SPOKANE, Wash. – A second straight Northwest Conference men's basketball championship has earned Whitworth University's team multiple recognition on the 2008 All-NWC men's basketball team. Jim Hayford is the NWC Coach of the Year, Ryan Symes is the NWC Player of the Year, Colin Willemsen is a First Team All-NWC selection and Ross Nakamura earned honorable mention consideration.

Ryan Symes	Colin Willemsen	Ross Nakamura

Hayford won the Coach of the Year award for the second straight season. This season's team had four new starters after graduation hit the 2007 championship team heavily. Lost from last season was NWC Player of the Year Bryan Williams and First Team All-NWC guard James Jones. Hayford rebuilt the 2008 Pirates into back to back champions, earning a rare consecutive Coach of the Year award. Hayford is the first conference coach to win the award in consecutive seasons since Whitworth's Warren Friedrichs won back to back awards in 1994 and 1995. It is Hayford's third NWC Coach of the Year award overall (2003, 2007, 2008).

Ryan Symes (Sr., F, Palo Alto, Calif. - Delta JC) was selected as the NWC Player of the Year. Symes has averaged 18.8 points and 6.2 rebounds per game and has led Whitworth in scoring 16 times this season. He is second in the NWC in free throw percentage (85.4%) and was named NWC Player of the Week on January 21st and February 18th this season. The only returning starter from 2007, Symes is also one of only two players to repeat as a First Team All-NWC selection.

Colin Willemsen (Sr., F, Moraga, Calif. - Diablo Valley JC) earned First Team All-NWC in his first season as a starter for the Pirates. Willemsen is the second leading rebounder in the NWC this season, grabbing 7.9 rebounds per game. His nine double-doubles led the conference. He is also among the NWC's leaders in field goal percentage and assists.

Ross Nakamura (Jr., G, Moraga, Calif. - Diablo Valley JC) is an honorable mention selection to the 2008 team. Nakamura, a first year transfer, took over as starting point guard this season and leads all of NCAA Division III in assist to turnover ratio (4.04 to 1). He has made 44.1% of his three-point attempts this year.

Whitworth won its second straight NWC title this season with a 12-4 conference record. The Pirates are 19-6 overall and will host the NWC tournament championship game on Saturday, March 1st. The winner of the NWC tournament championship will earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Whitworth won back to back conference basketball titles for the first time since 1991 and 1992.