Ben College pours in 44 points to lift Whitworth over PLU

TACOMA – Ben College erupted for 44 points and buried 11 3-pointers, leading Whitworth to an 87-81 victory over Pacific Lutheran in a Northwest Conference men’s basketball showdown Saturday.

The Pirates needed College’s production to stave off PLU’s attempt to come back after trailing 41-29 at halftime. College fired in 32 points in the final 20 minutes, including a 4 1/2-minute span where he knocked down four 3-pointers after the Lutes had evened the score at 50-50.

College, who entered the game averaging 22 points per contest, finished 14 for 25 (64%) from the field and 5 for 5 at the foul line. He attempted 16 shots beyond the arc.

Liam Fitzgerald scored 12 points, grabbed seven rebounds and blocked three shots for the Pirates (15-4, 9-1 NWC).

Seth Hall guided the Lutes (9-10, 5-5) with 23 points, and Leighton Kingma added 20 points and a game-high nine rebounds.

Whitworth plays at Lewis and Clark on Friday in Portland at 8 p.m.