LONGVIEW, Texas -- Four players scored in double figures as LeTourneau men's hoops earned their sixth straight win, 89-69, over Pacific Lutheran on Thursday afternoon.

Deonte Jackson (23), Caedmon Liebengood (19), Cooper Smith (14), and Walker Blaine (13), led the way in scoring, helping the YellowJackets (10-2) hold off a scrappy Pacific Lutheran bunch (3-4). 

Liebengood cleaned the glass with a team-high eight boards, while Jackson, Blaine, Teigan Edwards, and Connor Miller had three assists each. Jackson led in steals with three as well. 

The first half got off to a rousing start, as the two teams combined to hit their first seven shots. Later, Liebengood's back-to-back layups helped untie the score, while Miller and Smith extended the lead to seven with a couple of baskets.

Later, a Smith 3-pointer gave LeTourneau their largest lead of the game to that point (11) with just over 10 minutes to play in the half. The lead would get as high as 14, but the Lutes cut the deficit to 11 at the half with a couple of free throws.

In the second half, Pacific Lutheran used a couple of small runs to cut the LeTourneau lead down to single-digits early, but Edwards was ready to respond, hitting a layup and a jumper to help keep the lead at a more comfortable number. 

The Lutes would not go down easily, however, cutting the lead back down to six with 11:10 to play. 

It was then Liebengood's turn again, as he put defenders in blenders down low and hit back-to-back layups to push the lead back to 10. That would spark a 16-5 run for the YellowJackets, with Liebengood adding a couple more baskets in that stretch.

Blaine and Smith would help put the game away late, scoring four apiece. Ezra Seay and Luke Anderson would also get in the game late and hit a pair of shots to put the icing on the cake.

The Lutes were led by Brandin Riedel, who had 19 points and seven rebounds, with Miles Nash adding 18 points and Ben Tellez scoring 15.

UP NEXT

The YellowJackets will take a much-deserved holiday break and then return to action for an important matchup on December 29 against No. 9 Illinois Wesleyan.

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