GAME: Washington (4-3 overall, 0-0 Pac-12) at San Diego State (6-1 overall, 0-0, Mountain West). WHEN: Sunday, 12:05 p.m., Viejas Arena. TYPE: Non-conference. MEETING: 3rd (UW leads 2-0). RANKINGS: San Diego State 24 AP. COACHES: Lorenzo Romar, Washington; Steve Fisher, San Diego State. TV: CBS. RADIO: KJR 950 AM
Unless the Washington Huskies can sort out their defensive problems — they allow a Pac-12-high 86.1 points per game — Sunday’s matinee at San Diego State is not one the Huskies figure to win. The Aztecs are ranked No. 24 by The Associated Press and the Huskies rarely defeat a ranked team on the road.
In 126 all-time road games against ranked opponents, Washington has won only 15. While 10 have come under Romar, he hasn’t had one since defeating No. 14 Arizona State Jan. 31, 2009. Plus, this year’s Huskies have struggled to win home games. They required two overtimes to beat Long Beach State in their last outing and a second-half rally to upend Montana in the game before that.
The Huskies are still trying to figure out how to deal with a roster depleted by injuries to Jernard Jarreau, out for the season (ACL), and Desmond Simmons (knee), out until the end of December.
Steve Fisher’s Aztecs, already with two victories over ranked foes, are led by Xavier Thomas, a 6-foot-3 senior guard from Sacramento who is averaging 17.1 points and knocked down a season-high 29 in San Diego State’s 67-59 victory over No. 25 Marquette Dec. 1. Thomas also had 26 in a 86-80 win over No. 20 Creighton.
Winston Shepard averages 11.0 and JJ O’Brien 10.7 while Josh Davis leads San Diego State in rebounds at 9.4.
Although the Huskies played twice in the 2K Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden in November, this will be Washington’s first true road game this season. The Huskies will take nearly a week off before returning to Alaska Airlines Arena Dec. 14 to face Idaho State.
SERIES: Dates to Dec. 27, 2003, when Washington won 92-81 at Alaska Airlines Arena. The teams last met Dec. 7, 2004, also in Seattle, the Huskies romping 98-64 as Nate Robinson scored 24 points and Tre Simmons added 23.
UW STATS / NOTES
- REGULAR-SEASON SUMMARY: Record: 4-3. Home: 4-1. Road: 0-0. Neutral: 0-2. Vs. Pac-12: 0-0. Vs. Pac-12 North: 0-0. Vs. Pac-12 South: 0-0. Vs. Non-Conference: 4-3. Points: 589 (84.1). Field Goal Pct.: 43.1 3-Pt. FG Pct.: 35.0. Free Throw Pct.: 76.6. Rebounds: 259 (37.0). Assists: 94 (13.4). Turnovers: 63 (9.0). Steals: 39 (5.6). Blocks: 30 (4.3). Points Against: 603 (86.1). Opp. FG Pct.: 51.8. Opp. 3-Pt. FG Pct.: 38.6. Opp FT Pct.: 60.6. Opp. Rebounds: 256 (36.6). Opp. Assists: 107 (15.3). Opp. Turnovers: 80 (11.4). Opp. Steals: 26 (3.7). Opp. Blocks: 34 (4.0).
- PAC-12 RANKINGS: Scoring Offense — 5th (84.1). Scoring Defense — 12th (86.1). Scoring Margin — 12th (-2.0). FG Pct. — 11th (43.1). FT Pct. — 1st (76.6). 3-Pt FG Pct. — 7th (35.0). Rebound Margin — 11th (-0.9). Blocked Shots — 8th (4.2). Assists — 11th (13.4). Steals — T7 (5.5). Turnover Margin — 3rd (+2.4).
- RATINGS PERCENTAGE INDEX: Nov. 11 — 99; Nov. 18 — 96; Nov. 25 — 150; Dec. 2 — 218.
- C.J. Wilcox set the Washington school record for career 3-pointers when he hit three against Long Beach State. Wilcox now has 233, passing Ryan Appleby’s previous mark.
- The Huskies are 82-321 all-time against top-25 opponents, including 15-111 on the road.
- Washington has had at least five players reach double figures in scoring in four of seven games.
- Washington’s free throw percentage of 76.6 is the best under Romar.
- Senior Perris Blackwell is averaging nearly a double-double at 13.0 points and 8.3 rebounds. He’s had two double-doubles this season.
- Washington’s scoring average of 84.1 points per game is the highest through seven games since the 2010-11 season.
UW HEAD COACH: Lorenzo Romar (334-220 overall, 241-132 UW) is coming off a year in which the Huskies finished 18-16 overall and ended the year with a loss to Brigham Young in the National Invitation Tournament. Romar has taken the Huskies to the NCAA Tournament six times and won three Pac-10 Tournament titles (2005, 2010, 2011).
2012-13 Washington Regular-Season Statistics
| Player | G | FG% | 3FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C.J. Wilcox | 7 | .449 | .423 | .870 | 4.0 | 2.2 | 22.6 |
| P. Blackwell | 6 | .509 | .000 | .769 | 8.3 | 0.5 | 13.0 |
| N.W.-Goss | 7 | .417 | .200 | .692 | 3.7 | 5.0 | 12.9 |
| A. Andrews | 7 | .408 | .364 | .697 | 4.3 | 2.4 | 12.7 |
| M. Anderson | 7 | .475 | .400 | .895 | 8.3 | 0.4 | 10.6 |
| D. Johnson | 7 | .364 | .281 | .852 | 2.4 | o.2 | 9.9 |
| Shawn Kemp | 7 | .524 | .000 | .556 | 2.1 | 0.0 | 3.9 |
| H. Stewart | 5 | .333 | .200 | .000 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 1.0 |
| J. Jarreau | 1 | .000 | .000 | .500 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 |
| Q. Sterling | 1 | .000 | .000 | .500 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| G. Dierckx | 6 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 1.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| J. Taylor | 3 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 |
| Total | 7 | .431 | .350 | .766 | 37.0 | 12.8 | 84.1 |
| Opponents | 7 | .518 | .386 | .606 | 36.6 | 15.3 | 86.1 |
University of Washington 2013-14 Schedule
| Date | Opponent | UW Rnk | Opp Rnk | W/L | Score | Rec. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11/6/13 | @vs. Cent. Wash | — | — | W | 95-65 | 0-0 |
| 11/10/13 | vs. Seattle U. | — | — | W | 88-78 | 1-0 |
| 11/14/13 | vs. UC Irvine | — | — | L | 86-72 | 1-1 |
| 11/17/13 | vs. E. Wash | — | — | W | 92-80 | 2-1 |
| 11/21/13 | *vs. Indiana | — | — | L | 102-84 | 2-2 |
| 11/22/13 | *vs. Boston Co | — | 18 | L | 89-78 | 2-3 |
| 11/26/13 | vs. Montana | — | — | W | 83-79 | 3-3 |
| 12/30/13 | vs. L. Beach St. | — | — | W | 92-89 | 4-3 |
| 12/8/13 | vs. SD State | — | 24 | — | —– | — |
| 12/14/13 | vs. Idaho St. | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 12/17/13 | at Tulane | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 12/22/13 | vs. UConn | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 12/27/13 | vs. Miss. Valley | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 12/29/13 | vs. Hartford | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 1/2/14 | at ASU | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 1/4/14 | at Arizona | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 1/8/14 | vs. Utah | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 1/12/14 | vs. Colorado | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 1/15/14 | at Cal | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 1/18/13 | at Stanford | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 1/23/14 | vs. Oregon | — | 19 | — | —– | — |
| 1/25/14 | at OSU | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 2/1/14 | at WSU | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 2/6/14 | at Utah | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 2/9/14 | at Colorado | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 2/12/14 | vs. Stanford | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 2/15/14 | vs. Cal | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 2/19/14 | at Oregon | — | 17 | — | —– | — |
| 2/22/14 | at OSU | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 2/28/14 | vs. WSU | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 3/6/14 | vs. UCLA | — | 22 | — | —– | — |
| 3/8/14 | vs. USC | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 3/12/14 | ^Pac-12 | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 3/13/14 | ^Pac-12 | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 3/14/14 | ^Pac-12 | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 3/15/14 | ^Pac-12 | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 3/18-19/14 | NCAA 1st 4 | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 3/20-23/14 | NCAA 2nd, 3rd | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 3/27-30/14 | NCAA Reg. | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 4/5/14 | NCAA Semis | — | — | — | —– | — |
| 4/7/14 | NCAA Final | — | — | — | —– | — |
@=Exhibition; *=2K Sports Classic; ^=Pac-12 Tournament