Huskies handle hex: Losing streak at Stanford ends at 15
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UW 75, Stanford 68
STANFORD, CALIF. – When it came time for Washington to finally stare down its 15-game losing streak at Maples Pavilion, the Huskies turned to a player who had never lost there.
That was freshman Isaiah Thomas, who hit a hanging shot in traffic at crunch time that snuffed any magic Stanford might have been conjuring.
The shot drew a gasp from the crowd, then silence. After that, Stanford was out of answers as Washington pulled away for a 75-68 victory.
“I just had to create something,” Thomas said. “… That was a normal thing. You’ve got to get it over the big guys.”
Except there’s nothing normal about Washington winning at Maples Pavilion.
From outside, the arena looks utterly normal: a bland flat rectangle of brick and glass. But inside, it is Narnia. It is Oz. A magical place where Huskies cannot win. Or at least, had not won since 1993.
They had come close often. They had held leads that vanished. But that only added to the mystery.
So on Sunday, even when the Huskies led by 15 points with just over 10 minutes remaining, they could hardly have been blamed for half-wondering when the Cardinal would turn into flying monkeys, swoop in and take it all away from them.
And then, right on schedule, the lead started to melt – all the way down to three points with just over two minutes remaining.
“It was interesting,” coach Lorenzo Romar said. “I would have to admit it did look like some other games that we’ve had here down the stretch.”
At that crucial moment, during a timeout, Romar decided to put the ball in the hands of his freshman from Tacoma.
“Sometimes the more skilled the offensive player, the less you have to do,” Romar said. “Just try to put him in a situation where he has some room to operate. … I felt that was a big shot that broke the drought a little bit. You could feel our guys get energized by that one.”
Thomas headed for the hoop, admitting later that even he didn’t know exactly what he was going to do once he got there.
“I just had to create something,” he said “… Once I lift I kind of just see what the defender’s going to do and I try to get my body into the big guy – try to create contact and hang a little longer than he can.”
There wasn’t enough contact for a whistle, but Thomas nailed the shot.
“He hits tons of shots just like that all the time,” said junior Quincy Pondexter, who led UW with 20 points. “But I don’t think their fans were really expecting it. I heard them all gasp.”
The bucket gave Washington a five-point lead. Two Justin Dentmon free throws made it seven. A Venoy Overton layup made it nine. More free throws from Pondexter and Overton increased it to 11 in the final seconds. Finally, Stanford (14-7 overall, 4-7 Pacific-10 Conference) was done, and the streak was over.
“It feels good just for (the seniors) to get a win against these guys,” Overton said. “That’s crazy: 15 years is a long time.”
It was the second major skid that Jon Brockman, Justin Dentmon and Artem Wallace have seen broken in their senior seasons – following a win over Washington State after seven straight losses.
With those deeds done, Brockman was asked what remains on his senior-year to-do list.
“This win really leaves us with a good shot to be in the title race, and that’s something that hasn’t been done for a long time, either,” he said. “We’ve got to go home … and really take advantage of our home court. That’s probably the last thing on the list: enjoy our last games on our home court.”
The win leaves Washington (17-6, 8-3) a half-game behind conference leader UCLA. Five of the Huskies’ last seven Pac-10 games, and six of their final eight overall will be played at home. The next is Thursday when they play host to Oregon State.
Don Ruiz, 253-597-8808
blogs.thenewstribune.com/uwsports
LOOKING BACK
The Washington Huskies beat Stanford at Maples Pavilion in men’s basketball Sunday for the first time since Jan. 30, 1993. How long has it been? Here’s a look back to January 1993:
Disney’s “Aladdin” was the No. 1 movie at the box office for the second consecutive week.
Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” was Billboard’s No. 1 song.
A top-of-the-line hi-fi VCR at Silo was selling for $369.99.
The national average for a gallon of gas was $1.07.9.
A 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 7.9 percent.
A
1993 Tercel was priced at $7,963 at Toyota of Puyallup.
A Motorola flip phone was $289.99 at Future Shop.
A three-bedroom, 13/4 bath rambler with two-car garage in North Tacoma was listed at $129,500
“Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman” was a popular Saturday night TV show on Ch. 7. HUSKIES IN REVIEW: NO. 22 WASHINGTON 75, STANFORD 68
Star of the game: Coach Lorenzo Romar called guard Venoy Overton the game’s MVP. No argument here. Overton came off the bench to provide 11 points, five assists, five steals, three rebounds and a lot of defense and energy.
Key stats: Stanford shot 52.9 percent from the free-throw line (9-of-17), while UW hit 75 percent (21-of-28). Stanford also had trouble shooting from the field, hitting 41.9 percent to UW’s 47.3. The Huskies outrebounded the Cardinal, 39-34.
Key run: After nine ties and 10 lead changes in the first half, Washington scored the first nine points of the second half to take control, 44-34. Stanford whittled the lead down to three points in the final minutes, but never made it all the way back.
Observations: This was UW’s first win at Maples Pavilion since 1993, ending a run of 15 straight losses. … UW senior Jon Brockman had 13 points and 12 rebounds. It was his 53rd career double-double, which is the most among active players. … After going 2-2 over a season-high stretch of four road games, the Huskies now end the regular season with six of their final eight games at home.
Quotable: “I’m proud of our guys. I think our guys have done a really good job through this schedule.” – UW coach Lorenzo Romar as the Huskies return home after back-to-back road splits in Arizona and the Bay Area.
Next: 8 p.m. Thursday vs. Oregon State, at Hec Edmundson Pavilion; FSN.
Don Ruiz, The News Tribune
