SPOKANE, Wash. -- The Whitworth men's basketball team will hit the road for three important road games over the next week, all taking place in the span of five days. The Pirates will play at league-leading Puget Sound on Friday (8:00 p.m.), at Pacific Lutheran on Saturday (6:00 p.m.) and at Whitman next Tuesday (8:00 p.m.). All three games can be heard live in Spokane on KSBN 1230 am, and on the internet at KSBN.net. Whitworth heads into the week 17-4 overall and 9-3 in the Northwest Conference, tied for second place with Lewis & Clark. Only twice before in head coach Jim Hayford's tenure have the Pirates had a better record through 21 games of the season (2007 and 2003). Last Friday Whitworth outscored visiting Willamette 16-3 over the final four minutes of the game to pull out a 77-65 win over the Bearcats in the Whitworth Fieldhouse. Calvin Jurich (Sr., P, Spokane, Wash.) scored a career high 27 points to go with 13 rebounds to lead the Pirates. The following night David Riley (So., G, Palo Alto, Calif.) scored 19 of his game-high 21 points in the second half to lead Whitworth to a hard-fought 82-70 win over Linfield. Ross Nakamura (Sr., G, Moraga, Calif.) chipped in 20 points, 15 in the first half.
Statistically Speaking: In a classic case of the "whole being greater than the sum of the parts", Whitworth continues to lead the Northwest Conference in several team statistical categories, yet has only a couple individuals leading the NWC in any statistic. The Pirates top the conference stats in scoring defense (65.4 points allowed), field goal percentage (49.8), field goal percentage defense (39.4), three-point percentage (39.5), rebound margin (+6.3), and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.20). All of those stats point to the pillars of head coach Jim Hayford's emphasis with the Pirates - efficient offense and strong defense. Ross Nakamura and Tim Sellereit (Sr., G, Bellingham, Wash.) are the only Pirates leading the NWC in any individual category. Nakamura leads in assist-to-turnover ratio at 3.31 assists for every turnover, which also ranks 5th in the NCAA. Sellereit tops the NWC in free throw percentage (87.8%). Nationally Ranked: For the last four weeks the Pirates have been just outside of the top-25 in the D3hoops.com poll listed with "others receiving votes". 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 11.2 points per game and has made 42.9% (36/84) of his three-point tries in 2008-09 (5th in the NWC), while leading the Northwest Conference in minutes played per game (35.9). He is currently first in the NWC and 5th in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.31). Sharp Shooter: David Riley has taken his game up a notch as a sophomore. He leads the team in scoring average (16.6 ppg) and is making 55% of his shots from the field, including 47% of his three-point tries (63/134). Riley is the only player in the NWC currently ranked in the top five individually in both three-point percentage (fourth) and three-pointers made per game (2nd at 3.15). He was named MVP of the JHU Blue Jay Invitational after scoring a tournament-record 34 points in the opening win over Brockport State and leading the tournament in scoring. In this season's win over Pacific Lutheran, Riley topped his career high with 37 points, 34 in the first half when he tied his own school record for three-pointers made (8) and led the Bucs to a 57-14 halftime lead. Big, Really Big: Whitworth's post combination has lived up to expectations. Calvin Jurich (6'-6") and Nate Montgomery (6'-8", Jr., P, Sammamish, Wash.) have combined to average 26.9 points and 14.1 rebounds per game. Jurich is second in the NWC in rebounding average (7.9) and is also a Pirate leader in both assists (2nd on the team) and steals (1st). Montgomery is second on the team in points per game (14.5). Jurich has five double-doubles and Montgomery has four this season, the third and fourth highest totals in the NWC. Live Stats: Live statistics of all games played in the Whitworth Fieldhouse will be available all season by opening the following link in your web browser:
The Opponents: Puget Sound has punctuated a special year with a #6 rating in the most recent polls and a school-record 14 game winning streak heading into Friday. The Loggers (19-2 overall, 12-0 NWC) defeated PLU 84-59 last Tuesday and George Fox 100-79 on Sunday, both at home. Three seniors key the UPS attack. Guard Antwan Williams averages 12.8 points per game and leads the league in assists (5.4). Forwards Jason Foster and Robert Krauel combine to average 29 points and 12.7 rebounds per game. On January 16th UPS withstood a pair of Whitworth rallies to win 89-77 in Spokane. Nate Montgomery led the Bucs with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Pacific Lutheran (9-12 overall, 3-9 NWC) followed up its loss at UPS last Tuesday by beating Pacific 73-64 at home on Friday. The Lutes get 15.8 points per game from senior wing Josh Dressler. Sophomore post Victory Bull has come on strong of late to improve his averages to 11.7 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. On January 17th David Riley exploded for eight first-half three-pointers and 34 first half points (career-high 37 overall) to lead Whitworth to a 57-14 halftime lead in an 88-70 win over the Lutes. Whitman (8-13, 4-8) has already improved greatly on last season's 1-15 NWC record. The Missionaries lost to Linfield 76-68 last Friday before beating Willamette 88-84 in overtime on Saturday. Senior Chris Faidley leads the NWC in scoring average at 21.0 points per game, while freshman Brandon Shaw is third in the conference in scoring (17.2 ppg). On January 20th Whitworth defeated Whitman 101-70 in the Fieldhouse when Ross Nakamura led six Pirates who scored in double figures with 25 points. The Coach: In seven seasons 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 157-50 (.758) in his eighth season at Whitworth (194-75 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 Whitworth's wins at over Willamette and Linfield: "Those were two hard-fought games that tested our mettle and showed our character." On the three road games: "We believe we are playing our best basketball of the season. The true test of our belief will be three difficult road games in five days. Each team presents a special set of challenges." Go to Athletics Home Page > Men's Basketball > Sports Releases > |
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