SEATTLE — The Huskies welcomed two players back on Saturday.
Jess McCormack was back in uniform after missing three games with a concussion, while Katelan Redmon was back to her old self after a two-week shooting slump.
And with its top two freshmen back, Washington rolled to a 74-59 win over Arizona in front of 3,343 at Hec Edmundson Pavilion.
McCormack, who suffered a concussion in Washington’s Jan. 13 win over USC, came off the bench to score 15 points and grab a team-high eight rebounds.
“It was huge,” Washington coach Tia Jackson said of the 6-foot-5 center’s return. “Jess is always a target for us. You saw her, she’s a monstrous rebounder … Not only that, she’s a great target inside, a great finisher.”
Just as important as McCormack’s actual return was Redmon’s return to form after a four-game slump. Redmon, a 6-1 forward, has been Washington’s leading scorer all season, but after scoring 19 points against UCLA, she averaged 8.75 points while shooting just 34.9 percent in Washington’s past four games.
On Saturday, Redmon made 8 of 13 shots to finish with a team-high 18 points.
“I honestly don’t know,” she said when asked what was different. “I think I was taking better shots this game compared to the past couple of games. I was more open on shots and not forcing it as much. It helped that I hit my first shot. That always helps to give you more confidence for the rest of the game.”
Michelle Augustavo added 14 points and four assists, and Andrea Plouffe had 12 points and seven rebounds to give Washington four players in double-figure scoring.
McCormack had originally hoped to play against Arizona State Thursday, but felt some dizziness in Tuesday’s practice, forcing her out for a third game in a row. She said there were no lingering effects of the concussion on Saturday.
“I felt really good out there,” she said. “No headaches, no dizziness, I felt great … I just wanted to come out strong, physical. I just wanted to come out and make a statement and get back in my flow.”
Redmon then interrupted her teammate: “You did.”
Despite the 15-point final margin, the game was close for most of the afternoon. Washington led early, but the Wildcats stayed close, eventually taking a four-point lead late in the first half. The Huskies closed the half on an 8-2 run to take a two-point lead, but struggled to put the Wildcats away in the second half.
Arizona took a three-point lead with 13:16 to play in the game, but from there Washington went on a 19-4 run to assume control.
The win leaves Washington 8-13 overall and 3-6 in the Pac-10 halfway through conference play, not exactly where the Huskies hoped to be, but they say they’re heading in the right direction.
“I definitely thought we’d be in a different place as far as our record in the Pac-10,” Jackson said. “But when you think about where we started, we were losing games by 20, 25, 30, now we’re in contention to win those games. We’re going against teams who are top-25 teams. It just makes us better and we’re getting better every game. That gap is closing and closing and closing.”
Washington 74, Arizona 59
WASHINGTON (3-6, 8-13)
Redmon 8-13 0-0 18, Plouffe 4-8 4-7 12, Florence 2-3 0-0 5, Whitcomb 2-6 4-4 9, Mosiman 0-1 0-0 0, McLellan 0-1 0-0 0, Bennett 0-0 0-0 0, Morton 0-0 0-0 0, McNeill 0-0 1-2 1, Augustavo 4-12 2-2 14, McCormack 4-9 7-8 15. Totals 24-53 18-23 74.
ARIZONA (1-8, 7-13)
Neabors 5-11 0-1 13, Njonkou 6-8 3-3 15, Bofia 0-1 0-0 0, Whisonant 10-19 0-3 20, Dickey 1-9 0-0 3, Ibekwe 3-7 2-3 8, Hays 0-0 0-0 0, McGee 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 25-58 5-10 59.
Halftime—Washington 35-33. 3-Point Goals—Washington 8-19 (Redmon 2-3, Florence 1-1, Whitcomb 1-5, Augustavo 4-10), Arizona 4-15 (Neabors 3-7, Dickey 1-5, Whisonant 0-2, McGee 0-1). Fouled Out—Walker. Rebounds—Washington 33 (Augustavo 8), Arizona 28 (Ibekwe 10). Assists—Washington 15 (Florence 5), Arizona 15 (Whisonant 7). Total Fouls—Washington 17, Arizona 21. A—3,343.
Contact Herald Writer John Boyle at jboyle@heraldnet.com. For more on University of Washington sports, check out the Huskies blog at heraldnet.com /huskiesblog
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