Bucs’ Bench Sparks Win Over Cats

Coming off the bench and jumping into the heat of a big game is a lot like jumping out of bed and heading straight to a staff meeting at work in your pajamas without the luxury of a shower and a morning cup of coffee.

But the Whitworth Pirates’ bench was ready for action, and it proceeded to spark the Pirates to a 60-47 win over the eighth-ranked Willamette Bearcats Friday night at the Whitworth Fieldhouse.

Five-foot-8 reserve point guard Sean Weston, the smallest of the Pirates, may have provided the biggest lift in the second half when Whitworth’s offense was sputtering.

A driving layup followed by a 3-pointer gave the Pirates a 47-36 lead that they never gave up. After Weston’s heroics, forward Jeff Mix made two baskets and two free throws to help seal the win.

“Those first couple of minutes are tough when you come into a game cold,” Mix said. “Everybody’s flying around and you’re still trying to loosen up in order to keep up.”

Also keying a strong bench performance for Whitworth was John Beckman who finished the game with nine points and eight rebounds. Weston ended up with five points and Mix had eight points and seven rebounds.

“I don’t know, I’m just usually pumped up by nature,” said Weston. “I was ready to go in there. The adrenaline just builds up and you want to go out there and make a difference.”

The No. 12-ranked Pirates (1-0 Northwest Conference, 9-2 overall) played a swarming defense from start to finish and held an explosive Willamette team to 33 percent shooting for the night. Defense was a must because the Pirates shot just 35 percent themselves.

“When the shots don’t fall, you’ve got to be able to stop your opponent,” Pirates coach Warren Friedrichs said.

Willamette’s loss drops its record to 0-1, 5-5.

The Bearcats were led by Julius Lowe’s 25 points. He had 15 points in the first half on 6 of 14 shooting from the floor. But between Beckman, Mix and Nate Dunham banging on him in the second half, Lowe shot just 3 for 11.

“That guy is incredible,” Mix said. “He’s strong, he jumps high and he’s a good shooter.”

Willamette, which has played just two of its 10 games at home this season took a 36-35 lead in the second half but it didn’t even last a full minute.

Whitworth’s leading scorer was Dunham with 13 points. He struggled all night from the floor and hit just 5 of 14 shots. Teammates Nate William (1 for 7, 12 points) and Roman Wickers (3 for 7, 8 points) also struggled from the field.

“There was a lot of action for such a low-scoring game,” Friedrichs said. “I think both teams got good looks at the basket and got good shots off, but sometimes it just seemed like there was a lid on the rims.”

Whitworth returns to action tonight at 8 p.m. at the Fieldhouse to take on Linfield.

Whitworth 60, Willamette 47

Willamette - Hayter 0-1 1-3 1, Smith 0-4 0-0 0, VandenBrink 2-5 0-0 4, Sweet 0-1 0-0 0, Hakala 1-4 0-1 2, Anderson 0-1 0-0 0, Moore 3-9 0-0 6, Scanlan 3-9 1-2 7, Lowe 9-23 7-9 25, Schalk 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 19-58 9-15 47.

Whitworth - Weston 2-3 0-0 5, Mix 3-4 2-2 8, Williams 1-7 9-13 12, Wickers 3-7 2-4 8, Jones 1-6 0-0 2, Dunham 5-14 3-7 13, Arkills 1-3 1-2 3, Beckman 1-2 6-8 9, Schulz 0-0 0-0 0, Jordan 0-2 0-0 0, Jones 0-0 0-0 0. Totals - 17-48 23-36 60.

3-point goals - Willamette 0-8, Whitworth 3-13. Fouled Out - Hayter, Smith (Willmatte). Rebounds - Willamette 39, Whitworth 38. Assists - Willamette 6, Whitworth 12. Total Fouls-Willamette 23, Whitworth 18. Halftime Score-Whitworth 27, Willamette 24. Technicals-None.

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