Ross scores career high 32 as Huskies destroy Northwestern 76-55 in NIT sweet 16

By Kshell

Terrence Ross put on a performance for the ages scoring a career high 32 points making six three pointers as the Washington Huskies(23-10,14-4) advanced to the elite 8 of the NIT winning over the Northwestern Wildcats(19-14,8-10) 76-55. The Huskies finally played up to their abilities in blowing out the Wildcats. The Huskies offense started off slow in the first half but still led at halftime by seven points. In the second half the offense woke up as Ross and C.J. Wilcox combined to make 10-23 from three point range. The Huskies dominated the rebounding battle this game 42-24 against the undersized Wildcats and both their PG's Tony Wroten and Abdul Gaddy had seven assists in the game. The Pac-12 regular season champions showed why they should be playing in the NCAA tournament as they are a deep team who can beat you in so many different ways. The Huskies feature two high NBA talented players in Ross and Wroten. The Huskies also have good NBA prospects down the road in Aziz N'Diaye and Wilcox. For Lorenzo Romar to have his team still focused on the task that needs to be done speaks a lot about this team. The Huskies now have just one home game left then hopefully they'll make a return trip to New York City.

The game started off slow for the Huskies as they found themselves trailing 17-9 to the Wildcats. That is when the defense picked up as the Huskies started to force turnovers going on a 23-6 run to lead 32-23 eventually leading at halftime 39-32. The Wildcats trailed despite shooting well making 11-19(57.8%) from the field, five for eight(62.5%) on three pointers and five for nine on free throws(55.5%). The Wildcats were led by John Shurna who scored 14 points on four for five shooting including three three pointers also had five rebounds. They were also led by JerShon Cobb who scored six points on two for four shooting. The Wildcats main problem was 11 turnovers in the first half.

For the Huskies they shot poorly making only 13-37(35.1%) from the field, 5-21(23.8%) on three point range and were perfect on eight free throw attempts. The Huskies outrebounded the Wildcats 19-14 including 11-2 in offensive rebounds. They were led by Terrence Ross who scored 15 points on 4-10 shooting including three for seven on three pointers. He was perfect on four free throw attempts grabbing five rebounds. Aziz N'Diaye scored six points on three for six shooting with two rebounds. Tony Wroten had just two points on one for five shooting but provided five rebounds with four assists. C.J. Wilcox scored nine points on three for nine shooting with one three pointer and three rebounds. The Huskies would look to extend that lead in the second half hoping their shots would finally fall.

In the second half the Huskies put the Wildcats away as Ross began the second half hitting three straight three pointers. Then C.J. Wilcox poured in on the action drilling three straight three pointers as well. The Huskies outscored the Wildcats 37-23 in the second half to win 76-55 in one of their most complete efforts of the season. The Wildcats cooled down in the second half making only 7-32(21.8%) from the field giving them 18-51(35.3%) overall. They shot 9-24(37.5%) from three point range and 10-17(58.8%) from free throws. They were led by Shurna who scored 24 points on 6-12 shooting from the field, five for seven on three pointers while making seven of nine from free throws. He also pulled down six rebounds with four steals and a block shot.

For the Huskies they shot 27-63(42.9%) from the field including 14-26(53.8%) from the field in the second half. The Huskies shot the three ball plenty making 11-32(34.4%) from beyond the arc and 11-14(78.6%) from the free throw line. They out rebounded the Wildcats 42-24 including 19-8 in offensive. They were led by Ross who scored 32 points on 10-21 shooting including 6-14 from three pointers while making all six of his free throws. Ross grabbed eight rebounds while having two steals and a block shot. C.J. Wilcox off the bench scored 20 points on 7-13 shooting while making four for nine on three pointers and made both free throws. Wilcox also had six rebounds including four offensive. Aziz N'Diaye scored 11 points on 5-11 shooting with seven rebounds and two steals. Abdul Gaddy scored five points on two for six shooting with a three pointer. He did fill up the stat sheet with four rebounds, seven assists, a steal and a block shot. Tony Wroten only scored two points on one for five shooting but had eight rebounds. He also had seven assists with two blocks. Desmond Simmons scored four points making his only shot with two rebounds. Martin Bruenig brought down the house with two points on an athletic dunk. Darnell Gant was held scoreless missing all five of his shots but had four rebounds including three offensive. This was a big win for the Huskies who played one of their most complete games of the season.

For the first time in school history the Huskies are advancing to the elite 8 in the NIT. The Huskies will have one more home game left in the season and they will host one of their rivals the Oregon Ducks. The Huskies who did win the Pac-12 regular season championship are continuing their good play as of late. The Huskies are proving that the loss to Oregon State in the Pac-12 tournament was just a fluke. The Huskies can't control what the selection committee thought they didn't do all they can control is the games they are playing in the NIT. So far the Huskies are playing good basketball games which hopefully can translate into next season for the NCAA tournament.

Observations:

- Wilcox had his stroke going once again drilling four three pointers as he scored 20 points while grabbing six rebounds. Wilcox was in line for a big year before the injury set in. After that injury he struggled coming back but has been in a groove now for over a month. In the past four games Wilcox is averaging 18.3 PPG with 4.8 RPG. He is shooting 25-45(55.5%) from the field during this four game stretch which includes 12-27(44.4%) from three point range averaging three three pointers a game. He is also 11-15(73.3%) on free throws during that stretch.

For this season Wilcox is now averaging 14.2 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 0.9 steals and 0.6 blocks. He is shooting 43.9% on field goals, 40.8% on three pointers and 83.5% on free throws. He is making 2.3 three pointers a game. Had Wilcox not missed those three games more importantly that California game the Huskies would be playing in the NCAA tournament. For Wilcox who will for sure be back next season this NIT experience is good for him to work on his game for next season.

- It was nice to see Aziz N'Diaye break out of his slump. In the previous three games N'Diaye had averaged just 6.0 PPG and 5.0 RPG with 4.3 fouls per game. N'Diaye has been fighting foul trouble lately but not this game. In this game N'Diaye played 30 minutes for only the fourth time this season. In those 30 minutes N'Diaye scored 11 points on 5-11 shooting with seven rebounds and two steals. N'Diaye like Wilcox will be another player who will be here next season so this game experience is good for N'Diaye who will be expected to have a big year next year. N'Diaye was selected first team all defensive team.

For the year N'Diaye is averaging 8.1 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 1.1 blocks per game and 0.6 steals per game in 23.5 minutes per game. He is shooting 53.1% from the field. N'Diaye has played two seasons with the Huskies now mostly as a starter will have one more year left. His presence in the paint allows the Huskies to use more defensive looks because he is such a force in the middle. Now N'Diaye is starting to improve as a scorer as he has scored in double figures this year in 11 games out of 31. He has also grabbed double figures in rebounds in seven games as well. N'Diaye improvement for next year will be a big determining factor if the Huskies make the NCAA tournament next season or not.

- Darnell Gant scored zero points in his second to last home game as a Husky. Yet Lorenzo Romar praised Gant after the game because like usual Gant was guarding the other teams best player. Although Shurna still scored 24 he didn't go off on the Huskies like Ross did to the Wildcats. That is what the Huskies will miss most in Gant is his versatility on defense much like Justin Holiday last season. Gant didn't put up huge numbers but he is more valuable than some fans may think.

For the season now Gant is averaging 7.1 PPG, 5.3 rebounds per game, 0.4 steals and 0.2 blocks. Gant is shooting 45.4% from the field while shooting 32.9% from three point range making 0.7 three pointers a game. Gant will now be playing in his final game at home this Tuesday against the Oregon Ducks as the Huskies have won 99 games in Gant's career.

- Tony Wroten for the second straight game in the NIT didn't look to score but make his teammates better. Wroten scored a career low two points making only one of five field goal attempts. He did record eight rebounds, seven assists with two blocks. He also had five turnovers as he is showing why he should come back for another year. Interesting note on Wroten in games he shoots the ball under 10 games the Huskies are 6-2 including winning their past five games. Wroten is averaging 5.7 assists per game in his last six games as he is working on that part of his game.

For the year Wroten is averaging 16.0 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 3.9 APG, 1.9 steals and 0.4 blocks per game while shooting 45.2% from the field. In the NIT in two games Wroten is averaging only 5.5 PPG but 7.5 APG. He is also averaging 4.5 RPG. Look for Wroten to be more aggressive next game against the Oregon Ducks as he is averaging 15.5 PPG, 3.5 RPG and 4.5 APG this year as the teams split the season series.

- Terrence Ross had one of those special games that makes you think us Husky fans won't get to enjoy anymore. Ross was terrific scoring 32 points on 10-21 shooting, making 6-14(43.6%) on three pointers while grabbing eight rebounds. Ross got the Huskies back in the game in the first half then in the second half put the Wildcats away. Ross has been on fire as of late. In the last five games Ross is averaging 21.2 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 1.6 steals and 0.8 BPG. During that stretch he is shooting 40-79(50.6%) from the field and 17-39(43.5%) from three point range making 3.4 three pointers a game. In this two game NIT Ross is averaging 27.5 PPG and 6.5 RPG. He has made nine three pointers so far. Ross on the year is averaging 16.0 PPG and 6.5 RPG. He is shooting 46.0% from the field and 36.9% from three point range making two full three's a game. Ross is a terrific talent and is projected to be a late first round pick in this loaded draft. Hopefully Ross returns to the Huskies like his teammate Tony Wroten so the Huskies can make some noise this upcoming season.

- I'll give Romar credit for having his team prepared to play in a tournament that nobody wanted to play in. The Huskies are proving the selection committee wrong and should be in the NCAA tournament. Romar isn't letting his team be distracted and they are focused. The Huskies are playing some of their best ball of the season in the last 1.5 games which has been sad to see. Romar has seen his team win 99 games over these four years. The Pac-12 coach of the year now must do his biggest recruiting job this offseason. Unlike most recruiting pitches where you beg kids to come to your school Romar will be begging two kids in particular to stay at his school in Ross and Wroten. If those two come back next year the Huskies won't be playing in the NIT elite 8 instead could be in the NCAA tournament elite 8. As is the Huskies are one win away from Madison Square Garden in New York City.

All the Huskies have to do now is beat the Oregon Ducks at home something they have done two years in a row and 10 of the last 11 at home. The Huskies have dominated the Ducks in the Romar era but also dominated the Oregon State Beavers as well but that didn't stop them from losing to the Beavers in the Pac-12 tournament. Only one home game is left this season and both the Ducks and Huskies are proving they were more than capable of doing well in the NCAA tournament. The Huskies are playing well especially at home where they are 17-2 and with one more win they'll have a return trip to Madison Square Garden in New York City. The Huskies are making the most of this NIT opportunity and are now one game away from going to the mecca of basketball. If Ross keeps playing the way he is playing the Huskies will keep winning and he'll be a very rich man next season.

Huskies win first ever Pac-12 basketball championship!

By Kshell

With the Stanford Cardinal upsetting the California Golden Bears 75-70 that clinched an outright Pac-12 championship for the Washington Huskies! The Huskies who win the conference with a 14-4 record have now won just their second outright conference title since 1953(the other was in 2009). Counting conference tournament titles Lorenzo Romar has now won five conference championships and has won four in a row. Some may say the Huskies backed into this title and that is complete garbage. The Huskies earned this title by going 14-4 while the California Golden Bears went 13-5. Both teams were tied at 10-3 the difference is the Huskies finished 4-1 while the Golden Bears finished 3-2. This team has grown up a lot from going 5-5 and with winning the conference regular season the Huskies have punched their ticket into March Madness.

The Huskies failing to take care of business yesterday meant they had to become huge Stanford fans today. The Cardinal led the entire game over the Golden Bears by as many as 15 points. The Bears pulled within 72-70 and Stanford then had an impressive series. The Cardinal made one of two free throws, got the rebound, made one of two free throws, got the rebound then made one of two free throws extending their lead to five and wasting 25 seconds on the clock. This loss not only gives the Huskies the championship outright but probably cost Jorge Gutierrez the conference player of the year award as well. The California Golden Bears were going for their second outright conference title in the last three years after not winning one since 1959. This was a crushing loss for the Bears having lost to their rival Stanford a team that Mike Montgomery had coached for so long.

For the Huskies Darnell Gant he will have now won his fourth conference championship which has never been done before. Abdul Gaddy, Aziz N'Diaye, C.J. Wilcox, and Terrence Ross have now all won multiple conference championships and their first regular season title. While freshman Tony Wroten, Desmond Simmons and Shawn Kemp Jr. receive a championship in their first season. I think with this Cal loss that puts Terrence Ross as the favorite to take home conference player of the year. For the year Ross is averaging 15.3 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 1.3 steals, and 0.9 blocks. He is shooting 45.4% from the field, 36.2% on three pointers making 1.8 a game and 74.7% on free throws. If Ross wins he will be the second Husky to take home that award in the Romar era. The other being Brandon Roy as Nate Robinson, Isaiah Thomas, Jon Brockman and Quincy Pondexter all fell just short. I also think Tony Wroten will run away with the Pac-12 freshman of the year. This year Wroten is averaging 16.3 PPG, 4.9 RPG and 3.7 APG. He is also averaging 2.0 steals per game while shooting 45.0% from the field. The Wroten-Ross combo is a big reason why the Huskies are the conference champions.

This team was picked to finish fourth preseason having lost first-team all conference guys Isaiah Thomas and Matthew Bryan-Amaning. They also lost all defensive selections in Justin Holiday and Venoy Overton as well. This team started one freshman in Wroten and another in Simmons part-time. This team matured a lot and some will say they backed into a title or this is the weakest Pac-12 ever which is partly true. Just like the 2010 NFC West championship banner hangs up with the 2005 banner this banner will be hanging up at Hec Ed. The Huskies season has been pretty good so far and it was nice to see them rewarded today. Now the Huskies have some work to do as they'll take on either the Oregon State Beavers or Washington State Cougars next Thursday in the Pac-12 tournament. The Huskies at least now know they'll be dancing in March.

Huskies clinch at least a share of Pac-12 title with 80-58 blowout win over USC!

By Kshell

Playing down in L.A. where Darnell Gant grew up the senior has a great opportunity to clinch his fourth conference championship in four years. Gant provided a big game scoring 14 points and grabbing nine rebounds as the Washington Huskies(21-8,14-3) blew out the USC Trojans(6-24,1-16) 80-58 clinching at least a share of the Pac-12 regular season title. For Gant that means he has won a Pac-10 regular season title as a freshman(2009) and won back to back conference tournament championships(2010 and 2011). Now he has won at least a co-regular season championship this year and with a win over the UCLA Bruins on Saturday will have won an outright conference title. The Huskies took care of business against the Trojans outrebounding them 47-20 as they knew exactly what was at stake.

The Huskies knew this game was important and treated it as such. They began the game on a 13-4 run. After the Trojans went on a mini 7-3 run to pull within 16-11 the Huskies went on an 8-0 run lead to 24-11. From there the Huskies cruised into halftime with a 40-26 lead. The Huskies shot 16-37(43.2%) from the field, three for eight on three pointers(37.5%) but just 5-12(41.7%) on free throws. They out-rebounded the Trojans 29-10 including 14-1 in offensive rebounds. The Trojans shot 11-26(42.3%) on field goals, two for five(40.0%) on three pointers and two for three(66.7%) on free throws. The Trojans were led by Garrett Jackson scoring 10 points on five for seven shooting with five rebounds. Byron Wesley scored eight points on three for nine shooting including two free throws.

For the Huskies they were led by Terrence Ross scoring 11 points poin five for nine shooting including a three pointer with three rebounds. Senior captain Darnell Gant scored seven points on three for four shooting including a three pointer while pulling down six rebounds. Tony Wroten scored six points on two for nine shooting and just two for five on free throws. He did however grab seven rebounds including four offensive while dishing out four assists. Abdul Gaddy scored six points while making both his shots including a three pointer and free throw. Desmond Simmons scored five points on two for five shooting with four rebounds including three offensive. The Huskies dominated the half and looked to continue that in the second half.

After starting the second half on a 4-0 run to take a 44-28 lead the Trojans fought back. The Trojans went on a 14-5 run pulling to within 49-40. Terrence Ross then hit a three pointer for the Huskies as the Huskies went on a 7-0 run to lead 56-40 as the game wasn't close again. The game ended with Wroten throwing an alley-oop pass to Martin Bruening for the dunk as the Huskies won 80-58 outscoring the Trojans 40-32 in the second half. The Trojans shot 23-51(45.1%) from the field, 3-10(30.0%) on three pointers and 9-16(56.2%) on free throws. They were led by Byron Wesley scoring 23 points on 10-18 shooting with five rebounds. Garrett Jackson finished with 14 points on six for nine shooting.

For the Huskies they shot 31-67(46.3%) from the field, 6-13(46.3%) from three point range and 12-23(52.2%) from free throws. The Huskies dominated the glass with 47 rebounds to the Trojans 20 including 18-3 advantage on offensive rebounds. They were led by Terrence Ross who scored 18 points on 8-13 shooting including two for three on three pointers. Ross pulled down seven rebounds with a steal. Darnell Gant playing in his second to last regular season game scored 14 points on six for eight shooting while making two of three three pointers. He also grabbed nine rebounds including three offensive. Abdul Gaddy scored 12 points on four for six shooting including making his only three point shot and three for four on free throws. Gaddy also had five assists. Aziz N'Diaye scored eight points on three for six shooting with seven rebounds and a block shot. C.J. Wilcox scored eight points as well on 3-10 shooting with a block shot. Tony Wroten scored seven points on 2-13 shooting and three for seven at the foul line. He did grab eight rebounds including four offensive with six assists, two steals and a block shot. Desmond Simmons scored five points on two for five shooting with seven rebounds including three offensive and two steals.  Martin Bruenig scored five points  and grabbed two rebounds in only four minutes of playing time. He also made both shots including a three pointer. The Huskies saw 12 guys play with 10 guys scoring at least one point. While the Trojans had just eight guys play and only six score. The Huskies defeated an opponent who is down and they took advantage of that.

After the Huskies won against the Trojans there was no celebration as Lorenzo Romar made sure his team knew there was still unfinished business. The goal for the Huskies this week wasn't to win a share of the conference title but to instead win the conference title outright. Prior to 2009 the Huskies hadn't won the conference title outright since 1953 and now they have a chance to do that for the second time in four years. This Huskies team who graduated three key seniors last year, lost Isaiah Thomas to the draft and Scott Suggs has a chance to do something the two previous teams couldn't do which is win a regular season conference title. Something the Brandon Roy/Nate Robinson teams couldn't even do. This team who lost some terrible games in December has a chance to make some history at Montlake as only one team(1984) has ever won 15 conference games in a season as well. This team has accomplished quite a bit and now they have a chance to finish the job at UCLA this Saturday.

Observations:

- In front of NBA scouts Tony Wroten had an off game. He kept missing layups and was 2-13 while shooting just three for seven on free throws. He also had four turnovers. With that said Wroten still showed his value grabbing eight rebounds(four offensive) and dishing out six assists with two steals and a block shot. Wroten will run away with the freshman player of the year and with a big game against UCLA on Saturday could win player of the year in the conference as well.

For the season now Wroten is averaging 16.3 PPG, 5.0 RPG and 3.6 APG. He is shooting 44.8% from the field and averaging 2.0 steals per game. Wroten tends to play big in big games and this game was never in doubt. Look for Wroten to have a big performance against UCLA and in the Pac-12 tournament. Depending on what he does in the NCAA tournament will determine if he comes back or not. If Wroten returns back to the program the Huskies could be the favorites to win the conference title.

- Darnell Gant has had an up and down career with the Huskies. He came to Washington as the highest rated power forward in the country. He was forced to redshirt his first year at Washington then as a redshirt freshman started 34 out of 35 games for the Huskies who won the regular season Pac-10 title. As a sophomore he was a starter but was quickly benched and rarely played. As a junior he made some starts but was a key guy off the bench. This season Gant started the first 14 games before being benched. He has now started the last three games and has played well the last two games. Gant in the last two games is averaging 8.5 PPG and 8.0 RPG while shooting 7-11(63.6%) from the field.

Gant's leadership and play will determine just how far the Huskies will go. So far this year Gant is averaging 7.3 PPG and 4.8 RPG in 23.2 minutes per game with 17 starts. He is shooting 46.7% from the field and 34.4% on three pointers making 0.7 a game. Gant who is from LA. has a chance for the fourth straight year to receive a  conference championship ring in his hometown. This would be the type of storybook ending all Husky fans would love. The Huskies have won 97 games in the four years Gant has been at UW meaning no other four year stretch in Huskies history has seen more wins. If the Huskies reach the NCAA tournament no player will have played in four NCAA tournaments with the Huskies or have played in eight games which Gant will do. His career is almost over but Gant is hoping to prolong that career as long as possible.

- The big reason the Huskies won this game is the domination on the rebounding. The Huskies won the rebounding battle 47-20 including a 18-3 edge in offensive rebounding. They outrebounded the Trojans 29-10 at halftime with a 14-1 edge in offensive rebounding. The Huskies didn't shoot well from the field, three point range or free throws. The Huskies defense at times was lacking but one thing that was consistent was the rebounding. This was big since last game against the Cougars the Huskies were out rebounded by a team who ranks 248th in the nation in rebounding while the Huskies are top 10 in the nation. The Huskies get the job done as a team on rebounding as Aziz N'Diaye leads the team at 7.6 rebounds per game, then Terrence Ross who is a guard is next at 6.7 per game. Desmond Simmons is third at 5.4 per game in only 19 minutes. While Tony Wroten the point guard is fourth at 5.0 then Darnell Gant averages 4.8 per game. The Huskies have several guys including guards who can crash the boards which has been the key to success all season long.

- Terrence Ross rebounded nicely from his two point performance and fouling out against the Washington State Cougars. This game Ross started off early scoring 11 of his team high 18 points. When the Trojans pulled to within single digits at 49-40 it was Ross who hit a three pointer to start a run for the Huskies to finally put the Trojans away. Ross had a good game scoring 18 points on 8-13 shooting including two for three from three point range. He also grabbed seven rebounds in the process. The three point shooting was key because prior to that Ross had been 1-11(9.1%) from three point range last two games and 6-31(19.4%) in his last six games. Ross also hasn't attempted a free throw in two straight games and four out of six games. Ross needs to be more agressive going forward. Ross like his teammate Tony Wroten can win the conference player of the year award with a big performance on Saturday against the Bruins. Ross will make the first team all conference team as well as play in the NBA eventually.

For the year Ross is averaging 15.2 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 1.2 steals and 1.0 blocks. He is shooting 45.5% from the field, 35.7% on three pointers making 1.8 a game and 74.7% on free throws. Depending on how well Ross plays throughout the season will determine how far the Huskies go in the NCAA tournament if Ross will leave. If Ross and Wroten both leave the Huskies will be in a transition year. I think if Wroten comes back the Huskies can survive Ross leaving and still make the NCAA's. If both Wroten and Ross come back the Huskies could be talking preseason final four and find themselves ranked in the top 15 heading into next year. These next few weeks are critical for Ross and Wroten's future at this program.

- Lorenzo Romar for the fifth time in his coaching career at Washington will have won some sort of conference championship. In 10 seasons at Washington Romar has produced eight winning seasons and has won 19 games or more eight times. He has won 20 games or more six times. Romar has a chance to win his second outright regular season conference title with a win against a team he was an assistent for so many years(including winning a national championship). With that win that would basically clinch Romar going to the NCAA tournament for the seventh time in the last nine years at Washington. He also improves to 13-7 all-time against the Trojans who had defeated the Huskies three out of four and five out of eight. This was a program the Huskies had struggled with and the Huskies won both games by over 20 points. Romar the veteran coach just like that has been down this road before and will remind his team to keep calm. In 2005 the Huskies were in the same position but lost to Stanford on the road while in 2009 they finished the deal defeating the Washington State Cougars to clinch the title. Like every year Romar is at Washington his team has improved as the season has gone on which is the sign of a good coach. Can this finally be the year Romar moves past the sweet 16? We'll find out in a few weeks.

Now this long season comes down to one regular season game for the Huskies. The Huskies have a chance to have their banner read "2011-12 Pac-12 regular season champions" rather than "2011-12 Pac-12 co-champions". Both banners would look nice but obviously the banner that doesn't include the words "Co" would look better. The Huskies took care of business in the conference through the first 17 games winning 14 of them and hopefully they can finish the deal this Saturday at UCLA. This has been a great ride which will remind most fans of the 2003-04 team which featured a young roster who finally matured and went on a winning streak. The Huskies will take on a Bruins team they have defeated four times in a row. The Huskies did their job against the Trojans and now they know there is just one game left. As Romar told his team the Huskies goal wasn't to share it was to win the conference outright. Beating the Trojans was nice but the celebration won't happen until the Huskies defeat the Bruins.

Huskies use big first half to defeat Sun Devils 77-69

By Kshell

The Washington Huskies(18-8,11-3) remain tied for first place with a 77-69 win over the struggling Arizona State Sun Devils(8-18, 4-10). The Huskies saw four guys score in double figures as they used a 17-2 run towards the end of the first half to build a 44-26 lead over the Sun Devils. In the second half the Huskies simply coasted to the victory as they remain tied for first place in the Pac-12. The Huskies were led once again by Terrence Ross scoring 18 points and Tony Wroten recording six steals for the Huskies. The Huskies this Saturday take on the Arizona Wildcats as they go for the first season sweep of the state of Arizona since 2004(5-0 against that state). The Huskies have just one home game left after defeating the Sun Devils once again.

In the first half the game started off as a shootout as Ross hit his first two shots but Jonathan Gilling of the Sun Devils hit two three pointers to give the Sun Devils a 6-5 lead. The Huskies would go on a 6-0 run to lead 11-6. After the Sun Devils tied the game up at 13 the Huskies would go on a 10-3 run to lead 23-16. Leading 27-22 the Huskies would go on an 8-0 run to lead 35-22 which they continued that run to stretch it out to 17-2 leading 44-24 before the Sun Devils made a basket before halftime. The Huskies took a 44-26 lead into halftime over the Sun Devils. The Sun Devils had shot just 11-29(37.9%) from the field, 2-11(18.2%) from three point range. Their leading scorer was Jonathan Gilling who scored six points on two for five shooting all were three point shots.

For the Huskies they shot 19-32(59.4%) from the field, four for nine(44.4%) from three point range. They were led by senior Darnell Gant who scored nine points off the bench on three for five shooting including a three pointer while also grabbing five rebounds. C.J.Wilcox off the bench scored nine points on four for five shooting making a three pointer while having two assists. Tony Wroten scored eight points on four for six shooting with three rebounds. Terrence Ross scored seven points on three for nine shooting including a three pointer. Aziz N'Diaye scored six points on three for five shooting. Abdul Gaddy scored three points making his only shot which was a three but had five assists. The Huskies put the game away in the first half but would just cruise in the second half.

In the second half the Sun Devils had outscored the Huskies 43-33 as the Huskies coasted in the second half. The game was never in doubt. The Sun Devils had made the game interesting  going on a 13-2 run pulling within 56-45. The Huskies then put the game away with a 10-3 run to led 66-48. Lorenzo Romar emptied the bench and the Sun Devils scored some points at the end to make the game look closer than it was. For the Huskies this was a good win although the second half could have been better. The Huskies shot 29-59(49.2%) from the field, 8-25(32.0%) from three point range and 11-15(73.3%) on free throws. They were led by Ross who had another strong second half scoring 18 points on 7-13 shooting including four for eight from three point range. Ross also grabbed five rebounds and a steal. C.J. Wilcox scored 14 points off the bench on 6-11 shooting with two three pointers. He also had three assists, a steal and a block.  Tony Wroten scored 13 points on four for eight shooting from the field and five for eight from the free throw line. Wroten also added four rebounds, four assists and six steals. Aziz N'Diaye scored 12 points on five for nine shooting and was two for three on free throws. He also added four rebounds with a steal. Darnell Gant scored nine points on three for six shooting including a three pointer with five rebounds. Shawn Kemp Jr. scored six points on two for three shooting and swishing both free throws. He also added a block shot as well in 11 minutes. Abdul Gaddy scored three points on one for two shooting with a three pointer but added eight assists and a steal. Desmond Simmons scored two points on one for four shooting but had six rebounds including a block shot. The Huskies bench provided the boost as their bench outscored the Sun Devils 29-21 which was the difference in the score.

The Huskies took care of business on their home court which is what teams do who are looking to win a Pac-12 championship. Now comes the big test as they take on the Arizona Wildcats at home this Saturday in the final home game for Darnell Gant and possibly Terrence Ross and/or Tony Wroten. The atmosphere will be incredible for that game as the Huskies have defeated the Wildcats four straight years at home. The Huskies have now defeated the Sun Devils eight out of nine years at home with the lone Sun Devils win coming in 2008. The Huskies have dominated the Sun Devils in the Lorenzo Romar era. The second half was played sloppy and I'm sure Romar will get on his guys about that. Overall this was a great team victory as the Huskies are trying their best to keep pace with the California Golden Bears.

Observations:

- Last year when Matthew Bryan-Amaning graduated there was great concern about the Huskies post play. Many figured Darnell Gant would emerge but he hasn't as most of his points come from the outside. Insead Aziz N'Diaye has emerged into that guy. Once again scoring in double figures as he scored 12 points against the Sun Devils on five for nine shooting. N'Diaye has scored in double figures in 10 games this year out of 24. He has grabbed double figures in rebounds in six games. He's also had 13 games with at least one block shot. For the year N'Diaye is averaging 8.3 PPG, 7.5 RPG and 1.1 blocks per game while shooting 53.8% from the field. His production has almost doubled from last year despite only playing six more minutes a game. N'Diaye has been a big reason for the Huskies success this year inside and he still has one more year left with the Huskies program which is huge.

- The Huskies defense was terrific against the Sun Devils holding them to under 40.0% shooting in the first half and less than 20.0% on three point shots. Tony Wroten led the defensive charge with six steals as the Huskies had 10 steals and three blocks during the game. For Wroten he is now averaging 2.1 steals per game as he broke Justin Dentmon's record for most steals in a season for a freshman with 54. He still has four more regular season games plus one Pac-12 tournament game as well.

Another bright spot on the defense is the play of two freshman big men in Desmond Simmons and Shawn Kemp Jr. Simmons who has started 11 games(9-2 in those games) is averaging 5.0 PPG but 5.7 RPG in only 20.1 minutes not to mention 0.9 steals. As for Kemp Jr. he is averaging only 2.0 PPG, 0.8 RPG and 0.7 blocks per game but in just 7.3 minutes. In his last five games Kemp Jr. is averaging 5.0 PPG in only 10.6 minutes per game. These guys are showing a flash of their future with the Huskies. Both guys aren't lighting up the scorboard like Wroten does or like Ross or Wilcox did last year but they are providing defense which the Huskies need. Along with N'Diaye who has always been a factor in the paint the Huskies aren't as weak inside as people may think.

- Nice to see C.J. Wilcox get going last night shooting wise. Since returning from his injury Wilcox has shot over 40.0% in just two of his seven games back. In fact he is only averaging 10.0 PPG during that stretch. Wilcox against the Sun Devils though scored 14 points on 6-11 shooting from the field. Last year he had slumped from three point range for a long time then snapped out of it which the Huskies are hoping will happen soon. Since returning from his injury Wilcox is only 7-28(25.0%) from three point range. For the year Wilcox is still having a nice season scoring 13.8 points in 28.4 minutes shooting 41.6% from the field and making 2.2 three pointers a game. Wilcox has yet to hit a red hot streak like he did at the end of last season. Wilcox has shown in the past he can deliver in crunch time for the Huskies. If Wilcox can get going the Huskies can go very far in the tournament. Hopefully Wilcox starts his hot streak this Saturday against the Wildcats.

- Lorenzo Romar continues his dominance over the Sun Devils improving to 18-5 all-time against them since becoming the Huskies head coach. The Huskies are 8-2 at home against the Sun Devils, 8-2 on the road and 2-1 in the Pac-10 tournament. During Romar's first year the Sun Devils swept the Huskies since then the Huskies have won 18 out of 21 games against the Sun Devils. Unless the Huskies collapse they should finish in the top three of the conference for the seventh time in the last nine years under Romar. This team isn't your typical Romar team as they don't have that three point fire power or that intensity on defense every possession like years past. Where they make up for it is talent as Romar has never had a more talented 1-2 combo than he has now with Ross and Wroten. The next four teams the Huskies face though Romar hasn't dominated like he has the Sun Devils and Beavers the last two teams they've face. Should be interesting where the Huskies go from here.

The Huskies improve to 18-8 now which makes that 5-5 start seem like a different season ago. Nice to see the Huskies keep playing well as they strive to make the NCAA tournament for the fourth straight season for the first time in program history. If the Huskies can accomplish that feat that would be a huge moment for Romar and this program. The Huskies are tied for first place in the conference with four games to go including Arizona the big one this Saturday at home. Should the Huskies win they can make some noise although ending the season with three on the road is tough. This was a good win for the Huskies taking care of business against an inferior opponent. Hopefully the Huskies clean up their second half play this Saturday against Arizona. With four games to go the Huskies are tied for first place which at the start of the year we all would have accepted.

Huskies remain tied for first place with 75-72 win over Beavers

By Kshell

Terrence Ross led the Washington Huskies(17-8,10-3) with 21 points and 13 rebounds as the Huskies swept the Oregon State Beavers(15-10,5-8) in the season series with a 75-72 win down in Corvallis. The Huskies won on the road despite shooting poorly all game long. After getting blown out the previous game against the Oregon Ducks the Huskies salvaged their road trip with a split over the Beavers. With the win the Huskies are now tied for first place with the California Golden Bears with just five games remaining in conference play. Three Huskies scored in double figures while Abdul Gaddy hit a three pointer to give the Huskies a lead which they never looked back. With the game on the line redshirt freshman Desmond Simmons sank both free throws to clinch the victory. This was a total team effort as nine guys played for the Huskies while eight of them scored. This was a gut check game for the Huskies who passed the test with a crucial road win as they prepare to head home to take on the Arizona schools who they swept on the road just two weekends ago.

In the first half it would appear that the Beavers were dominating the Huskies and outplaying the Huskies. Instead the game was tied at 31-31 apiece in a half that was pretty sloppy. With the Huskies leading 13-10 the Beavers went on a 6-0 run to take a 16-13 lead. The Huskies would respond with a mini 4-0 run to lead 17-16. Trailing 19-18 the Beavers went on another 6-0 run to lead 24-19 before Terrence Ross hit a three point late in the half to tie it up at 31. For the Beavers they shot 13-39(33.3%) from the field, one for eight(12.5%) on three pointers and what really killed them was 4-13(30.7%) from the free throw line. They were led by Jared Cunningham who scored nine points while grabbing three rebounds. He shot poorly though making just 4-13 shots. Devon Collier also scored nine points for the Beavers making all four field goals but made just one of four free throws. Ahmad Starks scored six points while grabbing five rebounds but shot 3-10 in the first half.

For the Huskies they shot miserable making just 12-45(26.7%) from the field, 3-10(30.0%) from three point range and four of seven(57.1%) on free throws. The Huskies won the rebounding war 17-12 over the Beavers. They were led by Terrence Ross scoring nine points on 4-14 shooting including a three pointer while grabbing five rebounds. C.J. Wilcox scored seven points on three for eight shooting with a three pointer. Tony Wroten struggled scoring seven points on two for nine shooting but grabbed five rebounds. Abdul Gaddy scored five points on two for five shooting making his only three point attempt. The Huskies played terrible for a half and were tied on the road a result Lorenzo Romar would take.

In the second half the game had some nice momentum plays down the stretch. With the Beavers leading 48-46 after a few missed layups on one possession for the Huskies they finally finished with a Ross tip in. Next possession Wilcox hit a three pointer to give them the lead. The Huskies would go on a 10-2 run to lead 56-50. Not to be out done the Beavers would go on a 6-0 run themselves which tied the score at 56. After being tied at 58 Gaddy drilled a three pointer for the Huskies to give them a 61-58 lead as the Huskies never looked back. With a little over two minutes to go the Huskies up 65-60 the Beavers saw Starks drill a long three pointer to cut the lead to 65-63. Ross would answer with a jumper to give the Huskies a 67-63 lead with under two minutes to go. Wilcox would hit two free throws to give the Huskies a 70-65 lead. Starks once again hit a long three pointer with 22.6 seconds left to cut the lead to 70-68. Gaddy had trouble inbounding the ball finally passed to Desmond Simmons. Simmons a 59% free throw shooter sank both free throws to give the Huskies a 72-68 lead. The Beavers would score some late buckets but after Simmons free throws that basically had iced the game as the Huskies had preserved the win and the sweep over the Beavers.

The Huskies outscored the Beavers in the second half 44-41 to earn the crucial win. For the Beavers this season had so much promise after that 10-2 start and unless they totally collapse will have their second winning season in the last 20 years. Still there was talk of making the NCAA tournament this year and after getting swept by both Washington schools at home that talk is all but dead. The Beavers were led by Cunningham who scored 23 points but made just 7-20 shots with two three pointers. Collier scored 16 points and had seven rebounds on six for eight shooting. Starks scored 14 points with seven rebounds on 6-15 shooting with two three pointers. Angus Brandt scored 12 points on six for nine shooting. Eric Moreland scored six points, grabbed nine rebounds and had five block shots for the Beavers as well. Those five players scored all but one point for the Beavers as they had zero depth in this game. Despite playing good defense on the Huskies all game long and having the Huskies play at their pace they lost the game. For the Beavers they have now lost 10 of their last 11 games to the Huskies. No team in this conference has had a more dominant run on the Beavers than the Huskies have had recently.

This was a huge win for the Huskies who won despite shooting 34.8% from the field, 5-17(29.4%) on three pointers and 24-35(68.6%) on free throws. They were led by Terrence Ross who stepped up once again in the second half. Ross scored 21 points on 7-21 shooting while making a three pointer and six of seven free throws. Ross also grabbed 13 rebounds with a steal and two block shots. C.J.Wilcox scored 17 points on 4-11 shooting with two three pointers but made seven of nine free throws. Tony Wroten scored 12 points on 4-12 shooting while making four of seven free throws. Wroten also added seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. Abdul Gaddy hit the goahead three pointer scored eight points on 3-10 shooting with two three pointers, five rebounds, four assists with two steals while having just one turnover. Aziz N'Diaye scored six points on two for three shooting but made just two of six free throws. Desmond Simmons scored four points and grabbed nine rebounds making all four free throws. Shawn Kemp Jr continues his solid play off the bench scoring five points making both field goal attempts. The Huskies a team who had no depth in a loss to California now finds themselves nine deep just like that. This was a big win for the Huskies to keep pace with those California Golden Bears.

This wasn't a pretty win by any means but this was a win which is all that matters. The Huskies are now tied for first place in the Pac-12 with five games left in the regular season. With the conference struggling this year nothing is guaranteed far as NCAA tournament berths go. The margain for error is very small for the Huskies as they must keep winnning despite finishing the season with three in a row on the road. The Huskies will play their final home games this week to honor the lone senior Darnell Gant against the Arizona schools. On senior night particularly will be a huge game against the Arizona Wildcats a team they have defeated four straight times at home. The Huskies continued their dominance over the Beavers who haven't been to the NCAA tournament since 1990 when they won the conference with former Sonics great Gary Payton.

Observations:

- You often hear the saying "the sky is the limit" on player X. When it comes to Terrence Ross that saying is 100% true as he is always leaving you with wanting more. Ross shot poorly today making just 7-21 shots and one for five at the three point line. The sign of a good player is what does he do when his shot isn't falling? Well Ross showed he is NBA in grabbing 13 rebounds including five offensive and blocking two shots. He also made six of seven free throws and once again stepped up his game in the second half scoring 12 points. Why Ross fails to show up in the first half of every game has been a huge mystery. Ross being a future NBA lottery pick if not this year clouds fans judgement on the season he is having. He is having a first team all conference season and could backdoor his way into conference MVP but he should be doing so much more.

For the season Ross is averaging 15.1 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 1.1 steals, and 1.1 blocks. He is shooting 44.2% from the field, 36.4% from three point range knocking down 1.8 three pointers a game and 75.0% on free throws too. His shooting percentages are about the same as last year and his points per minute are about the same too. The difference is he is getting more steals per minute, more rebounds per minute and blocks. He is pulling a Quincy Pondexter in where he is becoming a complete player who is filling up the box score. He is averaging 7.5 rebounds per game, 1.3 steals and 1.1 blocks all in conference play. Ross has became a complete player which means there is a good chance that Darnell Gant isn't the only one playing in his final game as a Husky this weekend at home.

- Lorenzo Romar continues his dominance over the Beavers improving to 16-5 all-time against them. Romar was swept against the Beavers his first year at Montlake and has since won 16 of 19 games including 10 of his past 11. He is also 8-1 against Craig Robinson the current Beavers coach. Romar is 9-1 at home against the Beavers, 6-4 on the road against the Beavers and 1-0 against them in the Pac-10 tournament. This was your typical grind it out win as the Huskies shot poorly. This year the Huskies don't have the shooters like they have had in the past so they are learning to win in different ways. They have overcame injuries to Scott Suggs for the season and to C.J. Wilcox who basically missed four games. Romar believe it or not is in line to win Pac-12 coach of the year but this conference is so scrambled at that top with four other teams besides the Huskies that could easily change. One thing that hasn't changed is Romar owning the Oregon State Beavers.

This conference comes down to just five teams fighting for three spots in my opinion. California, Washington, Colorado, Oregon and Arizona are the only schools who are realistically in the NCAA tournament talk. Of those five teams four of them will get a first round bye in the Pac-12 tournament meaning one of them will have to win four games in four days. That isn't impossible by any means seeing how UCONN did that just last year winning five games in five days. I feel like the Pac-12 regular season champion and of course the tournament champion(automatic bid) will make the NCAA's. Leaving the other three fighting for one spot. The Huskies will be favored to win their remaining five games starting this Thursday at home against a school they have historically dominated in the Romar era in Arizona State. This team is starting to come together despite that horrible loss in Eugene. Now the Huskies will try to finish up their home schedule and send Darnell Gant out like the winner that he is. This year has been a rollercoaster and I have a feeling we'll have some more ups and downs before this year is over. For the Huskies whenever they are playing the Beavers that is almost always an up on the rollercoaster.

Red hot Ducks embarass Huskies 82-57

By Kshell

The Washington Huskies(16-8, 9-3) team bus arrived to Mathew Knight arena 45 minutes late due to a traffic accident. Unfortunately for Husky fans the team decided to not show up at all as the Oregon Ducks(17-7,8-4) destroyed the Huskies 82-57. The game was over from the opening tip as the Ducks started the game off leading 11-2. The Ducks shot extremely well making 56.4% of their field goals and 53.8% on three pointers. The Ducks also had four guys in double figures. While the Huskies shot just 36.4% from the field and 12.5% from three point range with only two guys in double figures. The Huskies who came into this game having won five games in a row and were in sole possession of first place regressed this game. The Huskies went back to their old habits of acting as if they didn't want to be at the gym. This is the second straight year the Huskies have lost at Oregon after winning the previous two seasons down in Eugene. Now the Huskies will hope to avoid what happened last year when they were swept in Oregon which ultimately cost them a chance at a Pac-10 regular season title. With this loss the Huskies are now tied with California for first place in the Pac-12 standings.

The first half was a disaster for the Huskies who were getting ran out of the gym from the opening tip. The Ducks sprinted out to an 11-2 lead and didn't look back. The Ducks eventually led 49-26 at halftime over the Huskies. In the first half the Ducks made 18-29(62.1%) from the field, six of eight(75.0%) from three point range and 7-11(63.6%) from free throws. They outrebounded the Huskies 21-16 and outscored the Huskies 12-0 on fastbreak points. They were led by Garrett Sim who scored 13 points on five for eight shooting including three for three on three pointers. He also added five assists. E.J. Singler scored nine points on two for four shooting including a three pointer and made all four free throws while grabbing six rebounds. Devoe Joseph who struggled in the first meeting scored nine points on four for six shooting with a three pointer. Carlos Emory scored six points on two for two shooting and two for three at the free throw line. He added five rebounds as well.

For the Huskies they shot a disasterous 10-33(30.3%) from the field, one for eight(12.5%) from three point range and 5-13(38.4%) from the free throw line. Their leading scorer was Desmond Simmons who scored five points on two for three shooting while making his lone free throw attempt. He also had four rebounds as well. Tony Wroten scored four point missing all three of his shots while going four for eight at the foul line with three rebounds and two assists. Aziz N'Diaye scored just four points on only two for six shooting missing all four free throws but did grab four rebounds. Terrence Ross continued his poor first half play this season scored just four points on two for eight shooting missing all three three point attempts.

In the second half the Ducks outscored the Huskies 33-31 to hang on for the blowout win over the Huskies 82-57. For the Ducks they shot 31-55(56.4%) from the field, 7-13(53.8%) from three point range and 13-23(56.5%) from the free throw line. They also outrebounded the Huskies 39-34. The Ducks were led by Emory who scored 16 points on seven for eight shooting with eight rebounds. The Ducks saw Sim, Singler and Joseph all score 13 points as well. For the Ducks this was a huge win as they put them one game from the Pac-12 lead behind the Huskies and California. Had the Ducks lost they would have been three games behind the Huskies not to mention the Huskies would have had tiebreaker. This win keeps their conference title games alive along with their NCAA tournament hopes alive. As for the team they defeated the Washington Huskies have to go back to the drawing board.

This was an embarassing loss for a team who is competing for a conference title. This is too late in the year for the Huskies to experience a type of loss like this yet here we are with a blowout loss. The Huskies offense never showed up as they shot just 24-66(36.4%) from the field, 2-16(12.5%) from three point range and 7-18(38.9%) from the free throw line which is embarassing. They were led by Tony Wroten who scored 14 points on 4-10 shooting and 6-13 shooting from the free throw line. Wroten had four steals, four assists, three rebounds but six turnovers. C.J. Wilcox shooting slump continues since he has came back from injury scoring only 10 points on 4-13 shooting making two of seven from three point range with six rebounds. Terrence Ross also under perfromed scored just eight points on 4-12 shooting missing four three point attempts but added five rebounds. Desmond Simmons the only guy who played well had eight points and seven rebounds. Aziz N'Diaye scored six points and four rebounds. Darnell Gant scored just four points with just two rebounds off the bench. Shawn Kemp Jr also scored four points as well. The Huskies didn't play a good game at all as Lorenzo Romar has to once again go back to the drawing board as his immature team simply doesn't get it.

This Huskies team needs to eventually take this season seriously. Romar also has to stop being so in love with his veterans. Abdul Gaddy played the most minutes this game having played 36 of a possible 40 minutes. In those 36 minutes Gaddy scored just two points while dishing out one assist. Romar needs to realize that Wroten, Wilcox and Ross need to be on the court together all at once for the majority of the time which means less Gaddy. If this team is ever going to achieve what they need to achieve this season Romar has to pull the plug on the Gaddy experiment and bring him off the bench. If Romar continues to start Gaddy the Huskies could be playing in the NIT. In 32 career conference games all of which he has started Gaddy has scored in double figures just five times while scoring four points or less 16 times.

The Huskies let the Ducks back in the conference title race and failed to put them down. Instead the Huskies will now be in a win or go home mode the rest of the season. Due to the conference being weak and a terrible showing in the nonconference season the Huskies can't afford to drop too many more games if any. This was a terrible loss and Romar must once again get his young team focused on the prize. The Ducks embarassed the Huskies for the second straight year down Eugene.  Now the Huskies are hoping to avoid losing back to back games down in Corvallis for the first time since 2002 and 2003 season. The Huskies had owned the state of Oregon but having lost three games in a row in the state after winning five times have changed. The NCAA tournament is still within reach but Romar must make the necessary changes it takes or the tournament won't happen this year.

Romar wins 300th game as Huskies beat Stanford 76-63

By Kshell

Washington Huskies(12-7,5-2) head coach Lorenzo Romar won his 300th game in his career in defeating the Stanford Cardinal(15-5,5-3) 76-63 at home bouncing back from the tough loss to the Cal Bears. Led by freshman Tony Wroten's game high 21 points and a bounce back game off the bench by Darnell Gant the Huskies climbed back into the Pac-12 race. The Huskies also saw a new face help the team off the bench who has made his name so far playing football in Austin Seferian-Jenkins. Although Seferian-Jenkins didn't score he provided energy and tough rebounding which sparked the home crowd as the Huskies revenged their loss against the Golden Bears. For Romar this was his 300th career coach win, and 100th career Pac-12 victory. Earlier in the year Romar won his 200th game as Huskies head coach as well.

In the first half for the first time in a while the Huskies weren't  trailing instead they led at halftime 32-25 despite the third straight first half were Terrence Ross struggled. The Huskies played terrific defense holding the Cardinal to 9-35(25.7%) shooting from the field, making only one for eight(12.5%) from three point range. The only Cardinal to do anything was Josh Owens who had 10 points on 5-12 shooting with five rebounds.

For the Huskies they shot 12-34(35.3%) from the field but also only made one for eight(12.5%) from three point range while making just 7-12(58.3%) from the free throw line. The Huskies were led by their guards Tony Wroten and Abdul Gaddy. Wroten scored 11 points on four for nine shooting while making three for six from free throws. While Gaddy scored nine points on three for five shooting including a three pointer and perfect on two free throw attempts while grabbing three rebounds. Terrence Ross continued his first half struggles lately scoring just two points on one for eight shooting missing all five three point shots. Aziz N'Diaye scored three points on one for four shooting but had five rebounds. Then Seferian-Jenkins provided a boost off the bench grabbing five rebounds for the Huskies.

In the second half the Huskies outscored the Cardinal 44-38 cruising to a 76-63 lead which wasn't close most of the second half. The Huskies held the Cardinal to 23-64(35.9%) from the field, 3-19(15.8%) from three point range and 14-23(60.9%) on free throws.  The Huskies shot well making 30-59(50.8%) from the field, 5-14(35.7%) from three point range but just 11-24(45.8%) from free throws. The Huskies won the rebounding war 39-31 led six guys on the team with five or more rebounds. The Huskies were led by Wroten scoring 21 points on 9-14 shooting but just three for seven on free throws. Wroten also added five rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block. Terrence Ross woke up again in the second half scoring 18 points on 6-17 shooting including two of eight from three point range with seven rebounds. Darnell Gant bounced back from his previous worst game with 17 points off the bench on 7-11 shooting including two of three from three point range while also grabbing seven rebounds. Abul Gaddy scored nine points on three for six shooting with a three pointer while grabbing six rebounds with three assists. Desmond Simmons scored six points for the Huskies on three for five shooting. N'Diaye fouled out scoring five points on two for five shooting while making just one of six free throws but did have six rebounds with a block shot. Seferian-Jenkins fouled out in only 16 minutes while grabbing seven rebounds. This was a solid team win for the Huskies who finally looked to have some depth.

This was a big win for the Huskies and coach Romar who are trying to survive without C.J.Wilcox. The Huskies are now 2-1 without Wilcox but all three games were at home and now the Huskies head on the road for four of the next six games. This will be a tough stretch for the Huskies who will most likely be missing Wilcox during this Arizona trip and possibly more. The energy that Seferian-Jenkins provided was crucial in giving the big men a break as no other big man had provided so much energy on this season. This was a big win for the Huskies basketball program and especially Romar who keeps achieving great milestones this year. The Huskies are back in the Pac-12 race as it appears nobody in this conference wants to take hold of this title.

Cal defeats Huskies 69-66 as comeback falls just short

By Kshell

For the second straight game the Washington Huskies(11-7, 4-2) had a slow first half only this team they couldn't quite overcome it losing to the California Golden Bears(16-4,5-1) 69-66. The Huskies fell behind by 10 points at halftime as they scored only 25 points for the second straight game. In the second half Lorenzo Romar received another technical which sparked a Huskies comeback finally pulling within one possession. When senior captain Darnell Gant's three pointer was short at the buzzer the Golden Bears had survived with a win over the Huskies snapping the Huskies streak of three wins in a row and four out of five against the Golden Bears. The Huskies were again without C.J. Wilcox and this game it showed as they simply don't have enough guys ready to play quality minutes in this conference.


In the first half the Huskies struggled offensively. Neither team could hit a three point shot at all combining to hit 3-16 from three pointers. The Huskies only offense was actually Aziz N'Diaye in the first half as the Huskies just couldn't find any offense for the second straight game in the first half. The Golden Bears shot 13-26(50.0%) from the field, two for nine(22.2%) from three point range and 7-10(70.0%) from free throws. They were led by Allen Crabbe who scored 10 points on three for seven shooting including two three poitners. Robert Thurman off the bench who had only averaged less than three points per game coming into the game scored 12 points on five for seven shooting. Minnesota transfer Justin Cobbs scored six points on two for four shooting.

For the Huskies they struggled in the first half shooting 10-29(34.5%) from the field, one for seven(14.3%) from three point range and four for eight(50.0%) from the free throw line. They were led by N'Diaye who scored eight points on four for five shooting while pulling down seven rebounds. Tony Wroten scored six points on two for seven shooting but made both of his free throw attempts. Terrence Ross for the second straight game would struggle in the first half scoring just two points on one for five shooting while missing both three point attempts.

For the second straight game Ross came alive in the second half for the Huskies. With under 10 seconds left in the game Ross hit a three pointer to pull the Huskies within two points. After the Golden Bears made just one of two free throws they took a timeout. Romar then designed the play to go to Darnell Gant who at that time was 0-8 shooting including 0-5 from three pointers. Abdul Gaddy took the ball up court and then passed to a trailing Gant who was open but missed the shot short like he had all game long. The Huskies missed out on a chance to be in first place and are instead tied with five other teams in conference with two losses.

The Bears won the game as they were led by Crabbe scoring 16 points on 5-11 shooting with two three pointers and grabbing 10 rebounds. Thurman scored 16 points on 7-11 shooting with seven rebounds. Cobbs scored 14 points on 5-11 shooting including a three pointer. Meanwhile for the Huskies they shot 26-64(40.6%) from the field, 5-21(23.8%) from three point range and just 9-14(64.3%) from free throws. They were led by Terrence Ross who scored 15 points on 6-15 shooting including three for eight from three point range with five rebounds. Aziz N'Diaye scored 14 points on 7-11 shooting while grabbing 12 rebounds. Tony Wroten added 14 points on 4-11 shooting with a three pointer and was pefect on all five free throw attempts. He also added three steals. Abdul Gaddy scored 12 points on five for nine shooting with a three pointer. Desmond Simmons scored eight points on three for five shooting with three rebounds. Then Darnell Gant off the bench scored just one point on 0-9 shooting including 0-6 from three pointers while grabbing just two rebounds in 28 minutes. The Huskies need more production from him if they expect to win.

This was a tough loss for the Huskies who had a chance to be in first place in the conference despite being down two key players(Scott Suggs for the season and now C.J. Wilcox). Both those players are great three point shooters and when Gant is ice cold as he is that leaves only Terrence Ross to carry the load from the outside which makes it very easy to defend the Huskies. Despite having two future first round draft picks this team is struggling as Lorenzo Romar didn't recruit any depth. It is quite obvious that this latest recruiting class with the exception of Wroten has been a complete dud that is going to haunt this program for a while. The Huskies lack depth for the first time in the Romar years and this loss was a big reason for it.

Observations:

- The Huskies bench was terrible against the Cal Bears. They scored just three points on 1-13 shooting in 42 minutes played. With Wilcox down Gant is the only bench player that can play. Outside of Gant not other bench player is even averaging two points per game. Which makes Romar's decision to redshirt Scott Suggs even more perplexing. I understand Suggs wanted an entire senior year but by doing that the Huskies most likely won't make the NCAA tournament. This is a game the Huskies win with Suggs who would have been ready to play by now. This last game everyone knew the Golden Bears were going to cover Ross tightly on that last play so Romar went to a guy who hadn't made a shot all game. Also with a healthy Suggs you can rotate him in more with the guards so the Huskies aren't forced to play Gaddy 38 minutes a game.

- Speaking of Gaddy he is really holding this team back. He can't hit a shot from the outside, doesn't do any penetrating and doesn't bring much to the table on defense. Why Romar insists on playing him the most minutes on the team is a mystery to everyone. This past game if you look at the box score you'd think Gaddy had a good game scoring 12 points on five for nine shooting. What you don't see is that Gaddy miss two open layups that started a transition for the Golden Bears who went on a run. If he makes either layup the fans aren't riding Gant right now as the Huskies win the game.

Gaddy the former five-star recruit #2 point guard in the country is now a junior. With Suggs out and Gant being limited he was supposed to have the big season to carry the Huskies. Instead despite averaging 33.1 minutes per game he is only averaging 8.8 PPG and 4.7 APG. He is shooting a terrible 42.5% from the field and an even worse 32.7% from three point range. In Pac-12 play Gaddy is averaging 9.1 PPG, 4.0 APG in 33.5 minutes per game. Especially now with Wilcox out and already with Suggs redshirting Gaddy has to provide the leadership for this team. Hard to be a team leader when you are constantly holding the team back. He looks nothing like a guy who was once so hyped coming out of high school.

-  This loss summed up Romar as a coach really well I thought. The Huskies are playing a first place team who was picked to win the conference without their third best player in C.J. Wilcox and already out their fourth best player in Scott Suggs for the season. Despite that the Huskies battled and pulled within one possession showing heart which is a Romar trait. Then the final possession also summed up Romar as a coach. Instead of putting the ball in his best players hands Terrence Ross he decided to once again out think himself and put the ball in his senior's hands despite not making a shot all game.

Another Romar trait is he always goes with experience over talent. Gant played 28 minutes while missing all nine of his shots and grabbing just two rebounds while the younger Desmond Simmons played only 19 minutes despite scoring eight points with three rebounds. Gaddy played the most minutes with 38. Recruiting young studs like Ross and Wroten does you know good if you don't know how to use them properly. At Kentucky those two would be dominating while with Romar they take a back seat to guys like Gaddy and Gant. The Huskies program will never take the next step until Romar realizes college basketball has evolved and goes with talent over experience.

At the end of the day this was a tough loss for the Huskies because they played so hard. The Huskies had no business being in this game with the way Gant shot and being down Wilcox. The heart is there which earlier in the year it was not which is a good sign. Unfortunately the Huskies just aren't that good this year. They aren't very deep unlike last year when they could afford to lose Gaddy(back when he was good) and have Overton suspended for the Pac-10 tournament they still survived. Last year the Huskies going into the year had 10 guys on scholarship they liked a lot not counting Tyrese Breshers who was injured for his career. This year they have just seven guys so when Wilcox goes down, Gant isn't making a shot and Gaddy is still ineffective that leaves Romar to playing at least one struggling player all game. The decision to redshirt Suggs may have ruined this season more than we thought. Won't matter next year if he is back if that means both Ross and Wroten are gone. This was a great opportunity for the Huskies that came up just short which is probably how their season is going to end up.