NEWBERG, Ore. — Lewis & Clark College men's basketball secured its first Northwest Conference Tournament berth in 10 years—and the first under head coach Tim McCrory—with an 85-83 overtime victory against George Fox University on Friday night at Wheeler Sports Center.
 
THE BASICS
 
Lewis & Clark 85, George Fox 83 (OT)
(Lewis & Clark 13-11, 9-6 NWC)
(George Fox 11-13, 7-8 NWC)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
Senior Isaac Ticeson delivered a career-high 30 points on 13-of-19 (68.4%) shooting to lead the Pioneers, while fellow senior Mikey Medlock Jr. added a season-best 22 points, including five treys, and shot 83.3 % (5-6) from the free throw line.
 
Junior Andre Treadwell provided a spark off the bench with 14 points and seven rebounds. Taien Jackson played a strong defensive 35 minutes. The junior held Momo Stokes, the NWC's leading scorer, below his season average. Stokes finished with 18 points on 7-of-23 shooting.
 
Ticeson scored eight of Lewis & Clark's first 13 points. Junior Kody Uyesugi hit a three at 12:07 to give the Pioneers a 16-10 lead. A fast break layup by Treadwell and a dunk by senior Sebastian DePrez extended the advantage to 20-11 with just under ten minutes before halftime.
 
George Fox responded with  a 7-0 run over two minutes to pull within 20-18, then tied the game at 26-all—their first even score since 4-4—with just over four minutes left in the half. The Bruins took their first lead on the next possession when Samuel Stewart IV, who led George Fox with 22 points, hit a pull up jumper at the 3:23 mark. Medlock Jr. briefly put the Pioneers back ahead with a 3-pointer, but George Fox answered and carried a 34-31 lead into halftime.
 
After the break, Medlock Jr. scored eight of Lewis & Clark's first nine points to tie the game at 40-all at the 16-minute media timeout. The teams traded baskets until senior Griffin Datcher IV (four points, six rebounds ignited an 11-0 Lewis & Clark run with a dunk at 12:06. First-year Jake Rodriguez (six points) capped the run with two free throws at 7:37 to make it 58-50.

The Bruins clawed back and tied the game at 64-all before Stewart IV sank four straight free throws, giving George Fox a 67-64 lead with 1:49 remaining in regulation. With 26 seconds left and Lewis & Clark trailing 69-67, Ticeson drove for a layup, drew an intentional foul, and sank both free throws to put the Pioneers ahead by one. He was fouled again on the ensuing inbounds play and made one of two from the line to give the Pios a 71-69 edge. Stokes responded with two free throws for George Fox, forcing overtime at 71-all.

In the extra period, after playing lockdown defense all night, Jackson scored his first bucket to put the Pioneers up 80-74 with just over a minute remaining. Out of a George Fox timeout, Stokes cut the deficit to three with 50 seconds left. Lewis & Clark then made four straight free throws to extend the lead to 84-77 with 27 seconds remaining. Treadwell made one of two free throws between two George Fox three-pointers, giving the Pioneers an 85-83 lead with 12 seconds left. The Bruins' potential game-winning trey rimmed out into Treadwell's hands, sealing the win for Lewis & Clark.

BY THE NUMBERS 

• Ticeson also led the team with nine rebounds and two steals. Treadwell (seven), Datcher IV (six), and senior Nate Berg (five) were close behind.
• The Pioneers out rebounded George Fox 44-38 and outscored the Bruins 44-38 in the paint.
• Treadwell recorded two of Lewis & Clark's five blocks, while Ticeson, Jackson, and DePrez each had one.
• The Pioneers earned their first season sweep of George Fox since 2014-15, the last time they qualified for the NWC Tournament.

WHO'S NEXT
 
Lewis & Clark will honor its eight seniors—Ticeson, Medlock Jr., Sam Henderson, Datcher IV, Ryan Trunkett, Nik Berry, Berg, and DePrez—before Saturday's 4 p.m. regular-season finale against Pacific Lutheran University at Pamplin Sports Center.