Refs played foul with Makana Stone Saturday, but she used her few minutes of playing time strongly to help Whitman win its fourth-straight. (Eileen Stone photo)
Not even the refs could stop Whitman.
The Blues played major chunks of game time Saturday without their leading scorer, Coupeville grad Makana Stone, who was saddled with foul trouble, but still rolled to their fourth-straight win.
Breaking open a one-point game with a strong second-half effort, Whitman cruised past Evergreen State College 89-76 in the finale of the Kim Evanger Raney Memorial Classic.
The win lifts the Blues to 4-1.
Stone came into the game averaging 16 points a night, and started with a bang.
The sophomore sensation hit a pair of jumpers to open things, then fed freshman Kaelan Shamseldin for a three-ball.
But back-to-back fouls derailed her night less than three minutes into the opening quarter, and she stayed on the bench for much of the first half.
When she was on the court in the second half, Stone was her usual explosive self, picking up four more points, four boards and another assist.
Two more fouls severely limited her floor time, however. She entered the night averaging 22 minutes a game, but only played nine against Evergreen.
Stone finished Saturday with eight points, on efficient 4-6 shooting from the floor.
She leads Whitman in field goal percentage (66% on 27-41 shooting) and free throw percentage (86% on 18-21).
With several other key players plagued by foul trouble — Sierra McGarity fouled out, while Maegan Martin (4) and Emily Rommel (3) were hobbled — Whitman turned to its guards for much of its offense.
Preseason All-American Casey Poe rattled home a team-high 26 in her second game of the season, while Shamseldin bounced back from a scoreless game the night before to net 16.
Through the first five games, Stone remains Whitman’s #1 scorer, with 72 points, and #2 rebounder (trailing Rommel 37-34).
The Blues return to action next weekend, when they take a two-game road trip to Tacoma to face their first Northwest Conference foes.
Whitman plays at Pacific Lutheran University Friday, then revives its rivalry with the University of Puget Sound Saturday.
Last season, the Blues and Loggers split four games, with UPS taking two regular-season games in overtime, before Whitman rebounded to win a pair of playoff contests.
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