SPOKANE, Wash. – The Whitworth University men's basketball team will finish out the first round of its Northwest Conference schedule with a pair of home games this coming weekend. The Pirates host Puget Sound on Friday (8:00 pm) in a game that will be regionally televised live on SWX. They take on Pacific Lutheran on Saturday (6:00 pm). Both games are scheduled as the second halves of women's-men's doubleheaders and can be heard live in Spokane on KSBN 1230 am and on the internet at KSBN.net.
Check the Whitworth men's basketball schedule for other live links to this week's games.
Tickets: Digital tickets are required for entrance to the Whitworth Fieldhouse for all fans. Tickets can be purchased in advance using the Hometown Ticketing App. Follow the Tickets link on the schedule for access. Tickets are $12 for adults and $6 for senior adults, non-Whitworth students and children. Whitworth students, as well as faculty and staff, get free admission by using an ID number.
The Pirates: Whitworth (10-5 overall, 6-0 NWC) earned road victories at George Fox and Linfield last weekend, extending the current winning streak to five in a row. The Pirates are 6-0 in the conference for the first time since starting 6-0 in the 2019-20 campaign.
In a game featuring the last two teams with undefeated NWC records, visiting Whitworth rallied from a ten-point halftime deficit to defeat George Fox 80-73 on Friday night in Newberg, Oregon. The Pirates outscored the Bruins 26-7 to open the second half, grabbing a nine-point lead (60-51) and never trailed again. Whitworth made 53% (29-55) from the field against the team that leads the league in defensive field goal percentage. Jojo Anderson scored a game-high 22 points, while Ty Edwards contributed a career-high 19 points and seven rebounds. Jake Holtz scored 16 and Sullivan Menard finished with 14, comprising 71 of the Bucs' 80 points. Whitworth went 17 of 21 (81%) from the free throw line.
Facing a potential natural letdown the next night at Linfield, the Pirates did just enough to hold on for a 66-62 victory over the Wildcats. Linfield never led in the game, but Whitworth was never able to break free from the 'Cats after opening a lead as large as 11 points. Menard's three-pointer from straight on with 42 seconds to play gave the Bucs a 64-57 lead that was too much to overcome. Whitworth made 49% (26-53) from the field and 45% (9-20) from beyond the arc. Just as important, the Pirates held a 39-25 edge in rebounding. Menard led Whitworth with 15 points, including 3-6 from three-point range. Anderson scored 14 points, added five rebounds and four assists. They were the only Pirates in double figures in scoring. Stephen Behil scored a season-high eight points off the bench.
The Opponents: The University of Puget Sound comes into Friday's game riding a three-game winning streak. The Loggers, who finished second in the NWC last season, are 8-7 overall and 4-2 in the NWC after defeating Willamette (90-89) and Lewis & Clark (73-65) at home last weekend. UPS averages 78.6 points per game under sixth-year head coach Aubrey Shelton, a former All-NWC honoree for the Loggers now in his sixth season. Junior Taj Phillips is one of the most dynamic point guards on the West Coast, averaging 14.1 points, while making 48.3% of his three-pointers, and 6.3 assists per game, best in the NWC. Shooting guard Liam Ruttledge (Jr., G) adds 13.1 points per game and sinks 2.4 three-pointers per contest (third in the NWC). Whitworth and Puget Sound played three times in 2022-23, the Loggers winning early 82-75 in Tacoma and the Pirates winning 77-75 in Spokane on a last-second shot from JT McDermott. Third-seeded Whitworth defeated second-seeded Puget Sound 70-51 in the semifinals of the NWC tournament.
Pacific Lutheran University is 10-5 overall and 3-3 in the NWC heading into a game at Whitman on Friday. The Lutes won twice at home last weekend, defeating Lewis & Clark 75-58 and Pacific (Ore.) 79-67. PLU averages 79.9 points per game and leads the NWC in team field goal percentage (49.4) and in points per game allowed (69.5). Chad Murray is 74-76 in his seventh year at PLU and he's in his 15th year as a DIII head coach. Sophomore guard Miles Nash leads his team in scoring (15.7 ppg), rebounding (6.8 rpg) and assists (3.4 apg). Senior forward Brandin Riedel, a three-year starter, averages 14.1 points per contest and leads the NWC in field goal percentage (63.3). Last season Whitworth pulled out an 81-80 win in overtime at PLU, but the Lutes won 83-77 in Spokane for their first victory at the Fieldhouse since 1998.
Last Win vs. Ranked Team: Prior to the 74-71 win over 15th-ranked Elmhurst on December 30th, the Pirates' last victory over a ranked opponent was an 85-64 victory over St. Thomas (Minn.) in the Fieldhouse on Nov. 16, 2019.
Been a While: From Dec. 7 – 22, Whitworth lost four games in a row for the first time since the 2004-05 season when the Pirates finished 13-11 under head coach Jim Hayford.
No Holtz Barred: Jake Holtz seems to do everything for the Pirates in 2023-24. He averages 16.4 points per game, which currently shares the lead on the team and ranks second with three others in the NWC. He also leads the Pirates in rebounding (6.9 per game, fourth in the NWC), assists (39) and steals (26). He is making 56.0% of his field goal attempts (fourth in the NWC). Holtz has 913 points as a Pirate and is on pace to become the latest Whitworth player to reach 1,000 for a career.
Welcome Back Jojo: Jojo Anderson's return to action in 2023-24 has been as hoped-for by Pirate fans. He is tied for the team lead in scoring average (16.4 points per game, second with three others in the NWC) and scored a career-high 33 points in a win over Northwest University on November 21st, the third-highest single game total in the NWC this season. He's made 46.6% of his field goals and adds 2.4 assists per game. The guard from nearby Mt. Spokane HS missed the 2022-23 season with an injury.
Jerry, As Needed: Jerry Twenge, in his fifth year as a Pirate, averages 7.1 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. Twenge has stepped up in a variety of ways throughout his Whitworth career., at different times leading the team in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals. His latest highlight was the game-winning basket vs. Pacific on December 2nd with 1.4 seconds to play.
The Long Road Home: Sullivan Menard's road to Whitworth was a long one. A Gatorade Player of the Year as a high school senior in Alaska, Menard initially went to NCAA Div. I DePaul (Ill.) before transferring to Western Wyoming CC, where he suffered a season-ending knee injury that prevented him from playing the 2021-22 season in Spokane. Now Menard averages 13.9 points per game and leads the team in three-pointers (34, 36.6%). He adds 5.4 rebounds per contest. Menard is also a member of the Pirates' men's golf team.
Pirates picked to win: Whitworth is listed at the top of the 2023-24 Northwest Conference coaches poll with six first place votes and 62 points. The Pirates are coming off 18-10 record in 2022-23, including a second place finish NWC regular season and a conference tournament championship. Whitman, who Whitworth defeated in the NWC tournament championship game, is second in the poll with one first place vote and 53 points. Third place Puget Sound (50 points) got the other two first place votes.
Start a New Streak?: Whitworth's school record streak of consecutive seasons with at least 20 victories came to an end last season after 16 in a row. Prior to that streak, the most 20-win seasons in a row the Pirates had ever had was two (on three different occasions). The NCAA statistics office granted waivers for streak records that were interrupted by Covid-19 in 2020-21. Whitworth's streak of 20-win seasons was the longest in all of NCAA Division III at the time.
Nearly Two Decades of Dominance: Since the beginning of the 2005-06 season (over 17 seasons) the Pirates are 418-95 (.815), an amazing run of success matched by few other college teams at any level. Within the Northwest Conference, Whitworth has won 217 of its last 246 (.882).
Home-Sweet-Home: Whitworth has been stellar in the Whitworth Fieldhouse since the 1990's. During the decade of the 1990s and 2000's Whitworth won more than 84% of its home games. However, since the beginning of the 2005-06 season, the Bucs are 216-27 (.889) at home.
The Pirates have had two home-court winning streaks of more than 40 games since 1990. A 41-game home court winning streak from early 2009 until December of 2011 was the second-longest in Pirate history. The school record for consecutive home victories is 43, beginning during the 1994-95 season and ending during the 1997-98 season.
Road Warriors: As good as Whitworth is at home, the Pirates have been almost as good away from the Whitworth Fieldhouse over the last decade. Since the start of the 11-12 season, Whitworth is 119-38 (.758) away from home, 90-26 (.776) in true road games.
On the Air Again: Whitworth's men's basketball games are once again carried live this season on KSBN 1230am in Spokane. The relationship between Pirate athletics and KSBN goes back to 1994, a span of more than 25 years. Bud Nameck is in his ninth season as the voice of Whitworth basketball. Nameck has more than 30 years of experience calling college basketball at Gonzaga University and Washington State.
The Coach: Damion Jablonski is in his 13th season on the Pirate coaching staff in 2023-24, and his fifth as head coach of the Pirates. His record was 76-26 as Whitworth's head coach heading into this season. Jablonski has led Whitworth to the NCAA Division III tournament three times in his previous four years, the only non-tournament year was due to Covid-19. His first year was a rousing success. He went 23-6, led the Pirates to a share of the Northwest Conference championship and to a pair of victories in the NCAA Division III tournament. The Bucs were slated to face top-ranked Swarthmore before the tournament was cancelled. Jablonski was named D3hoops.com West Region Coach of the Year and he coached Ben College to NWC Player of the Year and NABC All-America recognition. Whitworth went 12-5 during the COVID-19 season in 2020-21, including games against NCAA DI Montana, NCAA DII Seattle Pacific and NAIA playoff regular College of Idaho. Whitworth finished 22-5 overall and 13-3 in the NWC in 2021-22 to once again share the regular season title before winning the conference tournament.
Jablonski spent eight years as the top assistant at Whitworth, including six seasons with the title of Associate Head Coach. Over the course of his tenure as an assistant, the Bucs won 215 games, seven Northwest Conference titles and seven NWC tournament crowns. As the head recruiting coordinator, Jablonski was instrumental in continuing the Bucs' tradition of success by helping to recruit high quality student-athletes to Whitworth. His efforts over the past several years have included the addition of First Team All-American Kyle Roach, third team All-American and NWC Player of the Year Kenny Love and First Team All Northwest Conference selection Christian Jurlina.
Coming Up Next: Whitworth will open the second round of its NWC schedule at Pacific (Ore.) and Willamette on Jan. 26-27.
