SPOKANE, Wash. -- Whitworth University claimed its second straight Northwest Conference championship last week with wins over Whitman College and George Fox University. The Pirates finished the regular season 19-6 overall and 12-4 in the NWC, one game ahead of University of Puget Sound.
While the second straight title will look good in the record books, there is still much work to be done for this season. If the Pirates hope to advance to the NCAA Division III tournament, Whitworth will have to win the NWC's automatic bid, which will be determined by the conference tournament. By winning the NWC regular season, the Bucs have been given the opportunity to host the tournament championship game on March 1st (8:00 p.m.) with the winner of that game going on to the NCAA tournament. The opponent for that game will be either Willamette University or UPS, who play on Thursday, February 28th for the right to come to the Fieldhouse. Awaiting the winner of the Willamette-UPS game will be the NWC Coach of the Year, the NWC Player of the Year along with two other Pirates recognized by the NWC. Jim Hayford was named NWC Coach of the Year for the second straight season (and third time overall). He becomes the first NWC coach to earn the honor in back to back years since Whitworth's Warren Friedrichs won in 1994 and 1995. Ryan Symes (Sr., F, Palo Alto, Calif.) was named NWC Player of the Year, becoming the third Whitworth player in a row to win the honor (following Bryan Williams in 2007 and Lance Pecht in 2006). Colin Willemsen (Sr., F, Moraga, Calif.) joined Symes as a member of the All-NWC First Team. Ross Nakamura (Jr., G, Moraga, Calif.) is an honorable mention honoree. Click here for the complete All-NWC release. Click here for the complete All-NWC team. Radio/Internet: The NWC tournament final on Saturday will be carried live by KSBN 1230 am and Bob Castle will call the play by play. In addition to the on-air broadcast, the KSBN internet simulcast can be picked up either on the Whitworth Athletics site, or at KSBN.net by selecting the "listen now" button. Also, Whitworth now offers "Live Stats" for all home games. The live stats link is: http://www.whitworth.edu/Athletics/Teams/Basketball/livestats/xlive.htm. The Pirates: Whitworth finished the season on a four game winning streak to move from one game behind UPS in the standings to one game in front. The Pirates defeated Whitman 73-61 in the final home game of 2008 last Tuesday then won 77-69 at George Fox on Friday to clinch the title.
Ryan Symes scored 22 points and Colin Willemsen added 20 points and eight rebounds to lead the Pirates over Whitman on Senior Night in the Fieldhouse last Tuesday. Ross Nakamura added 12 points, on four three-pointers. The Pirates led by as many as 20 points in the second half, but the feisty Missionaries rallied to within ten points with under five minutes to play before Whitworth put the game away. The Pirates extended their winning streak against Whitman to 18 in a row. On Friday night at George Fox, Whitworth knew that a victory would clinch the top seed in the NWC tournament. But the host Bruins did their best to prevent that from happening, opening up a 19-7 lead eight minutes into the game. Whitworth rallied to within 32-30 at halftime then tied the game for the first time on Ryan Symes' three-pointer at 40-40. After a three-pointer by Nakamura gave Whitworth a 45-40 lead, the Pirates never trailed again. David Riley's (Fr., G, Palo Alto, Calif.) three-pointer with 44 seconds left gave Whitworth a 72-65 lead and essentially iced the game. Symes finished with a game-high 22 points, while Riley added 19 on four of six three-point shooting. DEFENSE: Despite four new starters this season, the way the Pirates are winning should look very familiar to Whitworth fans. The Bucs have taken their usually tough defense up a notch this year, leading the NWC in both scoring defense (63.2 points per game allowed) and field goal percentage defense (42.3%). In addition, Whitworth leads the rebounding margin category (+6.5). Offense, Too: Also familiar is how efficient the Bucs have been on offense. Whitworth averages 14.7 assists per game and leads the NWC in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.39 assists for every turnover, 5th in the nation). The Pirates commit the fewest turnovers in the league (10.6 per game, 4th in the NCAA) as well. And when the team gets to the free throw line, the Pirates make a league-best 76.7% (13th in the NCAA). Steady Symes: Ryan Symes is providing the solid leadership that was expected of the team's only returning starter and a returning First Team All-NWC selection. The 6-5 forward earned Northwest Conference Player of the Year by leading the team in scoring with an average of 18.8 points (3rd in the NWC). He adds 6.2 rebounds per game (8th in the NWC). He has added a three-point shot to his game this season, making 34% from beyond the arc. He has led the Bucs in scoring 16 times this season and has been named NWC Player of the Week twice (January 21st and February 18th).
Frosh Phenom: David Riley has had a breakthrough freshman season. The 6-5 guard is third on the team in scoring (11.6 points per game). He has been deadly from three point range, and is the only player in the Northwest Conference to rank in the top five of the league stat leaders in both three-pointers made (5th, 2.42 per game) and three point percentage (5th, 42.0%). In Whitworth's second game of the season, he broke the school record for three-pointers made in a game when he was 8 for 13 in the win over Caltech. The previous record of seven in a game was shared by three players. Riley has led the Pirates in scoring four times this season. "Will"-do-it-all: One of the best sixth-men in the NWC last season, Colin Willemsen has been the do-everything player as a starter for the Pirates this year and earned First Team All-NWC honors to show for it. Willemsen leads the team and is second in the NWC in rebounding (7.9 per game) and is second in the league in offensive rebounds (2.7 per game). Willemsen is also seventh in the NWC (second on the team) in assists (3.36 per game). Finally, Willemsen leads Whitworth and is 11th in the NWC in steals (1.20 per game). All of this goes along with a strong 13.9 scoring average (second on the team). His nine double-doubles this season lead the NWC.
Ross Runs the Ship: Even before his breakthrough performance (26 points) in a win at Willamette on January 5th, Ross Nakamura had been a steadying influence as the Pirate point guard this season. A transfer from Diablo Valley JC in Concord, California, Nakamura is fifth in the NWC in assists (4.71 per game). Perhaps more telling about Nakamura's play this season, he leads the NWC and all of NCAA Division III in assist-turnover ratio (4.04 assists per turnover). His steadiness with the ball is nearly matched by his shooting ability, as he ranks third in the Northwest Conference in three-point percentage (44.1%) this season. Nearly Last: There is one category in which the Pirates nearly rank last in NCAA Div. III. Whitworth was the second-to-last NCAA Division III team to play a scheduled home game this season when the Bucs hosted Lewis & Clark in the Fieldhouse on January 11th. Only Lawrence College (Wis.) played its first home game later (by one day, opening on January 12th). However, the Vikings only played seven games to that point, while Whitworth played 10 games before getting to play at home. Neither Whitworth or Lawrence can complain much, however, when compared to UC Santa Cruz. Because of refurbishing of their gym, the Banana Slugs will not play a home game this season.
The NWC Tournament: Winning the Northwest Conference basketball title is fairly simple. The team or teams that finish atop the final standings are considered conference champions. However, the NWC, like most NCAA Division III leagues, awards its automatic NCAA playoff bid to the champion of its post-season tournament. The conference has constructed a tournament that strongly favors the regular season champion. On Thursday the 28th of February, Willamette (third seed) will play at Puget Sound (second seed). The winner of that game will play for the tournament title at Whitworth on Saturday March 1st (8:00 p.m.) for the automatic bid to the NCAA Div. III tournament. The Potential Opponents: Willamette University finished in a four way tie for third place in the NWC standings. The Bearcats (11-14, 9-7 NWC) earned the third seed into the playoffs because of head to head results against the other three. Willamette swept L&C and split with Linfield and Pacific for a 4-2 record. Junior Kyler McClary (post) and senior Mike Smith (wing) are Second Team All-NWC selections in 2008. Whitworth split with Willamette this season, winning 72-65 in overtime on the road, but losing 72-74 at home. The University of Puget Sound had a chance to share the NWC title with Whitworth heading into the final weekend, but a home loss to Lewis & Clark Friday dropped the Loggers into second place. UPS responded to beat Willamette in double overtime on the final night of the season to secure the home court in Thursday's game. Juniors Jason Foster (post) and Antwan Williams (point guard) are First Team All-NWC selections this season. Whitworth swept the regular season meetings with the Loggers, winning 83-78 in Tacoma and 80-78 in Spokane. UPS swept Willamette in this season's meetings, winning 90-75 in Salem and 127-121 (2 ot) in the regular season finale in Tacoma on Saturday night. The Coach: Whitworth head coach Jim Hayford became the fastest coach in Pirate history to record his 100th victory as head coach of the Bucs with a win over Whittier on November 25th of last season. Now 138-45 (.754) in his seventh season at Whitworth (175-70 overall in nine years as a head coach), Hayford is only the third coach in school history to reach the 100 win plateau. Hayford has won two NWC Coach of the Year awards at Whitworth (2003, 2007) and led the Pirates to a pair of conference championships. Go to Athletics Home Page > Men's Basketball > Sports Releases > |
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