Kentucky Defeats Washington

Washington played a brilliant game Monday vs. Virginia, and it was unrealistic to think they could sustain that level of play Tuesday vs. Kentucky. They couldn't. They got off to a fast start, scoring the first 4 points. The Kentucky coach called a quick timeout. UK then proceded to score the next 18 points. This placed the Huskies in a deep early hole. Due to some cold shooting from Kentucky, however, the Huskies crawled back. They actually led by one at halftime.

Kentucky played just a little bit better than the Huskies in the second half and ended up winning 74-67. Washington looked good at times but overall they weren't as crisp or effective as they were the previous night. Some of the things contributing to the UW loss:

• Their 3-point shooting was way off. A day after sinking a school-record 17 three's vs. Virginia, UW made just 3 of 13 vs. Kentucky. The Kentucky defense completely neutralized this threat.


• Poor rebounding. UW was outrebounded 45-32. Kentucky's Josh Harrelson picked up 7 offensive rebounds altogether and his final two sealed the win for UK.


• Isaiah Thomas had a bad game. 4-14 shooting, 0-4 on 3-pointers, 5-10 from the line. Their top scoring threat was completely shut down.


• Darnell Gant disappeared in the second half. Gant made 2 huge three's in the first half but then had to sit on the bench with three fouls. He hardly played at all in the second half. His presence was missed.
  

Aziz N'Diaye was the surprise for the Huskies with 5 blocked shots. He's not a complete player yet, but his shot-blocking ability is a nice new addition for the team.

Terrence Jones was again a star for Kentucky: 16 points and 17 rebounds. Husky fans are still bitter.

Washington plays Michigan State this afternoon at 2:00. The Spartans are currently #2 in the country. We'll see if Washington can bounce back against another very talented team. Go Dawgs.!

Photo of Terrence Jones: David Parry/McClatchy Newspapers.