
Whitworth never trailed in the contest and jumped out to multiple 10-point leads in the first half (12-2 and 21-11), but Lewis & Clark made four of their five three-point baskets in the final seven minutes before halftime to cut the deficit. Uyesugi hit three of those from long range, while junior Nate Berg found the bottom of the net from beyond the arc off a pace from Uyesugi.
 
Junior Isaac Ticeson, contributing 3 points, 2 rebounds, and a block, brought the Pioneers within a point at 37-36 just nine seconds into the second half. However, the Pirates quickly countered with an 18-6 run, extending their lead to 55-42 with 13:51 left in the game. Later, Whitworth achieved their largest advantage of 80-59, a little over 10 minutes later. Medlock Jr. sank two free throws, igniting a late 13-5 surge by Lewis & Clark. During this run, Echalas went on his 35-second scoring spree, and junior Sebastian DePrez, with 4 points and 4 rebounds, capped it off with a dunk.
 
BY THE NUMBERS 

• Four Pioneers—Ticeson, Datcher IV, Berg, and junior Khalil Glover-Dodson—recorded blocks against the Pirates. Lewis & Clark leads the NWC with 42 blocked shots this season and three and a half blocks a game.
• Lewis & Clark had a +7-point differential during sophomore Taien Jackson's 11 minutes in the game. Jackson was one of two players with a positive +/- and one of four with a zero or higher.
• In their past two games, the Pioneers have given up 50+ points in the second half after being down by less than five points at halftime.
• Berg leads the NWC with 14 blocks this season.   

 
WHO'S NEXT
 
Lewis & Clark looks to even their NWC record when they host defending regular-season champion Whitman on Saturday at 6:00 p.m.