SEATTLE – A stretch of games that began with so much promise came to a crashing finale Saturday for the Washington women’s basketball team.
Another horrible offensive effort coupled with a lack of interior defense doomed the Huskies to their third-straight loss, a 72-49 defeat at the hands of No. 22 California in front of a crowd of 2,781 at Hec Edmundson Pavilion.
The loss came two days after Washington (5-3 Pacific-10, 12-7 overall) lost by 21 at home to Stanford, and both defeats had similar themes.
Against the Cardinal, the Huskies missed their first seven shots and against Cal (4-3, 13-4), Washington missed its first nine. The Huskies shot a season-low 27.8 percent against Stanford, and was even worse against the Bears, shooting 26.2 percent. Washington was also killed inside in both games, getting outscored 50-22 by Stanford and 42-14 against Cal, which swept its trip to the Washington schools for the first time ever. Washington’s point total was its lowest of the season.
“Offensively we’re just as cold as the weather,” Washington coach June Daugherty said. “We’re not hitting shots. Our kids showed great composure and stayed in there and kept fighting. … We’ve got to get rested up, we’ve got to regroup a little bit and get ready for Washington State. That’s all we can do.”
It’s been a disappointing stretch of games for Washington. The Huskies were on a nine-game winning streak heading into three-straight games against ranked teams. But Washington narrowly lost to Arizona State before being blown out by Stanford and Cal and now limp into its bye week, getting a week to practice before hosting Washington State on Saturday.
“What’s important is this team get some rest, take their focus off of basketball and come back with a new intensity and a new will to win,” said Husky guard Cameo Hicks, who led her team with 12 points.
Daugherty suggested that the Huskies may have been fatigued against Cal, yet the Golden Bears won with just seven players while Washington got at least eight minutes from 11 players. The real problem was the Huskies could simply not shoot, which has been a season-long issue. Washington is shooting just 39 percent and is struggling to generate anything in its halfcourt offense, relying primarily on transition points and put-backs. But Cal eliminated Washington’s fastbreak by shooting well (58.5 percent) and getting back on defense.
Cal coach Joanne Boyle said her team focused on stopping the tendencies of UW players and that they were prepared for the “five plays they run consistently.”
“The focus was do not let them get out in transition and let them ram it down your throat,” Boyle said. “That’s when they’re at their best.”
Cal led 12-0 six minutes in as forwards Devanei Hampton and Ashley Walker dominated the Huskies inside. Washington then scored seven straight, but a 16-3 Cal run opened up a 28-10 lead, the big shot being a 3-pointer at the shot clock buzzer by Hampton, who had 25 points on 11-for-15 shooting.
The Huskies were 6-for-30 in the first half and had 14 turnovers, leading to 20 California points. Cal led by as many as 26 in the second half before a 10-0 Washington run got the Huskies within 15 with 7:59 to go, but the Bears responded with an 11-2 run to put the game away.
Cal’s primary post players – Hampton, Ashley Walker (12 points) and Rama N’diaye (11 points) – were a combined 22-for-33, coming on the heels of Stanford’s showing inside against the UW. By contrast, Washington’s post players were 5-for-24 for 14 points.
“We had good shots,” Hicks said. “It’s a matter of not knocking them down. We weren’t getting high percentage shots, good shots in the paint.”
“I believe in this team,” Daugherty said. “I don’t think that three losses is the end of the world. Yes, it’s disappointing, it’s hard to take. …There’s plenty of basketball to be played. We’re still a very good team. We just have to get back on track offensively.”
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