The Washington Huskies Men’s Basketball team played their final non-conference home game at Alaska Airlines Arena, against the Seattle University Redhawks.
At the beginning of the first half, the Huskies started out in their 2-3 zone defensively, trying to put pressure on the Redhawks early.
Offensively, the Huskies were aggressive early on, with attacking the basket and trying to score easy buckets to settle into the game.
Sophomore guard Quade Green hit the Huskies first three-pointer of the game, giving the Huskies an early three-point lead.
Defensively, the Huskies gave up some early baskets to Seattle U, as the Redhawks connected on 4 of their first 5 shots from the field.
With a timeout called at the 15:59 mark, the Huskies were leading Seattle U, 10-9, with both teams still feeling each other out early.
After the timeout, the Huskies got hot offensively, with going on a 6-0 run over a 0:46 span that pushed their lead to six points.
It was clear that the Huskies were trying to speed up the tempo of the game and get the ball out in transition, where they excel.
Seattle U would answer the bell offensively, as they got the ball in the hands of their best player, redshirt junior guard Terrell Brown.
He hit shot after shot from all over the court, which paced the Redhawks 7-0 run over a 2:43 span, and their first lead of the game.
At the 11:49 mark, Seattle U was leading 17-16, which prompted a quick timeout so the Huskies could regroup and figure out a plan to stop Brown.
The Huskies would get after it defensively, as they held the Redhawks scoreless on a 1 for 7 drought, while the Huskies continued to stay in the zone.
It seemed as if the Huskies were a bit sluggish from their week off of playing competition, as they couldn’t quite get into a rhythm offensively.
Every time they tried to break the game open, the Huskies would come away with a loose possession or a turnover that stunted momentum.
At the 7:37 mark, the Huskies were only ahead 24-21, and defensively they stuck with the 2-3 zone they started the game in.
The Huskies went on a 3:03 scoring drought, which saw them hanging on to a two-point lead, while playing a very sloppy first half.
Seattle U kept themselves close by taking advantage of the Huskies silly turnovers and found themselves in a tie ballgame at 28-28 with 3:32 left in the half.
Washington head coach Mike Hopkins was clearly frustrated on the sidelines with the play of his team and was looking for a spark of any kind.
With 3:32 left, the Huskies needed to go on a run and finish the half strong to go into halftime; building some kind of momentum for the second half.
The same story that has plagued the Huskies all season long has been those scoreless droughts, that seem to creep up out of nowhere!
Washington went on a 4:55 or more stretch, where they didn’t score any FG’s, which hurt their production and ability to separate themselves from the Redhawks.
The only saving grace in the game was that Seattle U couldn’t buy a basket as well, as they went on a 3:00 minute stretch of not making any FG’s.
It was not a pretty half by any means, as both teams were not in rhythm and were holding on for dear life until the horn sounded for halftime.
At halftime, Seattle U led Washington 33-32 and the crowd was getting antsy, as that half was about the sloppiest half of basketball all season for the Huskies.
The Huskies ended the half on a 6:35 minute drought without scoring any field goals, and their turnover count was all the way up to 9 points.
True freshman forward Isaiah Stewart led the way with 11 points and 6 rebounds for the Huskies, while Green chipped in with 7 points and 1 assist.
Rest assured, Hopkins was in the locker room imploring his team to play with more focus and with better execution coming out for the second half!
At the start of the second half, the Huskies started out hot with Green hitting a three-point shot and Stewart making a layup resulting in five quick points.
The Huskies definitely came out with more energy in the second half and Hopkins halftime talk must have gotten through to them!
At the 17:09 mark, the Huskies were leading the Redhawks 39-37, as they were clearly trying to be the aggressor on both ends of the floor.
Getting second chance opportunities was an issue all night long, as the Huskies had only one offensive rebound for the whole game.
Green connected on another three-pointer, as they Huskies were trying to stretch the Redhawks defense and create some driving lanes.
Stewart was also effective on the interior, with bullying his way to the basket with 15 points and 7 rebounds at the 15:51 mark.
As a result, the Huskies pushed their lead to 43-40, but the Redhawks were still lingering around and making a game out of it themselves.
Over the next couple of minutes the Huskies connected for 4 of 5 on FG attempts and started to settle into the game offensively.
At this point it was anybody’s game – this was clearly going to be a grind it out type of a game with whoever takes care of the ball better.
During a media timeout, the Huskies were leading the Redhawks 50-46 with 11:32 left in the game, with everyone waiting for the Huskies to separate on the scoreboard.
Taking care of the basketball was an issue, as the Huskies had three turnovers in a 2:59 stretch, causing their lead to dwindle down to only two points.
Stewart connected on a short basket and junior forward Hameir Wright hit a three-pointer, giving the Huskies five quick points.
At the 8:16 mark, the Huskies pushed their lead out to 55-50, and now they just needed to play sound basketball and extend their lead the rest of the way.
Both teams would trade baskets for the next couple of minutes and the Huskies found themselves still with a five point lead at 57-52, with 6:41 left to play.
Offensively the Huskies were starting to pound the ball inside to Stewart, who was too strong on the interior for the Redhawks to handle.
The Huskies went on a mini-surge, igniting the Husky crowd, as they tried everything they could to get behind their time and provide support.
With 4:24 left to play, the Huskies were ahead 63-54 and all signs pointed to this finally being the separation point on the scoreboard.
Washington was on a 7-0 run over their last 1:48, which was nice to see, and it was all spearheaded by Stewart being a force inside!
It was a Stewart takeover down the stretch, as he took the game over and single handedly delivered the win for the Huskies!
In the final minute, the Huskies pulled away from the Redhawks en route to a sloppy victory that surely was not a pretty win by any means.
The Huskies will have to cut down on their turnovers going forward and find a way to avoid these scoring droughts and score more efficiently.
When the final horn sounded, the Huskies won the game 81-59, which concluded their non-conference home slate for the season.
The Huskies were led by the “Dynamic Duo” of Isaiah Stewart and Quade Green on the night. Stewart had 27 points and 13 rebounds for another “double-double.” Green finished with 20 points and 3 assists of his own.
Both players had career high’s in points scored, as Green tied his previous high of 20 points and Stewart now holds 27 as his new benchmark.
Seattle University was led by guard Terrell Brown, who finished with 21 points and 7 rebounds, which helped the Redhawks keep the game close all night.
Next up for the Huskies is the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu, Hawaii. The game will be played on Sunday, December 22nd at 6:30 p.m. PT, against the Ball State Cardinals at Stan Sheriff Center.
WASHINGTON VS. SEATTLE UNIVERSITY FINAL BOX SCORE
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