Washington basketball dominated professional Italian teams, and gave us a great look at what’s to come this year
Game 1 took place in Rome against the Peak Warriors. Washington basketball won easily 94-35. Many of the Huskies points came off of steals and fastbreak points. The Warriors didn’t know how to deal with the Huskies’ 2-3 zone.
Junior Nahziah Carter, one of the few returning stars from last season, led the Huskies with 18 points and five rebounds. Five-star freshman Isaiah Stewart and redshirt freshman Nate Roberts both contributed 16 points, while Stewart added seven rebounds and Roberts had nine. Sophomore guard Jamal Bey came away with 12 points while fellow freshman Marcus Tsohonis had 11.
The Huskies played without senior center Sam Timmins and junior guard Quin Barnard both ineligible to play since they had played on a previous foreign tour. Also, five-star forward Jaden McDaniels didn’t make the trip for personal reasons.
In Game 2, the Huskies played against the Peak Warriors again in Rome. This time the Huskies won 91-46. Stewart scored 24 points and added 16 rebounds. Carter came away with 18 points and six rebounds. Jamal Bay had 13 points in this game. Junior Hameir Wright the only returning starter from last season’s team had seven points and seven rebounds. Nate Roberts came off the bench with seven points along with nine rebounds.
For Game 3, Washington traveled to Pistoia. This was the closest of the four games; with the Huskies only winning 73-59. Stewart showed again his high ceiling, coming away with 25 points and nine rebounds. Carter continued to show what he will look this coming season as well. He had a double-double night scoring 17 points and 10 rebounds.
In the final game, the Huskies played in Siena, winning 97-39. Carter had his second double-double in a row, finishing with 20 points and 11 points. Stewart continued to play well, finishing with13 points and 12 rebounds. Jamal Bey and Tsohonis looked good again in the backcourt. Bey had 16 points while Tsohonis had 12. These two have to take over at guard with the exit of David Crisp and Jaylen Nowell.
Mike Hopkins said what he liked about playing in Italy was that he was able to use different combinations of lineups to see what worked. The Huskies don’t play again until Halloween, when they have an exhibition against Western Washington.
Having McDaniels in the lineup in October will allow us to see Isaiah Stewart and Jaden McDaniels play as a tandem. Right now the starting lineup looks like to be Stewart, McDaniels, Carter, Bey , and Tsohonis.
Wright, sophomore Elijah Hardy, and Roberts look to be major contributors off the bench. Timmins will show his leadership coming off the bench too. He averaged 10.4 minutes per game last season, with 1.9 points and 2.2 rebounds. His playing time will depend on how much he has matured on the court over the off-season.
Things will probably change when Pac-12 play begins, when transfer Quade Green is eligible to play.