Conti and Reister Throw 1-2 Punch as Lutes Top Northwest

Sophomore point guard James Conti and freshman guard Cameron Reister both made big plays inside the final 3:30 of the game as Pacific Lutheran rallied for a 67-64 non-conference men's basketball victory over the visiting Northwest University Eagles on Saturday night in Olson Auditorium.

Proceeds from the game will be donated to the Lakewood Police Independent Guild in memory of the four Lakewood Police Department officers who were slain in Parkland on Nov. 29. An early count showed donations totaling more than $3,500. Donations were received from fans in attendance at the game, from the referees, and from Northwest University, which raised money at two of its recent home games.

Pacific Lutheran trailed, 59-52, following a three-point play by Northwest's Greg George with 4:50 remaining in the game. The Lutes whittled their deficit to 60-56 when Conti and Reister combined on a series of game-changing plays.

First, Conti fed Reister for a three-point basket with 3:14 left to make it 60-59. On the other end of the floor, Conti stole the ball and drove to the basket. Though he missed a contested layup, he hustled for the rebound and fed the ball to Reister, who buried another trey to make it 62-60 in favor of the Lutes. Conti again stole the ball and raced in for a layup to make it 64-60 with 2:30 left.

After Blake Solomon hit a trio of free throws to cut Northwest's deficit to 64-63, Victor Bull scored a layup for the Lutes, making it 66-63. George converted a free throw for the Eagles with 1:17 left, and in the closing seconds Bull got a hand on a Northwest field goal attempt, leading to a foul with five seconds remaining. PLU's Gabe Smith made the second try, giving his team a 67-64 lead, and Solomon missed a three-point try as the buzzer sounded, giving the Lutes the victory.

With the win, PLU improves to 2-4 this season, while Northwest is now 6-5.

The game was closely contested throughout with both defenses dictating the pace of the game. Northwest shot 42 percent from the field (22-for-52) compared to 39 percent (22-for-57) for the Lutes. With Reister making all three of his long-range shots, the Lutes hit 42 percent (8-for-19) from beyond the arc.

Solomon led all scorers with 16 points and he was joined in double figures by teammates Tyson Christie (14), George (14) and Rich Skillman (11). George led all players with nine rebounds. and Christie contributed six assists.

Kyle MacTaggart and Curtis Trondsen both scored 13 points to lead the Lutes, who also got 11 points from Bull, 10 from Contie and nine from Reister. Bull grabbed a team-high eight boards for the Lutes, whoalso got four assists from Conti.

Pacific Lutheran returns to action on Dec. 21 when it plays at Saint Martin's.

- PLU -