NAMPA, Idaho – The Northwest Nazarene full court press is hard to beat no matter who you are.

Missing your starting point guard, though, is generally a recipe for disaster.

The No. 5 Nighthawks overwhelmed undermanned Saint Martin's on Saturday for a dominating 92-47 Great Northwest Athletic Conference victory.

"We just really focused on our defense," NNU senior Ellie Logan said, "and our depth in the press really wore them out especially with their point guard out. It was just really an example of how deep we are."

NNU outscored Saint Martin's 49-19 in the second half, forcing 28 turnovers for the game and holding the Saints to 27.7 percent (13-of-47) shooting from the field.

Saint Martin's was playing without junior Makenna Schultz, who is averaging more than an assist to a turnover this season.

The Saints shot 19-of-22 from the line, which is what loosely kept them in the game in the first half. Some key halftime adjustments, though, ended any chance of an upset.

"In the second half, we just had more of a focus," NNU senior McKenna Walker said. "I think this was a good wakeup call that we can't overlook anybody. Honestly it was just focus and being intentional."

The Nighthawks (14-0 overall, 6-0 GNAC) bested their 13-game winning streak they went on last year. The program record for longest winning streak is 23 games set in 1999-00.

Part of the reason this team is so special is its depth and its strong defense.

"It's about all five kids being on the same page," NNU coach Steve Steele said. "Everyone has to rotate together and know their job, because if one kid gets off (the opponent) is going to get something really easy.

"We do a good job of communicating and rotating together."

That was never more evident than the start of the third quarter. NNU went on an 8-2 run to open the quarter and then blew the game open with an 14-2 run midway through it. Saint Martin's (4-11, 1-5) had five turnovers and missed eight shots during that stretch.

"We can just play so hard for two or three minutes and know we can have the next person come in and try just as hard and produce just as much," Logan said. "That really helps us on our press. And we really trust the back of our press to make reads, so up front we can go for it."

Avery Albrecht had a game-high five steals, Carly Parker finished with four and Logan had three. NNU had 18 for the game.

Parker finished with 15 points, five rebounds and four assists coming off the bench. Jordan Pinson added 14, Logan had 13 and six rebounds and Walker had 11.

The Nighthawks have just two days off before hitting the road to face Central Washington in what will be one of their most difficult tests of the season.

"Central is really tough," Steele said. "They have a lot of length and a lot of swagger. They can shoot it from all five spots on the floor which is something we haven't seen this year. We are going to have to play well 1 through 11 like we did today."