WALLA WALLA, Wash. – Led by Jackson Clough's game-high 25 points and four others also reaching double-figures the Whitman College men's basketball team exploded out of the gate in the season opener with a 129-88 thumping of visiting D'Youville (N.Y.) College Sunday afternoon in a non-conference match-up on George Ball Court at the Sherwood Athletic Center.

The Missionaries (1-0) used an 8-0 run early in the first half to pull ahead for good over the Spartans (0-2) who had traded the lead with Whitman four times over the opening two minutes.

Defensive pressure factored into the entirety of Sunday's contest, and the eight-point stretch was a perfect example. Trailing 6-5 the Missionaries grabbed the lead for good on a three-pointer from Tochi Oti following a steal by Evan Martin. Oti came right back with a steal of his own on D'Youville's next possession and Matt Mounier made the most of the turnaround by dropping in a layup then adding the and-1 from the free throw line after being fouled by the Spartans' Reed. The third time was not the charm for D'Youville as they again relented to the Whitman pressure on the next possession with Ege Mala's steal and layup finishing off the string before Reed would finally get the Spartans back onto the scoreboard with a layup of his own.

The Missionaries' advantage dwindled to just one point on two occasions nearing the midway point in the half, but a 13-0 run to push the advantage from 20-19 to 33-19 ended the threat and led to an ever-expanding lead over the remaining 30 minutes of action.

Whitman's defense racked up 25 steals and forced 30 turnovers from D'Youville, transitioning those mistakes into 51 points off turnovers. In all, 13 of the 14 Missionaries that saw action Sunday contributed at least one steal.

The other end of the court for Whitman wasn't absent of action either.

Twenty offensive rebounds -- more than 40 percent of the Missionaries' final rebounding advantage of 48-35 -- turned into 28 second-chance points. Whitman finished the game hitting 46 percent (39-of-84) from the floor and 45 percent (18-of-40) from behind the arc. Rolaun Dunham, in his first collegiate game, joined Clough as the main marksmen from the three-point line. Clough drained 7-of-9 and Dunham was 4-of-7 outside the arc. The pair finished as the team's leading scorers with Dunham adding 20 points to Clough's game-high figure.

Mounier, with 17 points, Oti (15) and Martin (11) were the the other players reaching double-digits in scoring during the win.

The offensive explosion -- the most points a Whitman team has scored since posting 121 in wins during the 2010-11 (121-68 vs. Multnomah) and 2011-12 seasons (121-85 vs. Pacific) -- helped allow head coach Eric Bridgeland to gain valuable court time for a squad mixed with veterans and newcomers. Eleven players accumulated at least 10 minutes of playing time.

"We've got four new guys who we think are going to play big parts in our rotation," said Bridgeland. "We've got to get them used to what we're doing, used to changing defenses, and generally getting used to the style of play to which my returners are already accustomed."

Sunday's opener wasn't without some areas that will need addressing. "We came out a little too amped up in the opening minutes, a bit dribble happy," Bridgeland noted. "But that's also a good thing. They were really excited to play, but settled down and were much calmer in the second half. Not a bad problem to have, so I'm looking at a ton of positives out of the opening game of a long schedule."

The season continues at home Thursday with another non-conference outing. The University of St. Thomas (Minn.), a perennial NCAA tournament contender, travels West to take on the Missionaries at Sherwood with a 7 p.m. tip-off.