SEATTLE – Maybe it’s a credit to the level the program has reached.
All four times the University of Washington men’s basketball team has lost this season, people have questioned if this team is actually as good as it seems to be.
The first three times it happened, the Huskies didn’t waste time answering. They followed a Gonzaga loss with a 33-point win over Eastern Washington. They beat Oregon by 21 immediately after losing to UCLA. And they won at Arizona State two days after losing at Arizona.
So it’s not a surprise that Washington coach Lorenzo Romar isn’t too concerned with how his team will react to its latest setback, Sunday’s loss at Oregon State.
“Last time we lost, a lot of the same questions were asked,” Romar said. “And in all three losses, we came back and played well the next game.”
Washington (10-3 Pacific-10 Conference, 20-4 overall) looks to rebound from a fourth loss when it plays at Washington State (5-8, 10-12) at 4 p.m. Saturday.
This game could be the most difficult of the four to bounce back from, if only because of who and where Washington is playing. The Huskies have to rebound in front of a large, hostile crowd and against a team whose slow-down style is opposite from Washington’s fast-paced game.
“We know what’s going to happen,” forward Bobby Jones said. “They play so slow-down that you can’t help but change the way you play. We know we just have to be patient.”
Washington has struggled on the road, going 4-4 and losing three of its last five. In all the losses, Washington has given up at least 90 points, though that isn’t likely to happen against the Cougars, who average just 55.6 points and haven’t scored more than 77 all season.
On top of their road trouble, the Huskies haven’t shot well recently, bad news for a perimeter-oriented team. They haven’t shot better than 40 percent on 3-pointers since a Jan. 15 win over Oregon State. Couple that with a lack of production inside, and it leaves some wondering if Washington is using the right lineups.
Romar said there’s no reason to change anything, from style of play to who is playing. The biggest thing is to learn from what went wrong, particularly a lack of energy against the Beavers, and move on.
“Whenever you lose a game you’re always concerned that it’s not going to snowball and become something that’s a habit,” Romar said. “That’s always a concern.”
Senior guard Will Conroy said when a team is struggling from the outside, it has to look to attack more.
“We’ve got to get to the basket more,” Conroy said. “We’ve got to create fastbreaks and get lay-ins.”
“If we’re not attacking, with our lack of size, we’re not a very good team,” Romar added.
The problem is Washington’s attacking style has gotten it into trouble recently The Huskies were called for 23 fouls in the loss to Oregon State and a school-record 36 in a win over Oregon in the previous game.
Officials are likely to call it at least as close Saturday in a game between two of the Pac-10’s top rivals.
“We’ve got to be smarter on the road,” Romar said. “Sometimes we don’t use the right judgment. Sometimes we’re our own worst enemy.”
“We just have to bear with it,” Jones said. “Especially being at their home and especially because it’s a rivalry game. We know teams are going to get ready to play us.”
Washington stands a game and a half behind Arizona in the Pac-10 standings. The Huskies play host to the Wildcats on Feb. 26. Washington is hoping to win its first conference title since trying for the championship in 1984 and ‘85. The last time it won the title outright was 1952-53.
“It’s definitely a goal,” Romar said. “It’s important if we can get it done, but not the end of the world if we don’t get it done.”
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