WALLA WALLA, Wash. -- Whitman College outscored Whitworth University 17-0 over the final five minutes to beat the Pirates 82-79, handing the nation's top-ranked NCAA Division III team its first loss of the season Tuesday night in Sherwood Center.
Winning a school-record eighth straight game, Whitman improved to 18-6 on the season and 11-4 in the Northwest Conference, taking sole possession of second place with one game remaining in the regular season.
The loss dropped Whitworth to 23-1 on the season and 14-1 in the NWC. The Pirates failed to score a single point over the final 5:41 of the game.
With Whitworth leading 79-65, freshman Josh Duckworth nailed a 3-pointer with 3:34 left to spark Whitman's game-winning explosion.
After sophomore Drew Raher made a steal and shot down the court for a layin, sophomore Ignas Pavilonis hit another three to cut the Missionary deficit to 79-73 with 2:43 left on the clock.
Junior Brandon Shaw kept the surge going with a spin move in the paint, twirling the ball into the hoop while being fouled. His free throw made it 79-76.
Duckworth struck again on Whitman's next possession, lofting home a game-tying 3-pointer with a minute remaining to send the packed Sherwood Center crowd into an eardrum-busting frenzy.
After Clay Gebbers missed two Whitworth free throws with 35 seconds left, Shaw was fouled on the rebound and made one of two free throws to give Whitman its first lead since the first minute of play.
Mike Taylor, who led all scorers with 30 points, missed a jumper on Whitworth's next trip down the floor. Pavilonis rebounded and fed the ball to Duckworth, who was fouled.
Duckworth made both pressure-packed free throws to extend Whitman's lead to 82-79 with just 16 seconds left on the clock.
When David Riley missed a 3-pointer on the next Whitworth possession, Whitman rebounded and got ready to celebrate.
Duckworth, who hit four of five 3-pointers, led Whitman with 24 points and eight rebounds. Shaw finished with 18 points and Justin Artis, Whitman's lone senior, added 12 points and five rebounds.
Raher gave the Missionaries nine points and seven rebounds. Junior David Michaels chipped in with six points and seven rebounds, helping Whitman outrebound the Pirates 43-30.
Wade Gebbers, who combined with Taylor to drill 10 of 19 3-pointers for Whitworth, had 19 points, six assists and six rebounds.
Whitworth, already assured of the No. 1 seed in next week's NWC four-team playoff format, finishes the regular season at Pacific on Saturday.
Whitman, which has won 16 of its last 18 games, plays Friday at Pacific. A victory in that game will assure Whitman of a first-round home playoff game against Lewis & Clark.