In a game that seemed destined for overtime, Washington’s Jaylen Nowell hit 3 free throws with 1.6 to go and the Huskies held on for their first win ever at Matthew Knight Arena 61-56 over the Oregon Ducks.
It was also the Huskies first win in Eugene in 9 years but it didn’t come easy. The Huskies seemed determined to give the game away with an un-character number of second half turnovers.
The Huskies had a comfortable 51 to 42 lead following a 3-pointer from Naz Carter with 8:07 to go. But then the Huskies would go scoreless over the next 6 minutes and Oregon took its first lead since the opening basket when Payton Pritchard hit a 3 to put the Ducks up 52-51. Oregon capped a 14-0 run on a layin from Louis King with 2:33 to go.
The Huskies though would get stops every possession down the stretch. Nowell answered King’s layup with a field goal of his own that appeared blocked by Kenny Wooten but the referees whistled for goaltending to make it 53-56. The next time down the court for Washington Matisse Thybulle passed up an open corner 3 to find Nowell at the top of the key for a 3 that tied the game at 56.
Washington had chances to take the lead back but on consecutive possessions but Thybulle was whistled for an offensive foul on one trip down then missed an open 3 with 28 seconds to go. Oregon was holding for the last shot but Pritchard lost control at the top of the key while giving Nowell a chance to dribble the other way.
He threw up a running 3-pointer with 1.6 seconds to go but as he pulled up to get arc on his shot, a trailing Pritchard undercut him ever so slightly and the referees whistled for 3 free throws. Husky fans likely saw flashes of Justin Dentmon fouling Chris Hernandez 13 years ago in Maples Pavilion at the buzzer over 40 feet from the hoop in a game the #10 Huskies would eventually lose in overtime to an unranked Stanford team.
Like Hernandez, Nowell hit all three free throws and on the ensuing possession, Oregon threw the ball away. Thybulle hit two more free throws to ice the game for the Huskies who matched the 1983-1984 team by starting 6-0 in conference play.
Keys to the Game
Jaylen Nowell is still “The Closer”
With Oregon up 5 with just under 3 minutes to go, Nowell scored the next 8 points to turn a 56-51 deficit into a 59-56 lead for Washington. Nowell earned his reputation as a closer last year as a freshman but the majority of the Huskies’ Pac-12 games this season have not been close. He was fearless when his senior laden team looked surprisingly rattled and he finished with 20 points (led both teams), 6 rebounds (led both teams) and was efficient going 7 of 12 from the field and 3 of 4 from beyond the arc.
Oregon’s pressure
Oregon deserves a lot of credit as they scored nearly twice as many points (37) in the second half than they did in the first (19). The catalyst was a full-court press that forced 12 turnovers by the Huskies in the second half alone. Usually the Huskies win the turnover battle but Oregon forced just as many as UW (19 for each team). In the first half Oregon couldn’t figure out the UW zone but by forcing turnovers they were able to push the ball and get fast-break points before the Huskies could setup their zone. Oregon looked overmatched early with Washington going a 13-0 run after the Ducks scored on their opening position but they never let the Huskies pull too far away.
Washington continues to shoot well
Washington shot in the 50/40/80 range that coaches love. The Huskies shot over 50% from the field (55%), 40% from 3 (8 of 20) and 82% from the line (9 of 11). The Huskies turned the ball over way too many times but when they got shots off they were lethal. David Crisp continued his hot shooting going 4 of 8 from downtown and providing 18 points.
On to the player grades.
Dickerson – 7.5 – Dickerson got his shot off a lot quicker this week. He was 5 for 5 from the field and scored 11 points. He turned the ball over 3 times but started to recognize double teams coming and ended up with 3 assist.
Wright – 4 – In 13 minutes Wright was held scoreless turning the ball over twice. For the second consecutive game he failed to grab a rebound.
Thybulle – 5.5 – Thybulle actually didn’t score until the final .5 seconds of the game when he made two free throws but he did his usual work facilitating (7 assist) and being a menace on defense (1 block and 3 steals). He was 0-4 from the field (all 3’s) and had 4 turnovers. His 7th assist was arguably his biggest, the earlier mentioned open corner 3 he unselfishly passed up to find the hot handed Nowell.
Crisp – 8 – Crisp hit half of his 3’s and still lowered his percentage in conference play, that’s how hot he has been. Only negative for Crisp was his turnovers (4), your senior guard shouldn’t make so many careless passes against a full-court press. Nowell – 10 – Definitely one of Nowell’s guttiest performances. He was efficient, he didn’t crumble under pressure (just 1 turnover in 35 minutes) and he had the best plus/minus of any Husky (+11). It’s intriguing to think how good the Huskies can be if he comes back next year but performances like this speak to his NBA potential.
Bey – 6.5 – The young freshman clearly understands his role right now is to help on the boards and defend, you have to figure that’s why he’s playing more than Elijah Hardy and others. Bey grabbed 3 of the Huskies 21 rebounds in just 7 minutes.
Carter – 5 – Carter seems to be in a bit of a funk, after averaging 12.5 points his first 4 Pac-12 games he had just 4 against Cal on Saturday and 3 Thursday against Oregon. In 14 minutes he went 1-3 from the field with 2 turnovers.
Green – 5 – Green was a bit of a non-factor with no points or rebounds in 21 minutes. He only attempted one field goal and it wasn’t a 3-pointer. Oregon clearly made an effort to make sure he didn’t get any open looks but it would have been nice to see him contribute in other ways.
Timmins – 8 – While Carter, Bey and Green combined for just 3 points in 42 minutes, Timmins scored 7 straight points late in the first half. The 7 points were a season-high and much needed on a night where Washington’s bench was unusually ineffective.
Outlook: The Huskies will go for their first sweep in Oregon since the 2010 season when they play the Beavers on Saturday. Three starters played at least 35 minutes so the bench will need to play better in Corvallis. It’s been over 50 years since the Huskies started a season 7-0 in conference pla
