The first game of the 2017-18 men’s basketball season wasn’t a traditional one for Waynesburg University.

Tipoff took place in Washington state, over 2,000 miles away from the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse. Not only was the travel drastically different from years past, but so was the quality of competition. The Yellow Jackets took on the No. 1 ranked team in the country in Division III, Whitman College, at the Sherwood Athletic Center in Walla Walla, Washington, Friday, Nov. 17. The Blues managed to take a comfortable first half lead as they defeated Waynesburg 113-74.

For Waynesburg head coach Mark Christner, Whitman was as impressive as its ranking indicates.

“[Whitman was] as advertised in a lot of ways,” Christner said. “They’re relentless, they play really hard. They have really good athletes, and they play a difficult style. We give them a lot of credit.”

The Blues controlled the game from the start, and never trailed at any point. At halftime, Whitman led, 55-25. Whitman senior point guard Tim Howell, a first-team All-American last season, led the way with 14 first-half points, going 7-10 from the field. He finished the night 8-11 with 16 points. Despite Howell’s success, Christner was pleased with how the Jackets defended him overall.

“I’ll be honest, I thought we did a pretty good job on [Howell],” Christner said. “The good thing is we didn’t really foul him. He didn’t get to the free throw line, so that was good. We wanted to try and keep him in front, he just is really, really quick. I thought that the group effort that defended him did a really good job tactically in trying what we wanted to do.”

Waynesburg turned the ball over 26 times in the first half and finished with 41 total. Christner said that although Whitman’s pressure played into those turnovers, Waynesburg needs to improve with ball security.

“We have to be better,” Christner said. “We had 41 turnovers, many of them…many of them, unforced. Unforced from a standpoint of just kind of the fundamental aspects of basketball. Playing a team that [plays like Whitman], can create uncertainty, it can create doubt, and we had that too much I thought tonight.”

The Blues outscored the Yellow Jackets 58-49 in the second half to finish off the 39-point win. Despite the loss, freshman guard Matt Popeck and sophomore guard Frank Bozicevic were bright spots for the Jackets, combining for 37 of Waynesburg’s 49 points. Popeck’s collegiate debut ended with 23 points, with 14 coming in the second half, while Bozicevic contributed 14 off the bench.

“[Popeck’s] assertive,” Christner said. “He’s confident in his ability. I thought he did a good job. As a freshman, he’s still got a lot to learn about the tactical aspect of things. He played really, really hard. He made some shots there at the end, that was good. That’s good for his confidence [and] it’s good for ours.”

Popeck and Bozicevic were the only two Jackets that scored in double figures. Senior wing Jon Knab and senior forward Marcus Wallace went a combined 2-9 from the field with eight points.

Last season, Knab and Wallace were the only two Jackets who averaged over 10 points per game. For Christner, those two players, among others, will need to play a bigger part in the offense as the season goes on.

“[Knab and Wallace] in particular, those guys need to be involved offensively more, and we’ll work hard at making sure that happens,” Christner said.

Both teams shot well from beyond the arc, with Whitman going 18-35 in three-point attempts and Waynesburg shooting 11-23 from three. Christner said that the flow of the game resulted in successful three-point shooting and that the Jackets allowed too many open looks for the Blues to take advantage of.

“I think the biggest thing for us was that we didn’t contest enough of their three’s,” Christner said. “I think in a game like that when it’s expanded, it’s easier to shoot. I’m glad some of our guys were able to make some shots with not a lot of pressure. Hopefully, that bodes well moving forward confidence wise.”

Junior wing Jack Stewart tied Howell for the game-high with 16 points, going 5-6 from three-point range, and five additional Blues scored in double figures.

Waynesburg concludes its trip to Washington state Saturday night at 9 p.m. when it takes on Whitworth (2-0) at Whitworth Fieldhouse in Spokane, Washington. For Christner, the trip will serve as a learning experience for his team, regardless of wins and losses.

“I think we came [to Washington] knowing the caliber of teams that we were going to play,” Christner said. “I think if we have desires of getting to be as good as we good be, which I believe that we do, we need to take these as opportunities to get better. Not look at them as failures but look at them as we have to be better.”