The high and lows were evident in Washington’s 77-70, loss to Providence in the 2K Classic, at Madison Square Garden, Thursday night.
Washington had 16 first-half turnovers, that led to a 37-30 halftime deficit.
But with the growing pains came some positives. The Huskies came storming back out of the half, tying the game, 43-43, with 15:38 remaining, after two made Noah Dickerson free throws. After that, the Friars once again looked like they were going to pull away when Drew Edwards a made 3-pointer, giving Providence, a 68-56 lead with 6:56 to play. But the Huskies once again rallied. After a 9-0 run, UW trailed 68-65 with just 2:52 to play. Noah Dickerson would foul out on the next possession however and the Huskies could not complete the comeback.
The Huskies’ defense did allow the Friars to shoot 51 percent from the field but forced 19 turnovers. On offense, UW struggled to get much going. Washington shot 40.7 percent from the field and turned the ball over 19 times.
The Providence Friars, who returned all five starters and their top eight scorers from a season ago, were led by 6-foot-8 senior, Rodney Bullock, who scored 17 points and 10 rebounds. Kalif Young, Drew Edwards, and Alpha Diallo, added 11 points each.
Washington was once again led by 6-foot-8, Noah Dickerson, who scored 19 points and added six rebounds. Freshman, Jaylen Nowell, added 14 points and seven steals. David Crisp and Matisse Thybulle combined to score 22 points, but shot a combined 8-25 from the field.
The Huskies will play Virginia Tech tomorrow at 2 p.m. (PT) in the third place game. You can watch the game on ESPN2.
