Whitworth wins NCAA tournament opener
ATLANTA – As a result of the pairings, Whitworth University had to travel cross country to the Deep South to begin its 2015 tournament run. However, it was the visitors from the Pacific Northwest who displayed true Southern charm.
The 13th-ranked Pirates entertained their faithful in attendance at the Woodruff PE Center on the campus of Emory University by blowing out LaGrange 88-60 in the first round of the NCAA Division III tournament. It was the largest margin of victory for the Pirates in an NCAA tournament game.
Whitworth turned what was a 43-43 game at halftime into a lopsided contest in the second half.
“This was a tremendous battle,” said Whitworth head coach Matt Logie. “In the first half, I thought both teams came out with a lot of energy. There’s always a feeling-out portion of a game. Our guys did a nice job of staying poised and adjusting to what it’s like to play on the road in the NCAA tournament. We settled down at halftime and played our game in the second half.”
Pirates junior George Valle was unstoppable on the floor, scoring 24 points on 11-of-15 shooting. He also grabbed eight rebounds and collected four steals to help get Whitworth to the second round.
“I’m happy to get the win. I thought in the first half we had some nerves coming out because this is the NCAA tournament and your life is at stake,” said Valle. “After going to the locker room at halftime, we calmed down, realized how they were hurting us, and made some adjustments.”
The Pirates went back-and-forth with LaGrange in the first half while trying to find weaknesses in the Panthers’ game. While feeling their way through LaGrange’s tendencies and shortcomings, Whitworth learned it had an advantage in the frontcourt. Valle netted 18 points in the first half while fellow forward Christian Jurlina recorded 12 prior to intermission. Jurlina finished with 17 points.
This trend of dominance in the paint continued in the second half. Whitworth’s dominance in the low blocks opened the floor for others to fire away from all angles in and outside the perimeter.
Whitworth took complete control of the game midway through the second half. With 11:33 left on the clock, the Pirates led 60-52. This would be the last time the scoreboard would reflect a single-digit deficit.
The Pirates stormed out of the timeout and went on a 13-5 run over a four-minute span to go up 73-57 and put the game out of reach for LaGrange.
“It came down to making some shots. LaGrange puts pressure on you and allows you to play in some space,” said Logie. “You have to move the basketball and find shots. When they go down, you can make quick runs.”
Whitworth will play the tournament host, 11th-ranked Emory, today at 4 p.m. (Pacific). The Eagles crushed Spalding 88-59 in Friday’s second game.
With Friday’s win, Logie became first men’s basketball coach in Division III history to clinch his 100th victory in only his fourth season.