WALLA WALLA, Wash. Whitman seized sole possession of first place in the Northwest Conference with its most prolific scoring performance of the season in a 101-68 victory over rival Whitworth on Tuesday at Sherwood Athletic Center.

The nation's leaders in assists had 23 -- the 11th time this season Whitman has dished at least 20 dimes -- and made 12 of 20 3-pointers in an impressive tune-up for the season's most important game, to-date: a home showdown with 27th-ranked George Fox on Friday. Casey Poe (21 points, seven assists, five rebounds, four steals, three blocked shots), Makana Stone (21 points, nine rebounds) and Co. were in rare form.

"We were better, offensively," Whitman head coach Michelle Ferenz said. "We were sharper, moving better, cutting harder."

Sixth-ranked Whitman controlled the glass 46-33, shot 51.3 percent from the field, had seven players score at least eight points, and committed a mere 12 turnovers -- snapping a dubious streak of three consecutive games with 20-plus giveaways.

Emily Solomon's 3-pointer with 21 seconds left in the game put Whitman over the 100-point plateau for the first time this season. Solomon's bucket made her the 10th Blues player to score in the game.

"They let us shoot 3s. They were all good looks," Ferenz said. "We didn't force anything."

Mady Burdett had 10 points and made 3 of 6 3-pointers. Taylor Chambers (3 for 4, nine points) and Kaelan Shamsledin (3 for 5, nine points) were also dialed in from deep for the winners (13-1, 5-0 in NWC). Emily Rommel had eight points and five rebounds, and Maegen Martin added six points and a team-high 11 rebounds.

Whitman had one of its better jump-shooting halves of the season over the first 20 minutes, hitting seven of 11 3-pointers and taking a 51-32 lead into halftime. The second quarter began with 3-pointers by Shamseldin and Chambers. During a 12-0 Blues burst to close the half, Burdett and Sierra McGarity made 3s. Poe, Stone and Martin also scored during the sequence, which came after an 8-0 Whitworth run that had trimmed the hosts' advantage to 39-32 with 4:40 left in the second quarter.

The Bucs stayed in striking distance thanks to a virtuosic performance by Erika Kuehn, who made 4 of 5 3-pointers in the first half and checked into recess leading all scorers with 18 points.

Whitman countered with first-half balance. Poe was 5 of 6 from the floor for 13 points and added four rebounds three assists, two steals and a blocked shot. Burdett had nine points and three rebounds. Martin came off the bench for six points and nine rebounds, including four offensive, and fellow power forward Stone (six points, four rebounds) helped the Blues control the glass 25-17.

Whitman ran near-perfect halfcourt offense in opening an 18-8 lead to start the game. Poe had seven points and three assists, and the Blues made seven of their first eight field goals.

Whitworth kept in reach with the 3-ball, hitting four of seven from deep in the quarter. Whitman led 27-20 after one.

Notes: George Fox forward Kaitlin Jamieson will challenge the Blues' talented frontcourt. Jamieson is scoring 10.7 points per game (16th in NWC), grabbing 7.1 rebounds per game (fifth) and blocking 3.4 shots per game (first) … The Bruins play aggressive on-ball defense. They currently lead the NWC in blocks per game (4.6) and steals per game (12.4) … George Fox and Whitman are the clear frontrunners for a conference title, especially given the recent struggles of the University of Puget Sound. The Blues finished third in the NWC last year, behind Fox (second) and UPS (first), but defeated both en route to a conference tournament title, then eliminated George Fox in the first round of the national tournament and UPS in the second … Whitman was 0-1 at home against George Fox last season but 3-0 away from Sherwood.