Huskies struggle in home opener
Washington's star-studded basketball team showed up for its home opener with a Baylor upset under its belt and a day-old national ranking. The opponent started all an-freshmen lineup.
For those expecting a mismatch, lethargy was the winner for three-quarters of play.
On a Tuesday night in a half full gym, the 20th-ranked Huskies overcame energy struggles and inched away over the final 10 minutes to beat game Mount St. Mary's 56-46 at Alaska Airlines Arena.
So much for all of the 5-star rankings and one-and-done hype. Cohesion needs to show up, too.
It took a couple of old guys, Naz Carter and Hameir Wright, to smooth things out for the Huskies (2-0).
We've got a lot of talent on our team and we've got to figure out how to play better," Carter said.
A thunderous one-handed dunk by the junior with 9:23 remaining woke everyone up. It was two of his 14 points. It was highlight reel on a night when there were no other candidates.
Carter raced in from the right side and threw it down for a 40-34 advantage. The home crowd got on its feet for the first time all night and roared its appreciation for several seconds.
The Huskies didn't take the lead for good until Wright earlier dropped in a 3-pointer from the right side, putting his team up 36-34.
Up until then, it was a sloppy, closer-than-it-needed-to-be contest for the Huskies (2-0). The teams were tied at at 21 at half.
Freshman post player Isaiah Stewart led all scorers with 16 points, most on lobs over double-teams. He used his body well inside and connected on 7 of 10 shots. He also chipped in five blocks in a workmanlike effort. But he wasn't used enough.
"We're going to have our ups and downs with this team," UW coach Mike Hopkins conceded.
It wasn't pretty but it wasn't a disaster either. The coach said his players looked tentative, especially Kentucky transfer Quade Green. A good shooter, he had just four attempts and finished with 5 points.
Hopkins, in rather humorous form described Green's struggles in this video here. Even if you've heard the coach do this bit before, check it out.
