As his teammates struggled to find the bottom of the net in the first half, 6-foot-8, Noah Dickerson, who opted to comeback after pondering his transfer options in the off season (after Lorenzo Romar was let go), scored 20 points, and added 11 rebounds in the first half alone.
Dickerson went on to score a career high 28 points and 22 rebounds (also a career high), as the Washington Huskies beat the Eastern Washington Eagles, 79-69, to improve to 2-0 on the season.
“We need to get Noah Dickerson the ball,” coach Mike Hopkins said after the win.”He’s one of the best low post players in our league for sure and I don’t know how many guys that are as good as him in the country.”
The Huskies were in a battle for much of the first half with an Eastern Washington team that had seven players from the state of Washington. UW ended the half with a 40-36 lead, after David Crisp made a buzzer beating 3-pointer.
Washington was sparked in the second half by two early 3-pointers from Dominic Green. After making just 1-of-9 three-pointers in the first half, the Huskies made 5-of-7 three-pointers in the second half. As EWU’s defense focused shifted towards stopping Noah Dickerson, other players shined in the second half to give UW the win
It was Washington’s defense, outside of Noah Dickerson, that carried UW to their second straight win. The Huskies held Eastern Washington to 40 percent (22-55) shooting.
“I was proud of our defense – bottom line,” coach Hopkins said. “Well if you look at the numbers, our goals are always to hold teams under 40 percent from the field and 30 percent from the 3-point line. We were worried about the 3-point ball. They made three (3-pointers) late. For the most part we held to our goals. To be a great team and a great program, defense has to be what you do. I still feel like, with our scheme and how we’re playing, there’s still a lot of growth to be had – obliviously.”
Next up for the Huskies is a trip to New York, where they will play in the 2K Sports Classic (Benefiting Wounded Warrior Project). The Huskies will face Providence, Thursday, November, 16th, at 6:30 p.m on ESPN2. They will also play Friday against either Virginia Tech or Saint Louis in the championship game or third place game. All games will be played in the Madison Square Garden.
