Setting the Scene: The Pacific Lutheran University men's basketball team opens the lid on its home slate tonight, welcoming Pomona-Pitzer Colleges to Olson Gymnasium in the first of three consecutive home games.
Series History: This is the first ever meeting between the Lutes and the Sagehens. Despite the unfamiliarity, the Lutes have played against every other Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference school, posting a 14-15 all-time record in those meetings.
That includes falling 94-91 last Saturday to then No. 6 University of Redlands.
About the Lutes: Pacific Lutheran (0-2) scorched the nets offensive in the opening two games of the season, shooting at a 55.7 percent clip but was unable to come away with a pair of wins, letting both slip away in the second half in Santa Cruz, California.
The Lutes opened the regular season last Saturday against sixth-ranked University of Redlands. PLU shot out to a fast start with a Ben Tellez trey giving the Lutes a 20-7 advantage over the Bulldogs who advanced to the Elite Eight last winter.
Redlands slowly chipped into that lead with the Lute advantage just 43-41 at the halftime intermission. PLU led by as many as six points in the second half but Redlands did just enough to escape with the win. Tellez drained six treys on the night finishing with 30 points while Dom Perasso added 17.
The following night saw Perasso score a career-high 21 points, hitting eight of his 10 shots from the floor while Henry Smith added 19 in an 87-75 setback to host University of California Santa Cruz. The Banana Slugs led by just one at the half but outscored the Lutes 44-33 in the second half to pull out the win.
Dom Perasso was named the NWC Player of the Week on Monday and leads the Lutes in scoring, averaging 19.0 points per game and is shooting at an electric 76.2 percent clip from the floor. He also is second on the team in rebounding with 5.0 per game. Ben Tellez adds 17.0 ppg with Henry Smith adding 12.5 ppg.
Charlie Kapranos can do a little bit of everything, leading the team in both rebounding (6.0 per game) and assists (6.5), while chipping in 6.5 ppg.
The Lutes are averaging 83.0 points per game and shoot 55.7 percent as a team through the first week of the season.
About the Sagehens: Tonight is the season opener for the Sagehens who finished up the 2024-2025 season with a 15-11 overall record and a 9-7 mark in SCIAC play.
Pomona qualified for the SCIAC Tournament last winter and was bounced 79-68 at the hands of Whittier College.
Pomona-Pitzer played an exhibition game back in mid October against Division I University of Hawai'i, coming up short 101-51 in Honolulu against the Rainbow Warriors.
Charlie Hutchinson led the team with 15 points and 11 rebounds while Clyde Rosenberg was efficient with 10 points in just 12 minutes of court time.
The Sagehens were picked to finish fifth in the nine-team SCIAC in the preseason coaches' poll that was released back on November 5. Pomona was sandwiched between fourth ranked Chapman University and sixth ranked Occidental College.
Luteville Highlights
NWC Coaches' Poll
This October, the Lutes were picked to finish tied for third in the league standings with crosstown nemesis University of Puget Sound, both collecting 44 points. NWC heavyweight Whitworth sat atop the poll with 64 points.
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.
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 Game:
Nov. 21 vs. U of Dallas at 7 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