The Washington Huskies know they have a tough road ahead of them in Big 10 men’s basketball against teams like Purdue, Michigan and Illinois among six conference teams already ranked in the top 25 in the country. So any win the Huskies can get in the early season is important.
Thursday in the Acrisure Classic, the Huskies earned the kind of win they can build on for the rest of the season. Washington used a strong defense and a 25-point performance by Wesley Yates III to score an 83-66 win over the Nevada Wolf Pack in the first round of Group 3 of the holiday tournament at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert.
The win improves the Huskies to 5-1 on the year and sets up a 1:30 p.m. Friday game against Colorado for the Group 3 championship. Nevada (4-3) will take on San Francisco in the third-place game of the group at 11 a.m.
The Huskies, coached by Danny Sprinkle, grabbed a 34-28 halftime lead. For most of the second half the Huskies lead was at least 10 points, with Nevada struggling to find any offense while shooting just 38 percent for the game. The Wolf Pack couldn’t find points even though the Huskies were in the bonus for fouls for the last 11 minutes of the game. Nevada managed to hit 16 of their 23 attempts, but those attempts were below the team’s average of 30 free throws a game this year.
Washington’s lead grew to 15 points at 59-44 on a Franck Kepnang 3-pointer. Moments later Yates, a transfer from USC, scored eight straight points on a basket and a foul shot, two more free throws and then a 3-pointer to push the lead to a game-high 19 points, 67-58.
Nevada managed to cut the lead to 76-66 with 1:26 left on a basket by Tayshawn Comer, but those were the last points the Wolf Pack scored. Washington iced the game on four free throws and a 3-pointer in the closing seconds.
Yates’ 25 points came on just five of 13 shooting from the field, but four of those made baskets were 3-points. He also made 11 free throws. Zoom Diallo added 19 points for the Huskies. Comer scored 16 points for Nevada, with Elijah Price adding 12 points.
Colorado 79, San Francisco 69
The Buffalos broke open what had been a tight game throughout with a 14-8 run un the final 7:09 to remain undefeated on the young season with a win in Group 3 of the Acrisure Series.
Colorado (6-0) trailed 37-35 at halftime, and the game remained close for the first 13 minutes of the second half. Leading 65-61, the Buffalos quickly extended the lead to 71-61 on consecutive 3-pointers by Felix Kossaras and Sebastian Rancik. San Francisco was never able to get closer than seven points in the closing minutes.
Isaiah Johnson scored 17 points off the bench for Colorado, while Barrington Hargress scored 15 and Bangot Dak and Elijah Malone each scored 13. Colorado (5-2) had four players in double figures, led by Junjie Wang and Rayn Beasley with 13 points each.
Saint Louis 71, Santa Clara 70
In the first truly close finish of the week at the Acrisure Series, Kellen Thames hit a running layup with just nine second left to give the Billikens the lead, then Saint Louis held off a final shot from Santa Clara to get the win in the first-round game in Group 4 of the holiday tournament.
The battle between the two undefeated teams was tight for the entire second half, with Santa Clara taking a 70-69 lead when Allen Graves hit one of two free throws for the Broncos with 1:13 left in the game. Saint Louis turned the ball over on its next possession, but Santa Clara missed a shot with just 22 seconds left, giving the Billikens the ball back for Thames’ winning bucket.
Trey Green led Saint Louis 21 points including hitting six 3-pointers out of 13 shots. Dion Brown finished with 13 points. For Santa Clara, Elijah Mahi scored 18 and Graves added 13 points.
Saint Louis improved to 6-0 for the year, while Santa Clara is now 6-1.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Huskies show hope for the Big 10 future with solid win in Acrisure Series
Reporting by Larry Bohannan, Palm Springs Desert Sun / Palm Springs Desert Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
