McMINNVILLE, Ore. - Bench play was huge for No. 24 Whitman College Saturday night against Linfield College at Ted Wilson Gymnasium. Whitman played to an 82-55 drubbing of Linfield in Northwest Conference play, completing the weekend road sweep for the Missionaries. The 82 Whitman points were the most the Wildcats have surrendered since their December 4th visit to Sherwood Center.

Whitman's (16-3, 8-2 NWC) defense staggered Linfield (9-10, 3-7 NWC) for a good portion of the night, while the bench provided a massive boost for the team, collecting 51 points from start to finish. Guards, Jack Stewart and Joey Hewitt combined for 30 of those points and shot 10-of-14 from the field. The 24th-ranked Missionaries allowed just 24 second half points and forced 20 Linfield turnovers which helped Whitman to its 16th win of the season.

Stewart led all scorers with 18 points and Hewitt added 12. Tim Howell, who contributed 12 points and three rebounds, was the only other Whit in double-figures. Montez White was a dual threat all night, accumulating seven points and a game-best six assists. As a team, the Missionaries accrued 17 assists and 11 steals, while turning the ball over a measly five times.

"Jack has been a solid contributor at both ends of the floor for a while now." Head coach Eric Bridgeland said. "Joey is coming on like a house on fire. He's been having great practices and it has showed and carried over to the games this weekend."

Whitman jumped out to a 10 point lead midway through the first half, but the Cats clawed their way back into the game. The Missionary lead was cut to three with four minutes to play and Linfield was clicking offensively. When the team needed a hot hand, Stewart answered the call converting three straight triples, pushing the Whit lead back out to 10 where it would hold heading into the break.

Whitman's 41-31 halftime lead was in large part due to bench play as the Missionary reserves contributed 27 points in the game's first 20 minutes. Stewart's 15 points, on 5-for-6 shooting from three-point range was critical to the Whit lead. The Missionaries shot a phenomenal 50-percent from beyond the arch and moved the ball extremely well accruing nine assists on 16 field goals made in the first half.

"Linfield plays a pretty good zone," continued Bridgeland when asked about the team's ball movement. "We're a penetration-based offense, so we don't have a lot of assists generally. I was happy with the passing and the good looks at the basket."

Howell started the second half the right way for the Missionaries, who quickly stretched their lead from 10 to 21. Howell's early three started a 15-4 run by Whitman, which sucked the life out of the Wildcats. With 10 minutes to play in the game Linfield saw their deficit below 20 for the final time of the night. Howell converted an and-one shot that put Whitman up by 22 and the team never looked back.

Whitman will play host to Whitworth University, the nation's number one team, Tuesday night at Sherwood Center. The Missionaries will attempt to knock the Pirates from the unbeaten ranks in a game that is set to tip at 8 p.m.