SPOKANE, Wash. – The Whitworth University men's basketball team will get its first Northwest Conference road tests of the season this week. The Pirates will play at Whitman on Tuesday night (7:30 pm) in the season's first Battle of Whits. On Saturday the Bucs will see a familiar face on the opposing bench at Linfield (5:00 pm). Both games will video stream through FloSports and live radio will be available through WhitworthPirates.com.
The Pirates: Whitworth won both games last weekend to begin defense of its Northwest Conference title with a 2-0 start.
The Pirates bounced back from a slow start to defeat Willamette 80-67 on Friday night. The Bearcats jumped ahead 27-18 eight minutes into the game before Whitworth went on a 21-2 run to take control. The Bucs led by as many as 18 points in the second half. Whitworth made 51% of its field goals and outrebounded Willamette 46-32. Caden Bateman posted a double-double with career-highs of 17 points and 14 rebounds, while Stephen Behil added 16 points. Ty Edwards and Colton Looney both scored 11, giving the Pirates four in double figures.
Stephen Behil's 16-foot jumper at the buzzer lifted Whitworth to an 81-79 win over Pacific (Ore.) on Saturday night. The Pirates built 14-point leads in each half before the Boxers began to chip away, eventually tying the game 79-79 with seven seconds to play before Behil's big shot. The Bucs made 55% of their shots, including 64% (16-25) in the second half. That shooting allowed them to overcome 20 turnovers. Behil finished with 21 points, five rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots. Ben Nyquist posted 16 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Bateman nearly had another double-double with 10 points and nine boards.
Statistically speaking: Through nine games Whitworth is averaging 81.9 points per game (third in the NWC) and allowing 71.5 points per contest (tied for second). The Pirates lead the league in scoring margin (+10.4).
Whitworth has been strong on the defensive side of the ball. The Pirates lead the conference in field goal percentage defense (38.0%), which ranks 11th in Division III. They also lead in three-point field goal percentage defense (26.5%), 16th in DIII. Whitworth also leads the conference in rebounds per game (44.01), in defensive rebounds per game (31.36) and ranks second in rebound margin (+6.6).
Iron Man: Whitworth senior post Ty Edwards has started 86 consecutive games for the Pirates. It is the longest active starting streak since Whitworth Heritage Gallery Hall of Fame member George Valle started all 116 games of his career from 2013 through 2016.
Be(hil) the Ball: Stephen Behil is having a breakout senior season. The 6-6 wing from Camas leads the team in scoring average at 17.8 ppg, which ranks fourth in the NWC. He is also sixth in the conference in rebounds per game (6.3). Behil is second in the NWC in three-pointers made per game (2.6) and, after a slow start to the season, is ninth in three-point percentage (36.4).
Watch on FloCollege: Like the rest of the Northwest Conference, Whitworth's home athletic events will be steamed through FloCollege in 2025-26. Fans can sign up to watch Pirate sports on the FloCollege portal. Registration is $116 for an annual subscription or $20 per month. Those who register with a .edu email address get a significant discount.
Inland Northwest Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Bud Nameck, familiar in Spokane as the KXLY channel 4 sports director for over 20 years and the longtime host of the KXLY 920am Morning News, is in his 11th season as the voice of the Pirates in 2025. He was the voice of Washington State University men's basketball for 22 years and spent that same amount of time on the Cougar football broadcasts – the final three on play by play. He is a longtime resident of the Inland Northwest who began his career as the Sports Information Director and radio voice of Gonzaga University basketball and baseball in the 1980s.
Listen to Road Games: Fans can tune in online to listen to Pirate ROAD games for free at WhitworthPirates.com. Bud Nameck will provide play by play when Whitworth is away from the Fieldhouse.
The Opponents: Whitman is 6-5 overall and 1-1 in the NWC heading into Tuesday night's game. The Blues defeated Pacific 92-88 on Friday night after overcoming an 11-point second half deficit. They lost to Willamette 58-55 on Saturday. John Lamanna is in his sixth season as Whitman's head coach and is a two-time NWC Coach of the Year. The Blues average 78.0 points per game and allow 74.1. Sophomore guard Milos Sarenac leads the team in scoring average (14.0 ppg) and leads the NWC in rebounding average (10.6 rpg). Sophomore forward Jacob Fotu adds 12.8 ppg and makes 56% of his shots. Whitworth and Whitman split the series in 2024-25. The Pirates won 69-64 in Spokane while the Blues won 79-63 in Walla Walla.
Linfield is 2-7 overall and 0-1 in the NWC heading into their home game against Whitman on Friday night. At that point the Wildcats will have gone nearly four weeks since their last game, a 57-55 loss at NCAA Division II Western Oregon on December 13th. Linfield is led by first-year head coach Elijah Gurash, who spent six seasons as an assistant coach at Whitworth from 2018-19 through 2023-24. The Wildcats are averaging 65.3 points per game while giving up 72.7. Senior guard Mayton Magaña averages 13.2 points per game but is the only Linfield player in double figures. The Wildcats have three players who average between 9.0 and 9.9 points per game. Senior point guard Chase Bennett averages 9.0 points and is fourth in the NWC in assists per game (4.3). Whitworth swept Linfield last winter, winning 77-62 at home before pulling out a dramatic 72-71 win in Oregon on Garrett Long's basket just before the buzzer.
Pirates picked to win: Whitworth is listed at the top of the 2025-26 Northwest Conference coaches poll with eight first place votes and 64 points. The Pirates are coming off a 22-4 record in 2024-25 and a Northwest Conference title with a 13-3 mark. Whitman got one first place vote and has 53 points for second in the poll. PLU and Puget Sound (44 points apiece) tied for third.
Two Decades of Dominance: Since the beginning of the 2005-06 season (over 19 seasons) the Pirates are 456-106 (.810), an amazing run of success matched by few other college teams at any level. Within the Northwest Conference, Whitworth has won 235 of its last 267 (.880).
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 231-30 (.885) 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 14 seasons. Since the start of the 11-12 season, Whitworth is 134-44 (.751) away from home, 105-30 (.776) in true road games.
Coming Up Next: Whitworth will head back to Oregon for games at George Fox and Lewis & Clark on January 16th and 17th.
