ORANGE, Calif. – Whitworth University closed out a three-game trip to Southern California with an 86-68 win over Chapman University on Thursday night at the Hutton Sports Center.
The third time was the charm for the Pirates (6-3), who got off to their third straight hot start on the road in California but finished with a win for the first time on this trip. Whitworth never trailed after jumping ahead 13-2 and 26-9. The Panthers (5-3) did not reach double digits in points until 7:44 to play in the opening period. A big reason for that was rebounding. Whitworth grabbed the first nine rebounds of the game and 20 of the first 26 boards. The Bucs led 35-22 at halftime after holding Chapman to only 30% (9-30) from the field and 17% (2-12) from three-point range.
After the Panthers scored the first basket of the second half, Whitworth used a 13-2 run to extend its lead to 48-27 on a steal and breakaway layup from Ben Fried. Chapman never got closer than within 15 points the rest of the way. Every time the Panthers made a brief run, the Pirates responded and stretched the lead back to 20 or more points. Whitworth led by as many as 22 points on several occasions.
The Bucs were much stronger in the second half than in Monday's loss at Pomona-Pitzer when Whitworth gave away a 17-point second half lead before falling in overtime.
Stephen Behil and Ben Nyquist scored 19 points apiece for the Pirates. Behil posted a double-double with a career-high 12 rebounds. Nyquist added four steals and scored 17 of his points after halftime. Ty Edwards scored a season-high 14 points.
Whitworth finished the game 35-70 (50%) from the floor. The Bucs ended with a 47-26 advantage in rebounds and outscored the Panthers 54-28 in the paint, including a 20-4 advantage in second chance points.
Jake Heberle scored all 15 of his points in the second half to lead Chapman in scoring. Cruz Billings addedd 13 and had four assists. The Panthers made 42% of their shots (25-59).
Whitworth will take a break for the Christmas holiday before returning home to open Northwest Conference play against Willamette and Pacific (Ore.) on January 2nd and 3rd.
