Jan. 5, 1998 SEATTLE -- Three players combined for 56 points, led by the 21 of Donald Watts, as Washington opened Pacific-10 Conference play with an 82-76 victory at Edmundson Pavilion. Washington improved to 8-2 overall with their third consecutive win over the cross-state rival Cougars (7-5, 0-1) who played their first game without leading scorer Rodrigo de la Fuente. The Huskies burst out to a 14-2 lead five minutes into the game before Washington State drew within 38-33 at halftime. Watts opened the second half with consecutive 3-pointers followed by a Deon Luton trey that put the UW ahead 47-33. Those 3-pointers ignited a 19-8 run that give the Huskies their largest lead of the game at 18 points with 13:08 left in the game. Trailing 70-51 with 3:47 remaining, WSU scored 12 unanswered points to close within five points with 1:36 to play. Carlos Daniel tallied six of his season-high 25 points during the run. He also contributed a career-best 16 rebounds for the Cougars who had a 35-34 edge on the boards. Washington repelled the rally, converting 12 of 16 free throws to close the game. Luton finished with 20 points, including 4-of-7 shooting from 3-point range. Todd MacCulloch scored 15 points for the Huskies and capped his fourth double-double of the year with 11 rebounds. Kojo Mensah-Bonsu scored 13 points for WSU which also got 11 from Chris Crosby and Steve Slotemaker.
Washington 82, Washington State 76 Washington State -- Daniel 25, Crosby 11, Nelson 4, Pengelly 4, Kazadi 8, Hutchens 0, Mensah-Bonsu 13, Slotemaker 11. Totals -- 28-64, 3-10, 17-26, 76. Washington -- Luton 20, Femerling 6, MacCulloch 15, Wooten 9, Watts 21, Dickau 0, Thompson 0, Johnson 8, Walcott 2, Green 0. Totals -- 26-51, 9-19, 21-31, 82.
Halftime Score -- Washington 38, WSU 33. |
