SPOKANE, Wash. -- Whitworth College takes a six game winning streak into this weekend's contests against the University of Puget Sound and Pacific Lutheran University. While all the Pirates have to do is win one of four remaining games to clinch a spot in the Northwest Conference Tournament, the Bucs want to continue the streak and potentially improve their seeding. Both games will begin at 8:00 pm on Friday and Saturday.

Lance Pecht is the NWC Player of the Week, again

The Pirates: Whitworth is 15-6 overall and 9-3 in the Northwest Conference. The Pirates are two games behind Puget Sound (11-1) and one game behind Willamette (10-2) following Whitworth's win over the Bearcats last Friday in Salem. A win at Lewis & Clark extended the Pirates' winning streak to six games and moved the Bucs three games ahead of George Fox for the final NWC playoff spot, meaning Fox would have to win out and Whitworth would have to lose out for the Pirates not to make the playoffs. If Whitworth does win out and finishes tied in the standings with either UPS or Willamette, the Pirates would hold the tiebreaker based on the season sweep of WU.

Click here for NWC Basketball standings.

Whitworth's success this season can be traced to a couple of key areas. The Pirates take care of the ball, giving up only 10.4 turnovers per game, the best in the NWC. Whitworth gets good shots, making 49% of its attempts from the field, the second best percentage in the NWC. And when the Bucs get to the free throw line, they make it (see below).

Player of the Week: Lance Pecht (Sr., F, Spokane, Wash. - West Valley/LCSC) is the Northwest Conference Player of the Week for the third consecutive week. His 19-point and 14-rebound double-double led the win at Willamette, then he had an NWC-best and career-high 38 points at L&C. For the week he shot 66% from the field and 88% from the line. Pecht is the Pirates' leading scorer this season, averaging 18.0 points per game. He is also the second leading rebounder at 6.5 per contest. In Northwest Conference-only statistics, he is the NWC's leading scorer at 21.2 points per game through 12 contests.

The Shooter: Jon Young (Jr., G, Tracy, Calif. - Tracy) holds the Whitworth single season records for most three pointers made (92) and attempted (225), which he set last season. With four games left in this regular season he is on pace to break Ryan Nelson's (1998-01) career marks for three pointers. Young has made 243 three pointers, nine shy of Nelson's career record. Young has attempted 577 three point shots, six less than Nelson. Young is averaging 3.1 three pointers made per game (which ranks third in the NWC and 37th in NCAA Division III), and 7.3 attempted this season. Young is the Pirates' second leading scorer this season, averaging 14.0 points per game.

Dishing the Ball: Bryan Williams (Jr., G, Colbert, Wash. - Mead) is on pace to set a career high for assists in a season. Williams finished with 134 assists in 24 games last year, averaging 5.5 assists per game. This season he has 122 assists through 21 games, averaging 5.8 per contest, which ranks second in the NWC and 22nd in NCAA Division III. Williams is also averaging 10.2 points per game.

Balanced Scoring: All five Pirate starters are still averaging double figures in scoring. In addition to Pecht, Young and Williams, George Tucker (Sr., F, San Ramon, Calif. - Diablo Valley College) adds 13.4 points per game, and has been the Pirate most successful at getting to the free throw line, where he is 89-107 (83%) this year. Kevin Hasenfus (Jr., P, Lodi, Calif. - San Joaquin Delta College) leads the Bucs in rebounding (6.7 per game) to go along with 11.9 points per game.

Don't Foul 'Em: Whitworth ranks first in the Northwest Conference, and second at the NCAA Division III level, in team free throw average. The Pirates have made 78.7% (351-446) of their attempts from the line this year.

Fab February: Since Jim Hayford took over as head coach of the Pirates in 2001-02, the Bucs are 26-7 (.788) in the month of February. After last weekend the Bucs are 2-0 this year.

The Opponents: Puget Sound is aiming for a third straight Northwest Conference title. The Loggers (18-3 overall, 11-1 NWC) won 96-76 at PLU on January 31st and 97-76 at George Fox last week to take over sole possession of first place in the conference standings. UPS continues to use the same formula of pressure defense and attacking offense to lead the NWC in points per game (96.8), turnover margin (+13.2 per game) and steals (14.5 per game). The senior All-NWC combination of Chase Curtiss and Zack McVey provide a potent outside-inside combination. Curtiss, a guard, averages 17.9 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game. The post McVey adds 15.7 points and 6.4 boards per game. The Loggers defeated the Pirates 106-105 in a see-saw contest in Tacoma on January 13th and have won five straight in the series.

Pacific Lutheran comes into the weekend with a record of 4-17 overall and 3-9 in the NWC. In addition to the Lutes' loss at home to UPS last week, PLU was beaten 82-74 at Linfield on February 4th. The Lutes can be dangerous when they shoot well, averaging nearly eight three pointers per game as a team. Drew Cardwell is PLU's leading scorer at 14.4 points per game. But Josh Vanlandingham has come on lately to lead the Lutes in scoring four out of the last five contests. PLU handed Whitworth a painful 81-72 defeat in Tacoma on January 14th.

The Coach: Jim Hayford is in his fifth season at Whitworth and has a record of 90-34 (.726) leading the Pirates. His first three seasons are the best three-year record of any coach in Whitworth history. In his second season he led the team to a Northwest Conference title and 23-4 record, earning NWC Coach of the Year honors. In his first season as the head coach at Whitworth Hayford led the Pirates to a record of 20-7 and a second place finish in the NWC. The only Whitworth coach to have a better rookie season was Art Smith, whose 1954-55 team finished 21-4 and went to the NAIA national tournament. Prior to coming to Whitworth, Hayford was head coach at the University of Sioux Falls (SD), where he compiled a 37-27 record in two seasons. His overall coaching record is 127-61 (.676).

On the Air: All the rest of Whitworth's games will be head live on KSBN 1230 am. Bob Castle will call all the plays. The games can also be heard over the internet at www.ksbn.net.