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<< Previous   of   Next >> Ted S. Warren / Associated Press  (click to enlarge) Washington guard Isaiah Thomas (right) drives to the basket past Wright State’s Ronnie Thomas in the first half of the Huskies’ 74-69 win over the Raiders. Thomas scored a career-high 30 points.   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Report scores and results to 425-339-3470 or 1-866-6-SCORES (Call after 4:30 p.m.) E-mail information including items for Tuesday's Communities Sports Roundup and Thursday's Outdoor Calendar, to sports@heraldnet.com Kevin Brown, Sports Editor kbrown@heraldnet.com   Published: Saturday, November 14, 2009 Huskies play just good enough What started as a rout turns into a struggle later, but UW wins 74-69 By Rich Myhre Herald Writer SEATTLE — It was a bit of a blowout early and a bit of a struggle later, but the University of Washington men’s basketball team opened its 2009-10 season with a victory on Friday night, beating Wright State 74-69 at Bank of America Arena. The Huskies were really good at times and just good enough when they had to be to hold off the pesky Raiders, one of four teams participating in this weekend’s three-day Athletes in Action Classic. And winning the opener is something Washington couldn’t do a year ago, when it dropped the first game at Portland, 80-74. Though the Huskies had plenty of first-game miscues _ and the biggest was letting an 18-point second-half lead drop to five at the final horn — it was still “a great, great game for us,” said UW head coach Lorenzo Romar. Wright State, which is in Dayton, Ohio, and represents the Horizon League, is “a team of juniors and seniors,” Romar pointed out. By contrast, Washington has just one senior, guard-forward Quincy Pondexter. “They’re a veteran team … and those are the teams early in the season that can bite you if you’re not ready to play,” Romar said. “I think we were ready to play. I just don’t think we’re quite where we need to be offensively and defensively.” On a night when the game was in danger of slipping away, the Huskies got a big lift from their littlest player, 5-foot-8 Isaiah Thomas, who dropped in a career-best 30 points to lead all scorers. Thomas scored from the inside and outside, but mostly he scored from the free throw line, where he was 14-for-18. “I’ve been a scorer all my life, so it’s nothing too new,” Thomas said. “Coach (Romar) told me day in and day out, ‘We’re going to lean on you a little bit more to score (this season).’ I’m just doing what my team needs me to do.” “He put a lot of pressure on them,” Romar said, “and he made his free throws. He was a force to be reckoned with tonight.” Free throws were huge for Thomas and for all the Huskies. Washington had 35 chances from the stripe and converted 27, while Wright State was 15-for-21. The Huskies were whistled for 19 fouls, the visitors for 27. After sparring with the Raiders in the early minutes, Washington broke in front and then padded the margin with an 11-0 scoring run midway through the first half. Thomas helped lead the flurry with two free throws and a three-point play, and in the next few minutes he added a 3-pointer from near the top of the key and an offensive rebound putback. Washington’s big lead was 18 points, 49-31, after a 9-3 burst to open the second half, but then the game began to swing. The Raiders switched to a zone defense after playing man-to-man earlier, and the change seemed to take away the UW’s edge in speed and quickness. The other thing, Romar said, “was in the second half, offensively we maybe started to shoot the ball quick. I think we kind of tried to force things offensively, and we kind of let down. … That’s what we told our team the entire time, that they were not going to go away. “When we get up 15 and 17 (points), we have to keep playing,” he said. “But that’s what preseason games are for, and hopefully you can win and learn from those things.” Wright State whittled at the deficit for the game’s final 15 minutes. Washington’s lead dropped to six with 5:20 remaining, went back to double digits, and then fell below 10 points for the final 3½ minutes. But the Huskies held on, scoring 11 of their last 15 points from the free throw line. “Coming into the game, we knew that they weren’t going to give up,” Pondexter said. “They’re a veteran team and they’re a very good team. That wasn’t a gimmee game (for Washington). They’re a tough team and I expect them to do great things this year.” Washington’s Abdul Gaddy, the touted freshman from Tacoma’s Bellarmine Prep, did not have an impact game, but showed flashes of the brilliance that make him the star of this year’s UW recruiting class. He finished with five points and made his first field goal as a Husky, scoring with a pull-up jumper from left of the key in the first half. In Friday’s other first game, Belmont defeated Portland State 74-67. In today’s games, Portland State will face Wright State at 4:30 p.m., followed by Washington against Belmont at 7 p.m. READER COMMENTS Be the first to comment. You must be a registered user and verify your e-mail address to post comments to blogs or articles on HeraldNet. To register, click here. To read other terms and conditions, click here. Log out

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