Melgoza's First Double-Double Paces UW in 81-59 Win Over NAU

Sunday, November 11

Seattle, WA

2:00 PM

University of Washington

2-0

Northern Arizona

2-1

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Northern Arizona	5	16	15	23	59
Washington	12	17	25	27	81

Photo by: Red Box Pictures

Melgoza's First Double-Double Paces UW in 81-59 Win Over NAU

November 11, 2018 | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

SEATTLE --- Amber Melgoza recorded her first career double-double and was two assists shy of a triple-double as Washington defeated Northern Arizona 81-59 in a non-conference game on Sunday afternoon at Alaska Airlines Arena.

The Huskies improve to 2-0 on the season with the victory while handing the Lumberjacks their first defeat of the year in three games.

Melgoza finished the game with 20 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and three steals in 31 minutes. It was the 15th-straight game in double-figures for Melgoza who also set a career-high in assists and matched her career-high in rebounds. She also scored 20 or more points for the 15th time in her career.

Six different Huskies scored in double-figures in the game with Hannah Johnson, Khayla Rooks and T.T. Watkins each adding 12 points with Missy Peterson scoring 10.

The Huskies dominated in nearly every facet of the game but really pulled away in the second half, shooting 60 percent from the field (18-of-30) and outscoring NAU 52-38. While Melgoza stole the show in the game, Rooks and Peterson were key to the second-half dominance. Both scored all of their points in the second half going a combined 8-of-10 from the field.

"We were a little sloppy with the basket today, but I believe we shared the ball better than we did the other night," said UW head coach Jody Wynn. "Defensively I thought we did a really nice job of taking them out of what they are comfortable doing and playing more as a unit. We've still got a long way to go, but overall I am proud of our second-half performance."

Northern Arizona scored the first bucket of the game but didn't score again until 30 seconds left in the period. Meanwhile, the Huskies hit their first three shots of the game and slowly built a 12-2 lead over that stretch. Melgoza had a hand in all five of the Huskies' first baskets with two field goals and three assists, adding four rebounds. After hitting its first three shots from the field, Washington went just 2-of-12 the rest of the way. Meanwhile, the Lumberjacks connected on just 2-of-13 in the quarter with baskets to bookend the period.

Melgoza opened the second quarter with a turnaround bank shot in the paint to stretch the lead back to nine at 14-5. After exchanging buckets, an NAU jumper cut the lead to six at 16-10 at the 7:27 mark. But T.T. Watkins and Melgoza helped key an 11-4 run by with a three-point play and a running shot on a break to give the Huskies a 23-12 lead with 5:39 to go in the first half. The Lumberjacks answered with a basket on their next possession, but Melgoza would hit a pair of tough runners in the lane to stretch the lead to 13 at 27-14 with 3:32 on the clock. Northern Arizona would close out the half on a 5-0 run but the Huskies headed to the break with a 29-21 lead. Melgoza led all scorers with 12 at the break, adding five rebounds and three assists.

The teams opened the half by trading baskets through the first four minutes before fast-break bucket by Henson put the Huskies up 41-32 at the 5:00 media timeout. Out of the break, Washington broke the game open with an 11-0 run, which featured a deep three-pointer by Jenna Moser and a Melgoza steal and layup to make it a 52-34 game with 1:18 left in the quarter. The Huskies opened the fourth on a 9-1 run and didn't look back, cruising to the 22-points win.

Melgoza was vying to become the first Husky to record a triple-double since Chantel Osahor recorded one against Idaho on Nov. 22, 2016.

Washington returns to action on Sunday, beginning a five-game road trip with a game against Tulane University on Nov. 18.