Washington Men’s Basketball returned to non-conference action on Saturday night, hosting the Southern Utah Thunderbirds. Saturday night’s game was the first of four non-conference games the Huskies will play to close out December. The Huskies were looking to build on an impressive 18-point conference win in Los Angeles over the USC Trojans on December 6th. The Huskies did that and more in their blowout over the Thunderbirds.
Washington dominates the first half
The Huskies’ size and athleticism overwhelmed the Thunderbirds early on. Washington attacked the paint often and made multiple trips to the foul line. The Huskies shot 15/17 from the free-throw line and scored 24 points from inside the key. Washington also racked up 14 points off seven Southern Utah turnovers. Nine Husky players made the stat sheet in the first half with a basket. The Huskies’ balanced scoring attack led to a 53-33 lead .
Forward Bryson Tucker makes his return
Bryson Tucker came back from the injured list after missing six games with an ankle injury. He checked in off the bench early in Saturday’s game. Tucker scored his first points since November 9th on made free throws. He later threw down a dunk to mark his return to the Huskies. After the game, Tucker spoke about the dunk and his return to the team:
“The first dunk I had it caught me off guard a little because I didn’t have my legs. That’s why I couldn’t really get up, but on that one, it felt much better because I had my legs up under me. And then obviously I was practicing with them this whole week before the game, and so it was great to be able to share the floor with them again”, said Tucker.
Seeing Tucker come back and play as if he never left the team was amazing to see on Saturday. Tucker finished the half with eight points (tied with J.J. Mandaquit and Desmond Claude for the team lead), two rebounds, and an assist.
Washington finishes off the Thunderbirds in the second half
The Huskies continued their dominance of Southern Utah in the second half. Wesley Yates heated up from beyond the arc, hitting three consecutive three-pointers. While Yates worked the outside, Hannes Steinbach did his business inside, scoring on all four of his field goals for the half. Danny Sprinkle emptied his bench around the seven-minute mark after his team took an 89-56 lead. Nikola Dzepina, who was just cleared to play, scored five points in his debut as a Husky late in the game. B.J. Roy checked into the game for the first time all year as well, in Washington’s 105-69 blowout win.
Credit Images to Anthony May
Key Stats from the Huskies’ big win over Southern Utah
Six Washington players scored in double figures: Wesley Yates (14 points), Hannes Steinbach (14 points), Bryson Tucker (12 points), Desmond Claude (12 points), J.J. Mandaquit (11 points), and Zoom Diallo (10 points). The Huskies stuffed the stat sheet on Saturday as 12 players scored at least one point. Danny Sprinkle spoke about his team’s performance and what he wants them to work on going forward:
“Yeah, phenomenal team win. You know, I’m not, I wouldn’t say phenomenal, actually. I thought our defense still has a lot to be desired. We got to get better in that aspect. Guarding the basketball, and keeping the ball out of the paint. But really proud of our guys, you know sharing the basketball, 21 assists, two turnovers. You know, and I thought our guys were playing for each other, you know, and when we do take care of the basketball and have less than 10 turnovers, you know, I think we’ve scored over 92 every single game. But I was proud of all of our guys. You know, I thought we you know, it was great to have our, you know, true freshmen, Nicola, who just go here, probably about 100 hours ago, and never even touched US soil and got in the game and got a shot up within the first five seconds he was on the court. But you can see it like, even when he made his three. You know, I mean, he could really shoot the basketball and excited to, you know for his future as a Husky. And then obviously Courtland Muldrew. You know, you see flashes of his athleticism and just how, I mean, just reckless he plays which I love”, said Sprinkle.
Although Sprinkle was not satisfied with his team’s defense in the paint (the Thunderbirds scored 38 points inside the key), he was thrilled to see freshmen who had not had an opportunity to play all season take the floor. Seeing Nikola Dzepina play for four minutes was amazing because he just became eligible to play on Saturday. Freshman Courtland Muldrew also scored the first basket of his career in 11 minutes of action. Overall, Sprinkle was happy with how the Huskies played together as a team. Washington finished the game with 21 assists and just two turnovers. The Huskies have been working to play better team basketball the past three weeks. Seeing them share the ball more as players return is an encouraging sign as Washington prepares for conference play in January.
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