Kyle Roach leads second-half onslaught as Whitworth dumps Calvin 88-58

Whitworth put together its best 20 minutes of the season in an 88-58 win over visiting Calvin College in the finale of the Whitworth Men’s Classic sponsored by Quality Inn Oakwood on Saturday night.

The Division III 7th-ranked Pirates (10-1) outscored the Knights 57-26 in the second half. They shot 68 percent (21-31) from the floor and 64 percent (9-14) from 3-point range in the final 20 minutes of the runaway win. Kyle Roach scored 21 of his game-high 25 points after halftime.

“That was the most explosive 20 minutes we’ve had as a team and it really showed what this team’s ceiling can be,” said Whitworth head coach Matt Logie. “But our defense started everything. Our defensive focus and intensity carried over to the offense. And obviously Kyle played a special game today.”

Calvin (4-7) led for most of the first half. The Knights jumped out to a 19-11 lead behind eight points by Derrick DeVries. Whitworth rallied to take a 22-21 lead on a 3-pointer by Sam Lees, but Calvin responded with a 5-0 spurt, capped by Austin Bykerk’s put-back dunk. The Knights eventually went into halftime ahead 32-31.

Whitworth’s onslaught began early in the second half. Leading 39-38, the Pirates went on a 20-2 run to open a 59-40 advantage. Roach and Lees combined for 18 of the 20 points during that run. Whitworth continued to hit three-pointers, opening an 80-51 lead after back-to-back treys from Ben College and Lees with just under four minutes to play. The Bucs eventually led by as many as 32 points.

Whitworth hosts Lewis & Clark on Friday night and Pacific (Ore.) on Saturday.