Whitworth responds in second half to dump PLU

PARKLAND, Wash. – Sixth-ranked Whitworth dominated the second half on both ends of the court to come away with a 72-48 win at Pacific Lutheran in a Northwest Conference game on Friday night at Olson Auditorium.

The Pirates outscored the Lutes 43-18 in the second quarter to improve to 19-3 overall and 10-3 in the NWC.

Whitworth struggled throughout the first half against PLU (11-11, 6-7). The Pirates made only 11 of 30 shots from the field (36.7 percent), including only 3 of 12 from 3-point range. The Lutes took several four-point leads and went into halftime ahead 30-29.

But Whitworth turned things around in the second half as the teams traded leads in the early going. The Bucs went up 42-35 on a jumper by Christian Jurlina before PLU pulled to within 42-41 with just less than 13 minutes left. But then Whitworth rode a game-deciding 13-0 run over the next six minutes to grab a 54-41 lead.

Jurlina posted his first double-double of the season with 16 points and 11 rebounds.

Kyle Roach led the Pirates with 17 points. Kenny Love dished five assists and came away with four steals to go along with eight points.