SPOKANE, Wash. – The Whitworth men's basketball team hosts the 2026 Northwest Conference tournament this weekend at the Whitworth Fieldhouse looking for redemption and the chance to claim the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament. All three games will stream live on FloCollege and fans can check out the Whitworth men's basketball schedule for other live links.
On Friday, February 27th, top-seeded Whitworth will battle #4 Lewis & Clark at 7:30 pm, following the first semifinal matchup of second-seeded Puget Sound and #3 Willamette at 5:30 pm.
NWC Tournament Info: The 2026 Northwest Conference playoffs consist of a four-team tournament hosted by regular season champion Whitworth. The semifinals are on Friday, February 27th, and the championship game is on Saturday, February 28th at 5:00 pm. The 2026 NWC Tournament will determine the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III tournament.
Ticket Information: Prices for each night of the tournament are as follows: Adults ($15), senior adults, military (with ID) and children up to 17 ($10). Students from each participating school receive free admission with valid student ID. Game tickets may be purchased online through Whitworth's Hometown Tickets portal. Doors to the Fieldhouse will open at 4:00 p.m. each night.
The Pirates: Whitworth (20-5) closed the 2025-26 regular season with a split of games in Tacoma last weekend, winning at Pacific Lutheran and falling in the regular season finale at Puget Sound. The Pirates clinched their 20th 20-win season in the last 21 full schedules.
Whitworth never trailed and built a 28-point lead with under five minutes to play before finishing out a 76-63 win at Pacific Lutheran on Friday night. The Pirates made 51% of their shots from the field (30-59) and held a 43-27 advantage on the glass against the smaller Lutes. Stephen Behil finished with 15 points and Colton Looney added 13 to lead Whitworth in scoring. Ben Nyquist only scored four, but he had five rebounds, five steals and three assists to help the Bucs sweep the season series against PLU.
Puget Sound held off Whitworth 69-67 on the Loggers' Senior Night in the regular season finale for both schools on Saturday. In what may have been a preview of this weekend's NWC tournament championship, the Pirates trailed by six points at halftime and by seven (60-53) with under six minutes to play. Whitworth rallied and had a chance to tie the game with a last-second shot. Caden Bateman and Stephen Behil both posted double-doubles for the Pirates. Behil scored 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Bateman grabbed 21 rebounds, the most of any Whitworth player in at least 30 years, and added 15 points and four blocked shots.
NWC Tournament History: The 2026 NWC tournament is the 29th conference tournament since the NWC (then the NCIC) first began a league playoff in 1994. This will be Whitworth's 28th appearance, the most of any conference school. Heading into this weekend, the Pirates are 34-11 all-time in the league playoffs. The Bucs have appeared in the championship game 21 times and have won 16 times. The league did not hold a tournament in 1999, 2004, 2005 and 2021 (due to COVID-19). The only season the Bucs did not qualify is 2000.
Fourth-seeded Lewis & Clark joins the tournament field for the 19th time and is defending champions. The River Otters upset Whitworth in the 2025 semifinals, then knocked off Whitman in the championship to claim their first tournament victory since 2002. They have a 14-13 all-time tournament record. Second-seeded Puget Sound is back in the NWC tournament after missing last year. The Loggers have a 5-10 all-time tournament record in 11 appearances and won their only championship in 2006. Third-seeded Willamette is making its first conference tournament appearance since 2015, and ninth overall. The Bearcats are 6-6 all time in the NWC tournament, have won two titles, their last coming in 2000.
Conference Championship Pedigree: Whitworth clinched its third straight NWC title and 22nd overall, with one week to play in the 2025-26 regular season. The Pirates, who won seven in a row from 2010 through 2016, won their first-ever NWC crown in 1982. Whitworth also won four Evergreen Conference championships in the 50's and 60's, for a total of 26 league basketball titles in school history.
Statistically speaking: Through 25 games Whitworth is averaging 82.0 points per game (second in the NWC) and allowing 69.8 points per contest (second in the NWC). The Pirates lead the league in scoring margin (+12.2 – 26th in NCAA Div. III).
Whitworth has been strong on the defensive side of the ball. The Pirates lead the conference in field goal percentage defense (38.4%), which ranks 8th in Division III, and they lead in three-point field goal percentage defense (29.9%). Whitworth also leads the conference in rebounds per game (43.5 – 12th in Div. III), in defensive rebounds per game (30.6 – 2nd in Div. III) and in rebound margin (+8.2 – 18th in Div. III).
The Pirates have also been excellent at sharing the basketball. They rank second in the NWC in assists per game (17.4 – 24th in Div. III).
Iron Man: Whitworth senior post Ty Edwards (Sumner, Wash.) has started 100 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 16.6 ppg, which ranks seventh in the NWC. He is also fourth in the conference in rebounds per game (7.3). Behil is seventh in the NWC in three-pointers made per game (2.3) and is ninth in three-point percentage (345.8).
Energizer: Ben Nyquist has made a successful transition from sixth man to key starter in 2025-26. The senior guard from Kirkland, Washington leads the Northwest Conference in steals with 84 (3.36 spg – 4th in NCAA DIII). He has passed Heritage Gallery Hall of Famer Steve Mihas for the school record for steals in one season. He also leads the team in assists with 88 (3.5 apg – sixth in the NWC) and ranks third in the NWC in assist-to-turnover ratio (+2.4). He averages 11.3 points per game, fourth on the team, while making 51.0% of his field goals.
Microwave: Senior forward Colton Looney (Vancouver, Wash.) can heat up faster than any other Pirate from three-point range. Looney, second on the team in scoring average (12.2 ppg), ranks fourth in the NWC in three-point percentage (40.4) and is eighth in the NWC in three-pointers made per game (2.3).
Bateman Plays Big: Caden Bateman is playing like the NWC's top big man down the stretch of the 2025-26 season. He leads the team with seven double-doubles, four of which have come in the last eight games. He averages 12.1 points per game and ranks second in the NWC in field goal percentage (54.1%). He also leads the team and ranks second in the NWC in rebounding (7.9 rpg), including a 21-board effort at Puget Sound on Feb. 21 – five more than any other NWC player this season.
Listen to Road Games: Fans can tune in online to listen to Pirate ROAD games for free at WhitworthPirates.com. 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.
The Opponent: Lewis & Clark comes into the NWC tournament in exactly the same situation the River Otters arrived in 2025 – as the #4 seed with a 13-12 overall record and a 9-7 conference mark. Last year L&C upset Whitworth 70-57 in the semifinals on the way to winning the tournament. This year they are playing under interim head coach Shawn Carson, who is 11-10 since taking over in November. The River Otters average 77.6 points per game and give up 76.2 per contest. They lead the NWC in team field goal percentage (47.4) and team three-point percentage (36.9%). Senior guard Andre Treadwell averages 18.8 points per game (4th in the NWC) while making 43% of his three-pointers. He adds 6.5 rebounds per game. Justin White, a 6-5 senior forward, adds 13.2 points per game and leads the team in rebounding (7.3 rpg) and steals (36). Whitworth defeated L&C twice this season, 82-62 in Portland on Jan. 17 and 72-69 on Feb. 13 in Spokane when Caden Bateman blocked a potential game-tying three-pointer just before the buzzer.
The Other Half: Friday's first NWC semifinal features second-seeded Puget Sound and third-seeded Willamette.
Puget Sound finished 17-9 overall and 12-4 in the NWC. The Loggers have won four straight games heading into the tournament, their fourth appearance under 8th-year head coach Aubrey Shelton, a Puget Sound alum. Puget Sound average 74.1 points per game and gives up 70.3. They have the NWC's second-best defensive field goal percentage (41.3%), thanks in part to leading the league in blocked shots (3.84 bpg). Junior Zane Miller is a 6-3 guard who averages 13.2 points and 3.2 assists per game. Junior center Hugo Rutherfurd adds 12.9 ppg and leads the NWC in blocked shots per game (2.1). Whitworth defeated Puget Sound 88-61 in Spokane on Jan. 24 but lost 69-67 in Tacoma last Saturday in the regular season finale for both teams. The Loggers ended an eight-game losing streak to the Pirates.
Willamette comes into its first NWC tournament since 2015 with a 15-10 record and a 10-6 mark in the NWC. The Bearcats are in their third season under head coach Michael Lenahan. Willamette leads the NWC in scoring average at 82.6 points per game and they give up 79.0 points. The Bearcats play defense as well, leading the NWC in steals per game (12.16) and tying for the lead in blocks per game (3.84). Tanner Overby, a sophomore guard, leads the NWC in scoring average by a wide margin (24.8 ppg). He also leads in free throw percentage (86%) and has made more free throws (129) than any other conference player has attempted. Anujan Tennathur, a junior, adds 10.9 points per game and leads the team in rebounding (5.8). Whitworth defeated Willamette 80-67 in Spokane on January 2nd and 93-85 in Salem, Oregon on January 31st.
Two Decades of Dominance: Since the beginning of the 2005-06 season (20 seasons) the Pirates are 468-108 (.812), an amazing run of success matched by few other college teams at any level. Within the Northwest Conference, Whitworth has won 247 of its last 281 (.879).
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 237-30 (.888) 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 140-46 (.753) away from home, 111-33 (.770) in true road games.
Coming Up Next: The winner of the 2026 NWC tournament receives the league's automatic bid to the NCAA DIII tournament. That field will be announced on Monday morning.
