Huskies Return Home to Face Utah Friday

Friday, January 5

Seattle, WA

6:00 PM

University of Washington

Utah

Tickets

January 03, 2018 | Women's Basketball

Game Notes (PDF)Tickets

SEATTLE --- Washington returns home top open the new year, hosting the University of Utah on Friday, Jan. 5 at 6:00 p.m. The game is being broadcast on the Pac-12 Network with Greg Heister on the call. Fans can also catch Gary Hill Jr. with the radio broadcast on KKNW 1150 AM in Seattle or streaming live on the TuneIn App or at gohuskies.com.

The Huskies are coming off a tough loss at No. 10 Oregon. Washington fell behind by 20 points early, but outscored the Ducks 76-67 the rest of the way. However, despite a late surge, the Huskies could not close the gap and fell to 0-2 in Pac-12 play. Amber Melgoza saved her best until last, scoring 23 of her career-high 31 points in the fourth quarter, accouting for all but five the team's points in the final 10 minutes of the game. The sophomore set a Pac-12 record with those 23 points, beating Kelsey Plum's program record of 20 set at USC last season.

Scouting the Utes
Utah enters the game with an impressive record of 10-3 including a 1-1 record in conference play. Overall, the Utes are 8-1 at home but just 2-2 on the road. Utah split its opening weekend of Pac-12 games, recording an 89-55 win over Arizona on Friday and suffering a tough 83-81 loss to Arizona State on Sunday.

Megan Huff, a transfer from Hawaii, is leading the way for Utah, averaging 14.1 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. The junior from nearby Beamer HS in Federal Way, Wash., posted a 14-point, 13-rebound double-double vs Arizona, then notched 22 points against Arizona State.

Utah is among the Pac-12's defensive leaders, ranking second in rebounding margin (+11.3) and third in scoring defense (58.5).

All-Time Series Record
Washington leads the all-time series 13-9 and is 8-5 since the Utes joined the Pac-12 in 2011-12. The Huskies have had a lot of success at home, posting an 8-1 record against Utah in Seattle including an 84-77 victory at Alaska Airlines Arena last season. Washington has won the last three games in the series overall.

Up Next
The Huskies close out their home stand on Sunday, January 7, hosting Colorado at 2:00 p.m. at Alaska Airlines Arena.

Last Time Out
Amber Melgoza scored a career-high 31 points including 23 in the fourth quarter, but it was not enough as Washington lost 94-83 at No. 10 Oregon.

Melgoza continued her hot play as of late, scoring at least 18 points in each of the last five games for a 23.8 points per game average. She hit that average just in the fourth quarter, scoring 23 of UW's 28 fourth-quarter points. Melgoza hit 11-of-18 from the field in the game including 8-of-11 in the fourth. She also added eight rebounds, four assists and a steal.

Washington played an impressive game outside of the first quarter. Oregon jumped out to a quick 27-7 lead in the game and led through much of the first half. But the Huskies battled back and closed the deficit to 10 points at halftime with a nice run. However, Washington could get no closer than nine the rest of the way.

Amber Alert
Sophomore Amber Melgoza continues to put up great numbers as of late including scoring a career-high 31 points against Oregon–the most by a UW player since Kelsey Plum scored 38 against Oklahoma on March 20, 2017. Melgoza had just eight going into the final quarter, but erupted for 23 points, a Pac-12 record for points in a quarter. Over her last five games, Melgoza is averaging 23.8 points per game, scoring no fewer than 18 in any of those games.

Henson's Heroics
Sophomore Mai-Loni Henson has quietly moved into second on the team's scoring chart, averaging 11.4 points per game. She has scored in double-figures in 10 of 13 games this season including a career-high 17 points vs. Creighton. Henson is averaging 12.5 points, 5.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.8 steals per game over her last eight games.

Moser's Shooting Prowess
Senior Jenna Moser is ranked fourth in the Pac-12 in three-point field goal percentage, hitting 47.4% (27-for-57) from beyond the arc. Moser broke out of a mini-slump with a 4-for-5 performance from beyond the arc at Oregon, marking her third game hitting four three-pointers this season. In addition, Moser is hitting 44.6% from the field and has connected on her last 15 free throw attempts after starting the season 2-of-8. Moser began her UW career as a practice player, was added to the active roster her second year and awarded a scholarship at the beginning of this season.

Everybody Starts, Everybody Plays
All 10 of Washington's active players have made a start this season and each has averaging at least 13 minutes per game. Senior Jenna Moser is the lone Husky to start all 13 games with sophomores Mai-Loni Henson and Amber Melgoza each making 10 starts. Moser also leads the team in minutes played, averaging 29.1 minutes per game with Melgoza playing 25.3 and Henson playing 24.2.

Strength of Schedule
The Huskies are not shying away from playing tough teams in the 2017-18 as UW faces eight teams currently ranked in the AP Top 25. In fact, the Huskies' overall schedule ranks as the 40th most difficult among the 349 NCAA Division I WBB programs.
The Pac-12 conference is the main reason the Huskies' schedule is so tough as the conference boasts six teams in the AP top 25 (#9 Oregon, #14 UCLA, #14 Oregon State, #23 California, #24 Stanford and #25 Arizona State). Besides their Pac-12 opponents, the Huskies have also squared off against #8 Texas and #10 Ohio St. in non-conference games.

Seven in Double Figures
Washington saw a program-best seven players score in double-figures in the 93-67 victory against Portland on Dec. 3. Mai-Loni Henson and Amber Melgoza led the way with 14 points each while freshmen Kierra Collier, Alexis Griggsby and Missy Peterson each contributed 12 points in the game with Griggsby and Peterson scoring all of their points in the second half. Senior Jenna Moser was the seventh player to reach double-figures in the game, hitting a tough jumper in the lane with 1:23 left to give her 11 while freshman Khayla Rooks scored 10 in the game on 4-of-5 shooting.

Huskies in the Rankings
Washington is among the leaders in the conference in a number of categories. The Huskies lead the Pac-12 in turnovers forced at 19.5 per game and third in turnover margin at +4.31. Washington also ranks second in the conference in three-point field goal attempts (354), third in 3-pointers made (115) and steals per game (10.5), and fourth in steals with 136.

Individually, Amber Melgoza ranks fifth in scoring at 16.8 ppg, second in free throw percentage at 80.9%, third in field goal attemps (105) and seventh in field goals made (82). Jenna Moser ranks third in three-point field goal percentage at 47.4% and seventh in three-pointers made with 2.08 per game.

Freshman Power
The Huskies have received solid contributions from the five freshmen on the squad. Kierra Collier ranks fourth on the team with 8.2 points per game, second with 31 assists and third with 16 steals. Fapou Semebene recorded her first collegiate double-double against Grand Canyon with 11 points and 11 rebounds–both season-highs. She is averaging a team-best 5.2 rebounds per game with over half of those coming on the offensive end (37o/31d). Missy Peterson is contributing 4.4 ppg and shooting 60.5% from the field including a career-high 12 points vs. Portland. Alexis Griggsby has added 7.0 ppg while Khayla Rooks has been battling injury but is still averaging 6.3 points and pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds vs. Seattle.

No Overtime, Please
UW's streak of games decided in regulation came to an end Sunday as the Huskies needed OT to beat Seattle, 84-76. Washington's last overtime game came on Jan. 17, 2014 when the Huskies beat Utah 53-52. Despite one streak coming to an end, one remained: UW has not lost an overtime game since Feb. 5, 2012, a streak of 198-straight games.

Road Warriors
After opening the season with a pair of home games, the Huskies played just four of their next 10 games at home. The Huskies open conference play on the road at the Oregon schools on Dec. 29 and 31st before hosting Utah and Colorado at home in early January. After making its Bay area trip and facing Washington St. in Pullman, the Huskies play 7 of their final 11 games at home. Washington's season includes one of its longest road trips in recent memory, a 2,432 mile trip to play North Carolina in Myrtle Beach, S.C.

Viva Las Vegas
Mai-Loni Henson had an impressive trip to Vegas, scoring 23 points in two games, earning her all-tournament honors. Henson scored a career-high 17 points, adding nine rebounds, three assists and three steals. Overall, she averaged 11.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game in Vegas.

First Half Heroes
Washington suffered its first loss of the season when leading at the half on Friday. The Huskies are now 6-1 when leading at halftime and 0-6 when trailing at the half. Dating back to last year, the Huskies have won 14 of their last 15 games and 34 of 36 when leading at half.

Impressive Debuts
Washington had a solid showing from its core of freshman making their collegiate debuts against Idaho State. The Huskies were led in scoring by Kierra Collier, who scored 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting in 19 minutes off the bench. Griggsby added nine points, four rebounds and two steals in 15 minutes with Peterson contributing eight points and two assists. Two freshman cracked the starting lineup for the Huskies with Semebene and Rooks each scoring five points and pulling down a team-high five rebounds.

Huskies Ink Talented Duo to NLIs
UW coach Jody Wynn announced the signing Haley Van Dyke (Moraga, Calif./Campolindo High School) and Tyiona "TT" Watkins (Walnut, Calif./Walnut HS) to National Letters of Intent during the November early signing period.

Van Dyke, a 6-0 forward, scored the fifth-most points in the state of California last season, pouring in 765 points in 32 games for a 23.9 points per game average. She ranks 21st among '18 forwards according to ESPN and as the No. 82 player overall according to Prospects Nation. After an early season ankle injury, Van Dyke returned to the court with back-to-back 30 point performances late in December.

Watkins is a 5-11 wing who will wrap up her high school career at Walnut High School in Walnut, Calif., after three seasons at Brea Olinda High School. She is currently ranked as the No. 14 wing player in the class of 2018 by ESPN and No. 20 by Prospects Nation. Watkins, who had to sit out after transferring schools, will be eligible to play in early January.

Versus The State of Idaho
The Huskies played all three DI programs in Idaho this season, posting a 1-2 record against Gem State teams. Washington recorded an 81-69 win over Idaho, but lost 85-62 at Boise State and 79-59 at home to Idaho State.

Huskies Ranked in the Preseason Polls
Washington opened the season tied for No. 25 along with fellow Pac-12 foe California with 79 votes in the USA Today Coaches Preseason Poll and received four votes in the AP Poll.

2016-17 Recap
The Huskies posted a 29-6 record and made their second-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2016-17. Washington went 18-1 at home and earned a pair of home games to open the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament. The Huskies downed Montana State and Oklahoma before falling to Mississippi State in the Sweet Sixteen. UW's Kelsey Plum earned numerous honors including the Naismith Trophy and the Wooden Award as the NCAA Player of the Year before being selected as the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA draft by the San Antonio Stars.

Season/Home Openers
With the loss to Idaho State, Washington is now 26-18 in season openers all-time, snapping a two-game winning streak in such games. Over the last 12 seasons, Washington is 4-8 in season openers. The Huskies have posted an impressive 33-11 overall record in home openers despite losing to Idaho State this season.

Radio Show
Washington Head Coach Jody Wynn joins Elise Woodward for the UW Coaches Show throughout the season at Chinook's at Fisherman's Terminal. The show is carried live on KOMO AM 1000 in Seattle at 6:00 p.m. on the following dates: Jan. 9, Jan. 16, Jan. 23, Jan. 30, Feb. 6, Feb. 13, Feb. 20, Feb. 27 and March 5. The show can be streamed online at gohuskies.com or by using the TuneIn App, available in the Apple and Google App Stores.

Huskies in USA Basketball
Five former UW athletes have competed internationally for USA Basketball. Karen Deden, who was named to the 1995 USA Pan American Games Team, but was denied a shot at a medal after the women's basketball competition was canceled due to too few team entries, played on the 1989 USA Junior World Cup (U19) Team that placed seventh and the 1988 USA Junior World Cup Qualifying Team that won gold. Loree Payne won gold on the 2000 USA R. William Jones Cup Team and competed in an exhibition game as a member of the 2000 USA Select Team against the 2000 U.S. Olympic Team; Jamie Redd was a member of the 1998 USA Select Team that posted a 7-1 slate against international teams in exhibition games; while Rhonda Smith won a silver medal at the 1997 Tournament of the Americas and a bronze medal at the 1993 R. William Jones Cup. Most recently, Kelsey Plum earned a gold medal at the 2013 FIBA U19 World Cup, silver medal at the 2015 Pan American Games and participated in the 2017 USA Basketball Women's National Team training camp Sept. 30-Oct. 2 in Santa Barbara, California.