New-look Pirates ready to start season on the road
Not every coach possesses Jim Hayford’s intrepid spirit.
The Whitworth men’s basketball coach toted his Pirates north to Canada two weeks ago for seven exhibition contests, and the defending Northwest Conference co-champions will begin their season with 10 consecutive road games. Rest assured that’s not what Hayford would have preferred.
“Because we had some success, we’ve tried everyone and can’t get any D-III teams to come to Spokane and enjoy November and December in the Inland Empire,” Hayford said, recalling the Pirates’ run to the second round of last year’s NCAA Division III tournament.
After laughing, Hayford added, “That’s the hand we’re dealt, and we’re going to play it.”
Whitworth will look little like the team that finished 24-4 overall and 13-3 in the NWC last season. The Pirates graduated four starters who combined for 49.8 points and 18.1 rebounds a game, most notably Bryan Williams, the NWC player of the year, and James Jones, the team’s leading scorer. Whitworth was voted third in the conference preseason poll behind Lewis & Clark and Puget Sound.
Several new players must contribute alongside returning starter Ryan Symes and veterans Colin Willemsen and Calvin Jurich. A senior entering his second year, Symes thrived on hustle plays last season but now must adjust to being the focal point of Hayford’s offense.
“Ryan Symes hopefully will be as good a forward or player in the conference,” Hayford said. “I think we’ll see him improve his scoring and score around 20 points a game. Whereas we had balanced scoring the last two years, he’ll probably score more points than our leading scorers in previous years. … No one’s worked harder on the team on his outside jump shot than Ryan has. The proof will be in the pudding if he’s getting those results when the lights are on.”
A senior and junior, respectively, Willemsen and Jurich are assuming starting positions after playing important roles off the bench last year. Willemsen will start on the wing, and Jurich will anchor the team in the post.
The Pirates, who open the season against Chapman University in Pasadena, Calif., on Nov. 23, will start a young backcourt still unfamiliar with the rigors of NWC basketball. Ross Nakamura transferred from Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, Calif., and immediately will take over at point guard. He doesn’t play with the same flair that Williams did for the last four years, Hayford said. However, the coach added, the newcomer’s steady play is an ideal match for a squad that must embrace a team concept.
“We recruited as good a point guard as you can in Division III with Ross Nakamura,” Hayford said. “Ross led his team to great success in high school, and he was the point guard for the No. 1 junior college team in the state of California last year. Fortunately for us, we had a great relationship with Diablo Valley, and the pipeline was there. That allowed us to get a player being recruited at a much higher level than Division III.”
David Riley, a 6-foot-5 freshman, will start at shooting guard, Hayford said. Another freshman, Drew Bruns, will push Riley for minutes.
•Schedule, roster/C4