PORTLAND, Ore. - Everything was in sync for Whitman College in the team's blowout win against Lewis and Clark College Friday night at the Pamplin Sports Center. Whitman used a strong second half performance to pull away from the Pioneers in the, 100-71 victory. The Northwest Conference matchup played out much differently than it did in early-December when the Whits won by just seven points.

Although, Whitman (15-3, 7-2 NWC) led wire-to-wire the game was much closer in the first half then the score indicates. Sophomore guard, Tim Howell kept the Missionaries in front during the opening minutes of the game scoring 13 of the team's initial 21 points. Howell's layup at the 11:24 mark pushed Whitman to a double-digit lead and Lewis and Clark (7-10, 3-6 NWC) would not see a single-digit deficit the rest of the way.

"We learned a lot the first time we played them." Head coach Eric Bridgeland said of his team's first contest against the Pios and it was obvious. Whitman finished plus-10 in turnover margin and shot 55.7 percent from the field throughout the night.

Howell led all scorers in the game with 24 points, while Christian McDonald added 21 of his own. Austin Butler and Cedric Jacobs-Jones combined for 14 points and 12 rebounds, while Joey Hewitt, Montez White and Jack Stewart each contributed nine points.

When asked about Howell's performance, Bridgeland pointed to his star, guard's willingness to adapt to what the team needs on any given night. "Tim [Howell] was phenomenal tonight. He has been that way all year, but the great thing about him is that he'd be just as happy with 10 assists."

The first half opened the way several games have this season, with Whitman and the Pios battling in a close contest. Lewis and Clark stayed within a single possession of the Whits in the first six minutes, but the Missionaries found their rhythm minutes later. Hewitt converted an and-one bucket to push Whitman's lead to 13 with 11:01 showing on the clock.

Nine minutes later, after back-to-back jumpers by McDonald, a layup from Butler gave the Whits their largest lead of the contest at 19. Lewis and Clark tried to narrow the gap, but was unable to stop the Whitman offense. The Missionaries entered halftime with a 50-34 lead and was in complete control of the game at that point.

Like any game, winning starts with the preparation. Bridgeland praised his guys' training throughout the week saying, "We had a great week of practice and the guys carried it over to the game." The energy and efficiency that Whitman played with in the first half, was replicated in the second. After the Pioneers closed the Whit lead to just 10, the Missionaries responded with a 22-10 run that put the game out of reach for L&C.

With four minutes to play in the contest, Whitman's lead reached 31, the largest of the night. The Whits coasted in the closing minutes of the game and collected their eighth road win of the season. Whitman plays again tomorrow night at Linfield College in a game that is set to tip at 6:00 p.m. PST.