Setting the Scene: The Pacific Lutheran University men's hoops team hosts the second California school in as many days, welcoming Chapman University to Olson Gymnasium in the third of five straight home games to open the year.
Series History: The Lutes and Panthers have met four times since the series began during the 2013-2014 season with Chapman winning all four encounters. The two squads last met on Dec. 28, 2023 with the Panthers pulling away in the second half for an 83-72 victory in a game that was tied at halftime inside CU's Hutton Sports Center.
This is just the second all-time meeting in Tacoma, and the first time in Olson Gymnasium. Last time Chapman made the trip they needed overtime to escape with a 69-68 victory on Nov. 22, 2019 courtesy of a layup at the buzzer inside University of Puget Sound's Memorial Fieldhouse at the Doug McArthur Classic.
About the Lutes: Pacific Lutheran (1-0) dominated in-state rival The Evergreen State College to open up the 2024-2025 season last Saturday, rolling the Geoducks 92-61 inside Olson Gymnasium.
PLU led by double digits for all but eight minutes of the game with five Lutes finishing in double figures. Visiting Evergreen scored the game's opening bucket but the Lutes quickly answered, getting a Dom Perasso layup and a three from Henry Smith.
The Lute lead ballooned to 23, including on a Miles Nash layup with 2:56 left in the first half before the Geoducks crawled back into the game, whittling the gap to just 48-35 at the intermission after closing the half on a 10-0 run. PLU led by at least 11 the entire second half in the 31-point blowout.
Henry Smith led all scorers with 19 points, draining five treys on the day and collecting six rebounds and three assists. Miles Nash added 14 points and team-highs of seven rebounds and four assists while Brandin Riedel had 13, going a perfect four-for-four from the paint. Jason Montes added 11 off the bench with Dom Perasso putting down 10 points with five boards. Mack Hepper was one point shy of cracking double figures for a Lute squad that shot 53.1 percent from the floor.
About the Panthers: Chapman (2-0) heads into the weekend undefeated after picking up a pair of victories last weekend in Northern California at the UC Santa Cruz Tournament.
The Panthers began the season last Friday with a decisive 93-74 victory over PLU's conference rival George Fox University before taking down host California Santa Cruz 84-75 the following day.
George Fox led Chapman early in the season opener but the Panthers responded, opening up a 15-point lead in the first half and led by nine at the halftime intermission. The Bruins closed to within four in the second half but the Panthers proved to be too much, leading by double digits for the final six minutes of the game.
The following night, Chapman needed double overtime to escape with the win. Cruz Billings led the Panthers with 22 points while Jake Heberle added 21 on a day the squad knocked down 10 three-pointers. Chapman put away the Banana Slugs after outscoring the hosts 13-4 in double overtime in a game with 10 ties and six lead changes.
Four players are averaging in double figures with Jake Heberle leading the way, netting 20.0 points per game and a team-high 6.5 rebounds per game. Cruz Billings adds 19.0 ppg with Blakeley Stoughton adding 16.5 ppg and Tyler Dutto offering up 12.5 ppg.
As a squad, Chapman averages 88.5 points per game while shooting 40.0 percent from beyond the arc.
Home Sweet Home: Olson Gymnasium is a tough venue for opposing teams with the Lutes boasting a 31-12 record inside the facility since the 2020-2021 season.
NWC Preseason Coaches' Poll
Trailblazing NIL the D3 Way: PLU Athletics continues to lead the way nationally in Name, Image, and Likeness, unveiling the Luteville Marketplace last fall through the department's partnership with Opendorse. But don't stay on the sidelines, get involved and connect with PLU student-athletes on the Luteville Marketplace: LINK
The Luteville Marketplace is the first dedicated NIL marketplace in Division III on the Opendorse platform that directly connects student-athletes with fans, supporters, and business partners in an easy to use website.
Last spring PLU became just the second Division III school in the nation and the first school in any division in the State of Washington to partner with Athlete's Thread. Athlete's Thread allows every Lute student-athlete to sell customizable gear and jerseys with their name and number and receive monetary compensation for a portion of each sale. Check out the link above to order your gear today!
Stay connected to your favorite teams by downloading the official mobile app of the Pacific Lutheran University athletic department powered by SIDEARM Sports, available in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.
Featuring real-time news alerts, schedules, exclusive multimedia content, gameday details and more, the new PLU Athletics app is free and compatible with both iOS and Android devices.
Next Home Game:
Nov. 25: Hamilton at 8 p.m.
PLU Non-Discrimination Policy: Pacific Lutheran University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, disability or age in its programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Title IX Coordinator Jennifer Childress-White; 253-535-7361; TitleIX@plu.edu