Huskies Beat Beavers By Free Throws 75-72

The Huskies traveled to Oregon and were able to take one of two, winning against Oregon State. The Beavers gave them a run for their money as there were nearly 15 lead changes in this game. It wasn’t an easy win and there were plenty of mental mistakes for both teams.

This game wasn’t a pretty game. Parts were exceptionally dull with a 10 minute break in the game to clean up spilled ice cream. Both teams were having mental mistakes which made it hard to watch, the refs were making terrible calls on both ends of the floor, and the pace of Oregon State has a lulling affect.

However, in the end it came down to free-throws for Washington and they were able to get CJ Wilcox, Desmond Simmons, and Terrence Ross to the line in the final minutes. Between the three of them, there were only two missed free-throws (in the final minute of the game). They converted 8 of 10 to seal the game.

Washington stays tied with California atop the Pac-12 standings and Oregon State drops to amongst the bottom schools in the conference. They will need to win the Pac-12 tournament to go to the NCAA tournament. However, it looks like only one or two teams will find their way to the NCAA tournament and so that top tournament spot will be a hot commodity. When in other years there tends to be one or two Pac-12 teams that are already guaranteed an NCAA birth.

The stars in this game were the two many picked before this game; Terrence Ross and Jared Cunningham. Ross came out cold to start the game but he was able to warm himself up by the second half as he ended with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Ross also added 2 blocks and a steal.

Cunningham was able to add a basket in the final second to put him at 23 points, he also had 7 rebounds.

Other notes and thoughts: 

• CJ Wilcox had a good game with 17 points on 7-9 from the free throw line. He wasn’t hitting on his three point shots, only going 2-7, but he found other ways to score.
• Tony Wroten had a rough game in the paint, he is so used to finding ways to score on his drive but he was called for a couple charges and he had a few of his shots blocked. He was still able to get 12 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals.
• Shawn Kemp Jr. still plays like a young freshman but he shows plenty of promise. He was able to collect 5 points.
• Abdul Gaddy had 8 points but on 3 of 10 shooting. He also added to the game by getting 4 assists.
• Darnell Gant was in foul trouble for the majority of the game and eventually he fouled out. He only had 2 points.
• Desmond Simmons wins the hustle award again, he had 9 rebounds and 4 points. His two free throws were big for the Huskies in the final moments of the game.
• Austin Seferian-Jenkins saw limited action.