THE RECORDS
Over the weekend, Linfield (7-12, 4-6 NWC) battled with George Fox and Pacific, two teams that the Wildcats find themselves in a tight race with in the Northwest Conference standings. While unable to find a win in either game, Linfield still controls its own destiny with six games remaining. Puget Sound (9-10, 4-6 NWC) is in a three-way tie for sixth place and make the trip to McMinnville for a 6 p.m. tip on Friday afternoon. Pacific Lutheran (9-10, 6-4 NWC) is tied for second place in the conference and plays Linfield on Saturday night at 4 p.m.
 
LINFIELD AT A GLANCE
The Wildcats have seen steady improvements on offense throughout the season and have worked their way up to third place in the conference in field goal percentage at 45.8% and average 76.1 points per game. With 15.1 assists per contest, Linfield excels at sharing the ball and senior Josh Ryan leads the way with 2.1 assists. Cade Collins continues his ascendance as a premier player in the NWC at 13.4 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists. Over the past five games, sophomore Garrett Callsen is averaging 15.6 points and has shown promise in his second season of becoming a high-level big man for the Wildcats. Dayton Magaña is shooting the ball at a rate of 40% from behind the arc and looks to continue his sharp shooting this weekend in two crucial games.
 
PUGET SOUND AT A GLANCE
The Loggers have won three of the last four games and are coming off their biggest win of the season against Whitman. At 76.8 points per game, Puget Sound looks to get its offense rolling this weekend to make a push in the NWC standings as the end of the season nears. Taj Phillips captains the Loggers' offense, ranking fourth in the NWC with 15.4 points while Liam Ruttledge adds 12.3. Hugo Rutherfurd stands tall in the paint, blocking 1.6 shots per game and pulling down 5.7 boards. Zane Miller has been a deadeye for Puget Sound this season, hitting 50.8% of his three point attempts and averages 1.8 makes per game. Puget Sound makes its visit to Ted Wilson Gymnasium on Friday night.
 
PACIFIC LUTHERAN AT A GLANCE
The Lutes boast an elite defense that allows just 70.7 points, ranking third in the NWC. They also make 46.4% of their field goal attempts for an efficient offense. With a 3.8 rebounding margin, Pacific Lutheran plays disciplined basketball that has the Lutes in a tie for second place in the conference standings. Miles Nash leads the scoring efforts at 14.4 points and leads the team in steals with 23 on the season. Brandin Riedel is the only other Lute in double digits with 10.6 points and averages 5.4 boards. Ben Tellez pours in 9.4 points and the Lutes look to continue their winning ways, having won five of their previous six games.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Puget Sound leads Linfield in the all-time series 36-22 and the Wildcats have lost five straight to the Loggers. Linfield's last win came in 2022 at home.
 
Linfield narrowly leads Pacific Lutheran all-time, 57-55 and won the last matchup earlier this season in Tacoma. The Wildcats lead 38-16 when playing at home and look to extend that margin on Saturday night.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
The Linfield Sports Network will provide live streaming options for both games this weekend with Joe Stuart on the call 15 minutes before tipoff.