The Husky Haul
Fansided

UW Men’s Basketball Lose at Arizona State 86-75

By Bret Stuter

Jan 21, 2017; Seattle, WA, USA; Washington Huskies head coach Lorenzo Romar claps during the first half against the Utah Utes at Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion. Utah won 94-72. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Buchanan-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 21, 2017; Seattle, WA, USA; Washington Huskies head coach Lorenzo Romar claps during the first half against the Utah Utes at Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion. Utah won 94-72. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Buchanan-USA TODAY Sports /
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University of Washington Men’s Basketball Team Lose at Arizona State University 86-75

You may think that sitting on a projected top draft pick in the upcoming 2017 NBA draft would give the University of Washington Men’s basketball team some wins against unranked NCAA teams. But if you think that way, you’d be wrong.

Not even Markelle Fultz could manage a win on the road against the Arizona State University Sun Devils, as the Huskies dropped a badly needed game 86-75.

The loss drops the Huskies to 9-11 and places in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament for the sixth straight season. Even moreso, the loss drops the team to 2-6 in the Pac-12. Their worst Pac-12 record under Romar was 5-13, a record that this team is vulnerable to tying or worse.

Good Start

The game started well for the Huskies, who jumped out to an 8-1 lead on Matisse Thybulle’s layup. But the Huskies began to turn the ball over, opening the door to the Sun Devils, who took advantage to take the lead 22-16.  It was not until Noah Dickerson passed to a driving David Crisp that the Huskies retook the lead, 23-22 with 3:42 remaining in the first half.

The Huskies never led after that.

Point guard Markelle Fultz led all scorers with 28 points. He also added 8 rebounds, 9 assists, and two steals in the loss. The Sun Devils were powered by 25 points from Shannon Evans II and 23 points from Tra Holder.

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Keys To Loss

The difference in the game was the defense applied by ASU.  They held the Huskies to below averages on free goals (40.3 percent) and three-pointers (35.5 percent). In fact, it was not a very accurate night for the Huskies at all, shooting just 46.2 percent from the free thrown line.

The other factor in the game was the fouling.  The Huskies were called on 26 fouls, to just 15 for the home team Sun Devils.

The teams will face off again on Thursday February 16 at 11 PM. Next Up for Arizona State is a January 29th contest to face the Washington State Cougars. The Huskies will be back on the road on the same date to face the seventh-ranked Arizona Wildcats.

Next: Can Washington Huskies WBB Find Third Standout?

The loss will do nothing to relieve the pressure building upon the Huskies to revamp the basketball team coaching structure. In the end, even the highly ranked 2017 basketball recruiting class may not be enough to save the status quo.

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