SPOKANE, Wash. – Whitworth University has clinched at least a tie for second place in the final Northwest Conference men's basketball standings with Tuesday night's 73-61 win over visiting Whitman College.

Symes led all players with 22 points

The Pirates (18-6 overall, 11-4 NWC) moved a half game in front of Puget Sound (17-5, 10-4) in the NWC standings and Whitworth has assured itself of either hosting the NWC tournament playoff on February 28th, or the NWC tournament final on March 1st.

The Missionaries (5-19, 1-14) made Whitworth work for a win in the Pirates' final regular season home game of 2007-08. After cutting a 20-point second half deficit in half at 65-55, Whitman had the ball with four minutes to play. But Keefe Piper was called for an offensive foul on an illegal screen and Whitworth answered with a quick 6-0 run to put the game away 71-55 with 2:24 to go.

The first half was a slow-paced affair that worked to Whitworth's advantage. The Pirates were able to turn an early 9-6 deficit into a 25-10 lead with a 19-2 run that spanned nearly ten minutes of the first period. In addition, Whitworth kept Chris Faidley - the NWC leading scorer coming into the game - scoreless in the first half. But Whitman showed signs of things to come later in the game when Graham Brewer's lay up pulled the Missionaries within 31-21 at halftime.

Ryan Symes (Sr., F, Palo Alto, Calif.), who scored 15 of his game-high 22 points in the second half, sparked the Pirates to a 55-35 lead with just over ten minutes left in the game. But Whitman began to chip away and when Brandon Ziegler hit a three-pointer with 4:36 left the Missionaries were back within 65-55. A steal and breakaway dunk by Symes concluded the 6-0 Pirate spurt that put the game out of reach over the next two minutes.

Symes made 9 of 18 shots for his 22 points. Colin Willemsen (Sr., F, Moraga, Calif.) added 20 points and eight rebounds. Ross Nakamura (Jr., G, Moraga, Calif.) finished with 12 points and seven boards, making four of five three-point attempts.

Brewer led Whitman with 16 points, on 8 of 11 shooting, and seven rebounds. Despite going scoreless in the first half, Faidley finished with 14 points and 10 assists, while Jordan Wheeler added 11 points.

The win was the Pirates' 18th in a row over the Missionaries.

If Whitworth can win at George Fox University (8-15, 4-10) on Friday night, the Pirates will clinch the top seed in the three-team NWC tournament. The third-seed travels to the second-seed for a playoff on Thursday, February 28th. The winner plays at the top-seed on Saturday, March 1st.

Whitman will conclude its season on Saturday with a game at George Fox.