SPOKANE, Wash. -- Whitworth is off to an impressive start to the 2008-09 men's basketball season. The Pirates won the Johns Hopkins Blue Jay Invitational to start the season, then won two games last weekend at the Caltech/Occidental Thanksgiving Classic. Whitworth returns to California this week to compete in the University of Redlands Lee Fulmer Classic, a tournament the Pirates have won each of their two previous appearances.
The Pirates: Whitworth had impressive wins over Brockport State (N.Y.) and Johns Hopkins at the Blue Jay Invitational. David Riley (So., G, Palo Alto, Calif.) was named the MVP of the tournament after he scored 34 points (a new tournament record) in the win over Brockport and added 16 points (including 11 in a row during a key second half stretch) in the win over the Blue Jays. Riley was named the first Northwest Conference Men's Basketball Student-Athlete of the Week for 2008-09. Ross Nakamura (Sr., G, Moraga, Calif.) was also named to the all-tournament team. Last weekend the Pirates were able to keep all five starters and Clay Gebbers (So., G, Brewster, Wash.) on the bench in an 88-38 win over Caltech. Felix Friedt (Fr., P, Dusseldorf, Germany) had 18 points and 16 rebounds in the win. The Pirates then put on their best defensive performance of the season in a 62-47 win over previously unbeaten Chapman, holding the Panthers to 27% shooting from the floor. Nate Montgomery (Jr., P, Sammamish, Wash.) led Whitworth with 17 points and grabbed nine rebounds, while Calvin Jurich (Sr., P, Spokane, Wash.) posted a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. The numbers have been impressive through the first four games. Whitworth has outscored opponents 75.8 - 53.0 and has had an average rebound margin of 11.0 (38.5 - 27.5). The Pirates are holding opponents to 32.8% shooting from the floor, while making 52.1% of their own shots. Nationally Ranked: Because of the impressive start, Whitworth moved into the D3hoops.com poll at 15th this week. This is the first weekly poll for 2008-09. The Bucs had been listed with "others receiving votes" in the preseason poll. Whitworth finished second in the 2008 NWC Preseason Coaches Poll. Ross Runs the Ship: Ross Nakamura was a steadying influence as the Pirate point guard while leading the team to a 2007-08 Northwest Conference title. A transfer from Diablo Valley JC in Concord, California, Nakamura led all of NCAA Division III in assist-turnover ratio (4.1 assists per turnover) last season. He is averaging 12.3 points per game and has made 50% (7/14) of his three-point tries in 2008-09, while leading the team in minutes played per game (35.3). Soph Shooter: David Riley has taken his game up a notch as a sophomore, leading the team in scoring average (19.0 ppg) and making 61.8% of his shots from the field, including 52.4% of his three-point tries (11/21). He was named MVP of the JHU Blue Jay Invitational. Riley had a breakthrough freshman season. He was third on the team in scoring (12 points per game) and was deadly from three point range. He was the only player in the Northwest Conference to rank in the top five of the league stat leaders in both three-pointers made (2.6 per game) and three point percentage (43.1%). In Whitworth's second game of 2007-08 he broke the school record for three-pointers made in a game when he was 8 for 13 in the win over Caltech. Big, Really Big: Whitworth's playing rotation could be the biggest in Jim Hayford's tenure as head coach. The Pirates will rotate 6-8 Nate Montgomery, 6-8 Felix Friedt and 6-6 Calvin Jurich in the post, with 6-8 Michael Taylor (Fr., F, Aspen, Colo.) available for back up duty. On the wing Whitworth will rotate 6-5 David Riley, 6-5 Bo Gregg (Jr., F, Lewiston, Idaho), 6-3 Jordan Call (Fr., G, Kirkland, Wash.) and 6-3 Troy Kalbhenn (Jr., G, Burlingame, Calif.). The Lee Fulmer Classic: Whitworth has appeared two previous times in the eight-team event hosted by the University of Redlands. The Pirates won the tournament in 2002-03 on the way to a Northwest Conference title. History repeated itself last December when Whitworth won the tournament again on the way to a conference championship. The Bucs will play Cal State East Bay in the first round on Thursday at 2:00 p.m. (PT) in the opening game of the tournament. The Pioneers are 1-1 this season after splitting a pair of games at Lewis & Clark on November 21st and 22nd. East Bay lost the season opener to L&C 86-78, but came back to edge Whitman 86-84 the following night. Junior forward Pete Johnson led a balanced scoring effort with 14 points per game in the two contests. Whitworth will play either Claremont-Mudd-Scripps or Southwestern (Ariz.) in the second round. C-M-S is 3-1 this season and has a win over NWC-member Willamette. Southwestern is 1-4 this season and the Eagles compete as Division II members of the National Christian College Athletics Association. Redlands has set up a tournament web page that will include a tournament schedule and results, as well as links to live stats for every game. The tournament web site can be found here: The Coach: In seven season's leading the Pirates, Whitworth head coach Jim Hayford has averaged 20 wins a season for a team that can only schedule 25 games a year. Now 144-46 (.758) in his eighth season at Whitworth (181-71 overall in his tenth year as a head coach), Hayford is only the third coach in school history to reach the 100 win plateau. Hayford has won three NWC Coach of the Year awards at Whitworth (2003, 2007, 2008) and led the Pirates to three conference championships. Coach Hayford's Quotes: On the first four games: "Playing four games and winning four games is great. We need the guys who are new to our defensive schemes and offensive sets to adjust. We are relying too much on just the veterans. Hopefully next week we will have more guys step up. The best part of the week was the time spent learning about American history and seeing the sights together. It was the first trip to Washington DC for every one of the players and they really had a great time." On this weekend's tournament: "The Redlands Tournament champion has traditionally gone on to have a special season. It is a strong field and we are road tired but eager for the test. The three days of practice in our own facilities will be good for us as well." Go to Athletics Home Page > Men's Basketball > Sports Releases > |
