SALEM, Ore. – It was a banner night for
Max Lommen as the Portland native dropped a career-high 34 points to lead the Linfield men's basketball team to a 112-69 win over Willamette Friday night at Cone Field House.
The fifth-year senior guard connected on 13 of 20 from the field, a red-hot 6 of 10 from three-point range and 2 of 3 from the free throw line. His 34 points surpassed his former career high of 28 points scored in the Wildcats' 91-88 win over Walla Walla on Dec. 20. Lommen also finished with five rebounds, four assists and three steals to get the 'Cats back in the win column after taking losses at Whitworth and Whitman earlier this week.
"Max was scintillating tonight, making great reads and cuts all night," head coach
Shanan Rosenberg said. "And Dempsey [Roggenbuck] did an awesome job on defense and with rebounding. They both set a great tone for us."
Linfield was on fire on the offensive end, shooting 59 percent from the field, including 12 of 25 from beyond the arc. The 'Cats found success in the paint with 62 points while scoring 20 points off 19 Willamette turnovers. They outrebounded the Bearcats 45-35, scoring 19 second chance points on 13 offensive rebounds.
"I'm proud of how our team responded after a really tough road trip," Rosenberg said. "I couldn't have asked for more. Our seniors did a fantastic job of showing their resolve and character. They all know we're better than we showed in Washington these past three days and that we're finally getting healthy."
Three other 'Cats scored in double figures in the 43-point victory. The Linfield bench scored 51 points, led by 16 points on 8 of 10 shooting from junior forward
Alex Jaczko. Jaczko connected on 8 of 10 from the field and added a pair of rebounds and an assist. Fifth-year senior guard
Dempsey Roggenbuck also dropped 16 points on 50 percent shooting to go with seven rebounds, three assists and a steal while freshman guard
Josh Puccinelli had 10 points on 5 of 6 from the field.
"Alex played as well as I could imagine," Rosenberg said. "I absolutely love the way he's playing. He stepped up big tonight when we made our first run."
Linfield limited Willamette to 35.4 percent from the field and just 20 percent from outside. The Bearcats received 24 points from the bench, but it wasn't enough to keep up with the 'Cats, who outscored them 59-32 in the second half to put the game on ice.
Cedric Coward led the Bearcats with a monster double-double of 25 points and 16 rebounds to go with an assist, a block and five steals. He made 9 of 12 from the field, 1 of 2 from deep and 6 of 8 from the free throw line. Ryder Hsiung also put up double digits with 10 points, going 3 for 4 in the game with all field goals coming from long range. Jonathan Watts contributed eight points and three rebounds.
NEXT
With the win, Linfield bounced back from a two-game skid in eastern Washington to sit in third place at 10-5 overall and 5-2 in Northwest Conference play. The 'Cats will close their busy four-game week at home, hosting second-place Pacific Lutheran (10-5, 5-1 NWC) at 6 p.m. on Saturday.
"It's been a brutal road for us this year, but I would never doubt the heart of this group. I'm glad we're continuing to grow together," Rosenberg said. "Tomorrow will be the last of five games in eight days against an excellent PLU team. We'll need everything we have left."
UPDATED LINFIELD SPECTATOR POLICY
To ensure that the Linfield Community, i.e. Students, Staff, and Faculty, remain as healthy as possible during the latest surge of COVID cases due primarily to the Omicron Variant in Oregon, Linfield Athletics is adjusting its current athletic contest spectator policy to the following:
- For home-based basketball games, home and visiting student-athletes will be allotted 4 family member spectator tickets; those 4 people will be on a list and must provide proof of vaccination at the door. They will also be expected to sit together at the event. No additional spectators will be allowed entry at this time.
- There will be no admission charge for approved spectators.
- All participants, coaches, spectators and operations personnel must comply with mask use while inside our facilities (except players or officials during active competition and practice). This means wearing the mask over your mouth & nose at all times. No exceptions!
- Spectators are asked to space themselves throughout the bleachers, as per physical distancing guidelines.
- Concessions will not be sold until further notice. Food is not allowed in our venues, but non-alcoholic drinks may be consumed during events as long as proper masking is taking place between actively taking a drink.