Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2011

WALLA WALLA, Wash. -- With four players scoring in double digits and three others combining for 25 points, Whitman College rolled over Walla Walla University 98-40 in non-conference men's basketball action Tuesday night in College Place, Wash.

Whitman, which led 56-18 at halftime, ran its early season record to 5-2. Walla Walla dropped to 1-13.

Sophomore LuQuam Thompson and freshman Matt Mounier led the Whitman scoring parade with 15 points apiece.

Matt Mounier                                       Photos by Greg Lehman

Senior David Michaels and junior Ignas Pavilonis added 11 points apiece for the Missionaries.

Whitman took charge at the outset, scoring the game's first eight points with Thompson driving to the rim for four of those points.

Pavilonis came off the bench to hit the first of 14 Whitman 3-pointers at the 12:13 mark and Thompson made it to the hoop for two more buckets as Whitman rolled away to a 24-6 lead after 11 minutes of play.

Junior Drew Raher, who leads the Northwest Conference in 3-point percentage, hit from long range to extend the Missionary cushion to 29-9.

With five minutes remaining, Thompson knocked down his only 3-point attempt of the night, and three of his teammates followed suit on Whitman's next four possessions.

The next Missionary to strike from the 3-point stripe was Michaels, who then fed junior Peter Clark for the first of his back-to-back threes.

After finishing the run of 3-pointers on Whitman's next trip down the floor, Pavilonis disrupted the ensuing Walla Walla possession with a steal and break-away dunk that ballooned the Missionary cushion to 48-16 with 2:34 left.

After putting back his own miss, Mounier capitalized on another Pavilonis steal to drill Whitman's eighth 3-pointer of the half. The Missionaries shot 52.4 percent from the floor in building their big halftime lead.

Sparked by 3-point strikes by Clark and Mounier, Whitman opened the second half on a 19-2 run for a 75-20 lead with 13 minutes left to play.

Sophomore Jordan Dickson joined the 3-point party a few minutes later to stretch the spread to 60 points.

Whitman began phasing its freshmen into the fray when Clay Callahan and Kai Drewry checked into the game with about nine minutes left.

LuQuam Thompson

Once Brandon Gagiliardi and Keenan Durham stepped onto the floor with four minutes remaining, joining Mounier, Callahan and Drewry, it was an all-rookie game for the Missionaries.

Freshman Haleem Hill gave Drewry a breather at the three-minute mark to empty the Whitman bench.

All 17 players on the Whitman roster made it into the game, and all but four made it into the scoring column. All but three came away with at least one rebound.

Mounier, the only Missionary to play more than 17 minutes, hit three of nine 3-pointers but had at least three shots pop in and out. He also grabbed nine rebounds and handed ouit five assists.

Clark and Pavilonis also finished with three 3-pointers apiece, and sophomore forward Ryan Gilkey just missed a double-double with eight points and nine rebounds. Sophomore Josh Duckworth chipped in with eight points and four rebounds.

With seven rebounds, Raher was another key to Whitman's 59-26 dominance on the backboards. The Missionaries collected 23 offensive rebounds and made 17 steals on 29 Walla Walla turnovers.

Dickson, who reached for five rebounds, matched Pavilonis with a team-high three steals. Four other Missionaries had two steals each.

Walla Walla struggled with its shooting touch for most of the night, making 30.4 percent of its field goal attempts.

Mark Moore, Andrew Bailey and Tom Creasey each scored six points to lead the Wolves. Josh Hough grabbed five rebounds and blocked three shots, and Clark Woodworth handed out three assists.

Whitman's next game is Saturday, Dec. 17, against Northwestern College (St. Paul, Minn.). That neutral-site game takes place at Whitworth University in Spokane, Wash.

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CONTACT: Dave Holden
Sports Information Director
Whitman College, Walla Walla, Wash.
509 527-5902; holden@whitman.edu