STANFORD, Calif. — Isaiah Thomas knew about “The Streak” only because he read newspaper reports. Washington coach Lorenzo Romar didn’t bother bringing it up much.
In fact, Romar joked about it.
The No. 22 Huskies had lost 15 straight at Stanford before beating the Cardinal 75-68 on Sunday night, the streak coming to a halt after Quincy Pondexter scored 20 points, including a pair of key free throws down the stretch. Thomas added 17 points.
“We weren’t worried about it. Coach wasn’t worried about it,” Thomas said. “He said the streak was nothing. He made a little joke about it, and that was it. It’s good that it came to an end and we got a win.”
Jon Brockman had 13 points and 12 rebounds for the Huskies (17-6, 8-3 Pac-10), who overcame a 10-point deficit to take a 35-34 halftime lead. Venoy Overton also had 11 points.
“I have to admit this one did look like some of the other games we’ve had here, but I thought our guards did a good job of controlling the game down the stretch,” Romar said. “Venoy was the MVP. He brought us a lot of energy.”
Landry Fields scored a career-high 22 points and had 10 rebounds to lead the Cardinal (14-7, 4-7), who’ve lost four of their last five. Anthony Goods added 12 points and Jeremy Green had 11.
“It’s frustrating,” Goods said. “We were getting decent shots but we were just missing them. It’s no fun losing.”
Stanford closed within 66-63 on Fields’ jumper with 2:18 left. Thomas followed with a leaner and the Cardinal never got any closer.
“Isiah drove to the basket and made an incredible shot,” Romar said. “That was a big, big shot because it kind of broke the drought a little bit. Our guys got energized by that one. It wasn’t the most spectacular shot he’s made, but at that point in the game, it was probably the biggest shot he’s made.”
Thomas has reached double figures in 17 straight games.
Washington maintained its lead throughout the second half, though Stanford made a run to close within 64-60 on a breakaway dunk by Josh Owens with 4:01 left. Pondexter followed with a pair of free throws — he was nine of 10 from the foul line — to quiet the crowd.
“We had 11 turnovers in the first half and we average 11 turnovers a game,” Fields said. “We have to be stronger. They came in and imposed their will on us.”
Fields was 10-of-15 from the field and recorded his third double-double. The junior also had two blocks.
Brockman recorded his 11th double-double and the 52nd of his career, the most among active players. His putback in the final five seconds of their last meeting gave the Huskies an 84-83 win, one of three one-point road losses the Cardinal have suffered in conference play.
The Huskies scored 11 unanswered points in a run that spanned both halves and gave them a 10-point lead five minutes into the second half.
A 12-0 run gave Stanford a 25-15 advantage with 8:48 remaining in the first half.
The Cardinal made two of their final nine shots and committed six turnovers the remainder of the half, allowing Washington to go into the locker room with a slight edge.
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