SPOKANE, Wash. -- David Riley's shooting clinic led second-ranked Whitworth to a 79-52 win over Lewis & Clark in a match-up of the top two men's basketball teams in the Northwest Conference.

Riley's 23 points led the Pirates to a dominating second half, helping Whitworth improve to 19-0 overall and 10-0 in the NWC. The Bucs have won 32 straight games in the Whitworth Fieldhouse and 30 consecutive regular-season contests against NWC opponents.

The Pioneers (14-5, 7-3), ranked 24th coming into the weekend, survived an early Whitworth surge to play right with the Pirates throughout the first half. Wade Gebbers' three-pointer gave the Bucs an 11-4 lead, but L&C came back to take a 20-19 lead on a three-pointer by Kyle Meeuwsen with 7:31 left in the half. Whitworth would eventually go into halftime with a 36-29 advantage.

P.J. Taylor scored four quick points to open the second half, pulling the Pioneers within 36-33. But the Pirates responded with a 19-2 run over the next five minutes to open a 55-35 lead with just under 14 minutes to play. Jack Loofburrow and Riley closed the rally with back to back three-pointers. L&C never got closer than 18 points the rest of the game.

Riley hit 10-12 from the field and 3-5 from three-point range to account for his 23 points. He led the Pirates to 57% (29-51) shooting in the game. Michael Taylor (Brewster, Wash.) scored 16 points, grabbed a team-high eight rebounds and dished five assists in another strong all-around performance. Loofburrow finished with 12 points off of the bench. Whitworth benefited from a 38-25 rebounding advantage in the game.

Taylor scored 13 points to lead L&C, making 4-7 from three-point range. Meeuwsen finished with 10 points and a game-high nine rebounds. The Pioneers were held to 31% (16-51) shooting from the field, only 23% (6-26) in the second half when they were outscored 43-23.

Whitworth will hit the road to take on Puget Sound (Friday) and Pacific Lutheran (Saturday) next weekend with a chance to clinch the NWC's regular season championship.