WALLA WALLA, Wash.  What happened in Spokane, stayed in Spokane.

What's happening at Whitman remains the gold standard in the Northwest Conference and beyond.

The undefeated, second-ranked Blues played one of their most complete games of the season against Pacific on Saturday at the Sherwood Center, an asphyxiating defensive performance against a squad fresh off its signature conference win of the decade. Whitman scored 18 unanswered points after surrendering the game's first bucket and was in total command throughout a 99-69 victory.

It was the largest victory margin for Whitman (13-0, 4-0 in NWC) since a 105-57 win over Crown College on Dec. 30.

"It was time to have a half like that, a game like that," Blues head coach Eric Bridgeland said. "Our guys brought it tonight."

"We talked about these second-night (league games), basically about just having it," added sophomore forward Cedric Jacobs-Jones. "We talked about imposing our will."

Whitman talked it, then walked it. The Boxers (8-4, 2-2) swaggered into Sherwood on the high of a two-point win over fifth-ranked Whitworth on Friday – their first win against the Pirates in Spokane since 2004. Pacific's three losses prior to Saturday were by 1, 1 and 3 points, respectively, but the Boxers were never closer than 11 points after the Blues' opening salvo.

"Pacific is one of the best teams in our conference," said Bridgeland. "We have a ton of respect for that program. They're athletic, they board, they're well-coached. I am very, very happy for our guys. They were ready."

Whitman had 17 steals and forced 28 turnovers while allowing just 22 field goals. It policed the glass against an excellent rebounding team, winning that battle 37-29. It made life with the ball generally miserable for Pacific.

"We made sure we stayed tight together as a shell," said first-year guard Jaron Kirkley. "We made sure they couldn't run their offense. We made them uncomfortable."

"We came out kind of slow last night," added junior Jase Harrison, who led all scorers with 19 points. "We focused on our energy tonight, hands up, in their face, forcing turnovers, flying around.

"It was nice to see everyone play well, especially after our last two games, where our sense of urgency seemed low. Everyone was flowing, sharing the ball. It was a great win."

Harrison was 7 for 9 from the floor and 4 of 5 from outside the 3-point arc. He and Jojo Wiggins (eight points, six rebounds) shared team-high honors with three steals apiece. Tim Howell added 13 points and dished seven of the Blues' 17 assists. Jack Stewart added 11 points and two steals, Robert Colton scored nine points, Austin Butler chipped in eight and Kirkley seven. Whitman shot 66.6 percent (30-for-45) from 2-point range and had 12 different players make at least one basket.

The intensity and productivity never wavered, regardless of the lineup.

"Everyone that came in made such positive contributions on the defensive end," said Bridgeland, whose squad hosts Pacific Lutheran University next Friday. "We try to get better each game, each half, each timeout. That was a pretty complete performance."

Pretty and complete.