Lewis & Clark L&C 10-13,4-11 NWC

Whitman Whitm 10-13,8-7 NWC

Lewis & Clark L&C

10-13,4-11 NWC

Final

Feb. 18, 2022

Whitman Whitm

10-13,8-7 NWC

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	F
Lewis & Clark L&C	31	50	81
Whitman Whitm	43	42	85

Summary
Box Score

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | 2/18/2022 10:39:00 PM

Men's Basketball Tops Lewis & Clark, Clinches Spot in NWC Tournament

WALLA WALLA, Wash. - Nikola Trifunovic scored a game-high 27 points and Walter Lum came on late to spearhead an 85-81 NWC Tournament clinching win over Lewis & Clark, Friday night at the Sherwood Center.

Lum chipped in 17 points on 7-13 shooting including a pair of huge buckets with just over a minute to play to seal the win. Jai Deshpande chipped in 14 points and seven rebounds and Xzavier Lino added nine points and a game-high eight boards.

For the Pios, Brenden Patrick shared game-high scoring honors with Lum with 27 points. Jayden Simpson contributed 15 points and five rebounds and Ryan Cubill chipped in nine points, seven rebounds and six assists.

The game was tight in the early stages of the first half. Lino threw down a dunk and sank his free throw attempt after being fouled on the play. Ryan Cibull responded with a bucket to put the Pios up, but Lum drained a three pointer to spark an 8-0 Whitman (10-13, 8-7 NWC) run. Trifunovic hit from the floor and Jai Deshpande drilled a three pointer and Blues led 17-10 with 13:09 to play.

Alex Pape later hit from distance and Trifunovic converted a layup to give Whitman its first double digit lead at 29-19 with 6:48 to play. Patrick's layup cut the lead to six, but Lum converted an and-one three-point play to push the lead to 34-23 with 4:29 remaining. Trifunovic nailed a turnaround jumper late in the half to bring the Whitman advantage to 13 points heading to the break.

Lewis & Clark began to chip away at the Whitman lead as the second half got underway. Trifunovic hit from three to give the Blues a 12-point lead, but after three pointers from Tyler McFarland and Ryan Trunkett, the lead had been whittled down to six points at 51-45 with 13:57 to play.

Lewis & Clark made its living at the line as the game headed toward its final moments and was able to completely erase the deficit and take the lead. Both teams hit shots down the stretch as Trifunovic's three pointer answered McFarland's, but Patrick's answered Trifunovic's.

Late in the game though it was Lum who kept the Pios at bay. His deep three extended the Whitman lead to four points then, when Sam Henderson responded with a three of his own, Lum drained a jumper on the other end to keep the lead at four points with 22 seconds to play.

The Blues now play their regular season finale tomorrow versus George Fox. Tipoff is set for 6:00 p.m.

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