SEATTLE — First the Huskies celebrated, then they waited.
What started as a mobbing of Justin Dentmon on the Hec Edmundson Pavilion court Saturday afternoon turned into an anxious waiting game.
And when the officials finally finished reviewing the would-be game-winning shot, Dentmon’s buzzer beater was ruled buzzer beaten, and the celebration shifted to the Pittsburgh players on the other side of the court, who after a tense wait escaped with a 75-74 victory over the Huskies.
“I saw three seconds on the clock and though I could get off a shot by taking it the length of the floor,” said Dentmon, who took an inbound pass with 4.3 seconds left and sprinted down the court before letting go of what momentarily looked like the game-winning floater. “I thought I got it off in time.”
Replays, however, showed that he didn’t.
So instead of celebrating their biggest win of the season over unbeaten and 12th-ranked Pitt, the Huskies instead dropped to 4-4 while losing their first home non-conference game since a Dec. 3, 2003 loss to Gonzaga.
“It’s really hard,” Dentmon said. “It’s like somebody stepping on your chest. You figure that you did something good, that you have it, and they take it away. It’s like everything went bad.”
The loss tarnished a game that saw the Huskies make progress in several areas, playing better on defense while turning the ball over only eight times. It also took away from a big return by Ryan Appleby.
Appleby, a senior guard from Stanwood, came off the bench at the 15:04 mark of the first half and received a loud ovation as he entered the game. Playing for the first time this season after fracturing his thumb in practice five weeks ago, Appleby didn’t take long to get going, hitting his first shot, a three-point attempt, 19 seconds after he entered the game. Appleby went on to make four of five three-point attempts in the first half, and six of 12 in the game to lead the Huskies with 18 points.
“I predicted when he got hurt six weeks ago or whatever that he would be ready for us,” Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said with a smile. “He made shots against us last year too. Just our luck. He’s a difference maker for their team … Add him to the mix and they become a different team.”
Appleby’s last three is what put Dentmon in position for a potential game winner. He and Quincy Pondexter had already made threes in the final 1:30 of the game to keep the Huskies close. Trailing by four with time running out, Appleby missed a three-point attempt, but Jon Brockman recovered a loss ball and passed to Appleby, who made the second-chance three with 6.8 seconds left.
The Huskies fouled Levance Fields, who missed the front end of a one-and-one. DeJuan Blair grabbed what looked like a game-clinching rebound on the miss, but Brockman tied him up for a held ball, and the possession arrow gave Washington the ball with 4.3 seconds remaining. Unfortunately for the Huskies, Dentmon could have used 4.4.
“What else can you say,” said Dixon. “You can’t get a better game than that.”
The Huskies led for most of the first half, but Pitt closed the half by making its last five field goals after making nine of its first 28, cutting the Husky lead down to three.
The Panthers came out hot in the second half as well, making five of their first six shots to take a 47-44 lead. Pitt led by as many as nine points, and never again trailed or was tied after taking that lead at the 16-minute mark.
Fields led the panthers with 20 points, while Blair added 12 of his six points in the second half. Blair, a 6-foot-7, 265-pound freshman, also had 14 rebounds.
Brockman had a double-double as well, finishing with 17 points and 12 rebounds.
Despite a tough loss, Lorenzo Romar saw progress in his team, which a week ago was blown out by Oklahoma State.
“We don’t have a win to show for ourselves today, but I thought as a team we made progress,” said Romar. “You can say, ‘Well coach, you didn’t win, so what.’ I know winning is what it’s all about, but also making progress to put yourself in a position where you will eventually win on a consistent basis. That’s what we’re looking for.”
That, and maybe an extra tenth of a second.
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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