TACOMA, Washington – Paul Johnson scored a career-high 32 points, and freshman Will Pohland added 21 in his collegiate debut to lead the Puget Sound men's basketball team to a 97-86 home win against Multnomah in overtime in the 2021-22 season-opener.
 
Puget Sound (1-0) held a 50-40 lead at halftime, but the Lions (0-1) clawed back to tie the game, 69-69, midway through the first half. The even score was short-lived thanks to a Pohland 3-pointer. Following a defensive stop, Taj Phillips put back an offensive board to cushion the lead to 74-69 with 7:15 on the clock.
 
Five minutes later, however, the Lions took an 80-77 lead.
 
Pohland came up with another big trey with 1:36 left in regulation, and score remained even at 80-80 at the final buzzer of regulation.
 
The Loggers opened overtime with a 7-0 run, with Johnson and Pohland accounting for all seven points. Johnson and Pohland each hit a close-range shot, and Pohland provided the exclamation mark with yet another trey.
 
Pohland shot 5-for-9 from beyond the arc overall.
 
Mussie Teclemariam finished with a game-high 15 rebounds. Cal Hansen and Grant Erickson added 10 points, each.
 
The Loggers return to Memorial Fieldhouse Sunday, Nov. 7, to host Evergreen State at 4 p.m.