PORTLAND, Ore. – Seniors Justin White and Taien Jackson posted career highs as Lewis & Clark College men's basketball held off the University of Puget Sound, 67-64, to move into third place in the Northwest Conference on Saturday night.
 
THE BASICS
 
Lewis & Clark 67, Puget Sound 64
Lewis & Clark (10-9, 6-4 NWC)
Puget Sound (12-7, 7-3 NWC)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
White shot 10-for-15 from the field for a career-high 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season. He added five assists, two steals and one block.
 
Jackson recorded his own career high with 20 points, shooting 8-for-11 from the floor, including 2-for-3 from 3-point range, and did not commit a turnover in 35 minutes.
 
Sophomore Marcus Bast added 14 points, five rebounds and four assists.
 
Puget Sound controlled the early minutes. Hugo Rutherfurd's 3-pointer at 16:59 gave the Loggers their largest lead of the game at 9-4. Junior Joe Brown's jumper at 15:17 and Jackson's back-to-back layups gave Lewis & Clark its first lead at 10-9 at 12:08, but Zane Miller answered with a 3-pointer to put the Loggers back ahead. The teams traded the lead five times, and neither side led by more than five in the first half.
 
White's jump shot at 2:25 put Lewis & Clark ahead 22-21, but Baker's hook shot gave Puget Sound one last first-half lead at 23-22. Jackson hit a trey with 1:14 remaining to send Lewis & Clark into halftime ahead 25-23.
 
The second half opened with another back-and-forth stretch. Jackson converted a layup on the opening possession to make it 27-23, but a Logger 3-pointer pulled Puget Sound within one. White answered with a step-back jumper at 17:31, Miller's 3-pointer tied the game at 29, and White scored again at 16:51 to give Lewis & Clark a 31-29 lead. Rutherfurd hit a three at 16:24 to give Puget Sound its only second-half lead at 32-31, but Bast responded with a driving layup, and Lewis & Clark did not trail again.
 
White scored 11 points over a five-minute stretch to extend the Lewis & Clark advantage. His pull-up jumper at 14:39 made it 37-34, a driving layup at 14:03 pushed the margin to 39-34, and a 3-pointer at 11:40 extended the lead to 42-36. He then hit consecutive baskets that stretched the lead to 46-38 at 9:15. Bast's 3-pointer at 7:09 gave Lewis & Clark its largest lead at 49-40.
 
Puget Sound cut into the deficit behind Rutherfurd and Trevon Hamilton, who combined for 21 second-half points. Hamilton's driving layup and free throw at 5:43 trimmed the lead to 52-49.
 
White's jumper at 5:17 and Jackson's 3-pointer at 4:32 rebuilt the margin to 57-51, but the Loggers continued to pressure.
 
Lewis & Clark led 65-59 after junior Yigit Arcan converted two free throws with 32 seconds remaining. Hamilton scored on a putback at 0:20 to make it 65-61, and after the Otts' Brown missed both free throws with 19 seconds left, Miller secured the rebound. Hamilton drilled a 3-pointer at 0:11 to cut the deficit to 65-64 and force a Lewis & Clark timeout.
 
Miller fouled Bast with seven seconds remaining, and Bast converted both free throws to seal the 67-64 victory. Saucedo's 3-point attempt with three seconds left missed, and White secured his tenth rebound to end the game.
 
BY THE NUMBERS 

• Lewis & Clark outscored Puget Sound 36-32 in the paint and 6-2 in fast-break points.
• Sophomore Jake Rodriguez recorded a game-high three steals off the bench.
• White scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half, shooting 9-for-12 after the break.
• Lewis & Clark shot 57.1 percent from the field in the second half after shooting 37.9 percent in the first.
• Arcan added six points, five rebounds and four assists.
• Lewis & Clark blocked four shots to Puget Sound's one. Brown had two.
• With the win, the River Otters moved a half-game ahead of Linfield for sole possession of third place and sit one game back of Puget Sound.

 
WHO'S NEXT
 
Lewis & Clark hosts Pacific University on Friday in Northwest Conference play. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Pamplin Sports Center.