WALLA WALLA, Wash. – Whitman College used a physical, energetic defense to end a five-game losing streak to visiting Whitworth University on Tuesday night in the second half of the annual "Battle of Whits" men's basketball rivalry.
The Blues (11-13 overall, 9-6 NWC) put themselves in good position to qualify for the upcoming Northwest Conference tournament. The 15th-ranked Pirates (21-3, 12-3) saw their nine-game winning streak come to an end.
Whitman took the initiative from the opening tip, grabbing a 17-9 lead with an 8-0 run capped by a pair of free throws from Isaiah Amato. Trailing 19-13, Whitworth used a 14-4 run to go ahead 27-23 on a Ty Edwards layup. Colton Looney and Ben Nyquist hit back-to-back three-pointers in the run. The Blues responded with their own 13-3 spurt, going up 36-31 on Amato's three-pointer. Whitman led 43-36 at halftime.
The Blues kept the momentum going in the early minutes of the second half, opening a 55-45 lead with 13:46 to go. The Pirates cut the margin to 57-53 on Jake Holtz's basket. That's when Whitman used a 16-0 run to put the game away, taking a 73-53 lead with 5:01 to go.
Late in that run there was an altercation that led to ejections for four players: Holtz and Carson Talbert from Whitworth and Amato and Ali Efe Isik from Whitman.
The Blues held the Pirates to 25% (10-40) shooting in the second half, leading to a season-low field goal percentage (33.8 / 24-71) for the game. Whitworth, the conference's leading three-point shooting team, finished only 6-27 (22.2%) from three-point range, which was also a season-low. The Bucs committed 15 turnovers.
Holtz led Whitworth with 19 points, but was the only Pirate in double figures. Steven Behil added nine points, going 3-10 from three-point range. Nyquist led Whitworth with eight rebounds.
Grant Hunt led five Whitman players in double figures with 16 points. He also had three steals. Efe Isik had 13 points, while Amato and Djordje Lazarevic scored 11 apiece. Milos Sarenac came off the bench for a team-high eight rebounds. The Blues finished the game 29-59 (49.2%) from the field, 10-22 (45.5%) from three-point range.
Whitworth has already clinched the NWC's regular season title and the right to host the conference tournament on Feb. 28-March 1. The Pirates will look to finish the regular season on a positive note at Linfield College on Saturday at 4:00 pm.