Husky Basketball Mid-Season Update

By Kevin Calderhead

Truthfully, when conference play started, I was about two bad games away from being completely done with the Huskies. They were playing like they deserved to finish in eighth place in the conference, as predicted. Jernard Jarreau tore his ACL two minutes into the season opener. In their first four games, they shot 24% from beyond the arc. After losing to #10 UConn, the UW seemed to play a little better, winning their next two before Pac-12 play. The Dawgs were 8-5 before playing 11-2 Arizona State, and going into the game I was less than optimistic. I actually didn’t watch it, mostly because it was on Pac-12 Network (DirecTV, can you please sign a contract with the Pac-12 already), but also I just figured they would get blown out.

           

Well, around halftime, I checked the score on my phone. I remember saying sarcastically to my friend: “Hey, let’s guess how much the Huskies are losing by now!” The page loaded, and I was shocked: Washington 40, Arizona State 23.

The Huskies ended up winning the matchup 76-65. This game was followed by a close loss at #1 Arizona in which UW was actually ahead by two at the break. Washington then played Utah and #15 Colorado at home, and beat them both. Most impressive was the 71-54 defeat of Colorado; the first win against a ranked opponent since 2011 after losing their previous twelve contests. The Dawgs have turned it around and have won seven out of their last nine games. They are 3-1 in conference games, which has them tied for third place in the Pac-12.

What changed? It’s not C.J. Wilcox, who has been consistent the entire year; playing well enough to put himself in the NBA draft conversation. I think one of the factors is the performance of guard Andrew Andrews. The Dawgs have won the last five games in which Andrews scored more than 10 points. Freshman guard Nigel Williams-Goss has also been more consistent; turning the ball over less often.

CJ Wilcox is the clear leader of this Huskies team.

Dean Rutz

Despite being more successful as of late, the Huskies still have one major problem: rebounding. The loss of Jerreau is showing, as the Huskies have had to rely heavily on Perris Blackwell for the majority of their rebounding. He leads the team with 7.6 RPG, but the next four leading rebounders on the team are all guards (Anderson, Williams-Goss, Wilcox, Andrews). A surprise to me has been Mike Anderson, new to the team this season from Moberly Area CC. He has helped pick up the slack and is averaging 6.6 boards per game.

This week, the Huskies are traveling to the Bay Area to play Cal and Stanford.

           

Big picture time again. March Madness. Looking forward from this point, will Washington make the tournament?

It is possible. There are 14 games left in the season. UW is now 11-6 (3-1 Pac-12), and if they can win at least 11 out of the last 14 games (final record of 22-9) and play well in the Pac-12 tournament they could be selected. 11 of 14 is a lot, but their schedule is fairly easy from here on out; the only ranked teams that the Huskies will play from here on out are #21 Colorado and #25 UCLA, but the rankings could change. Let’s not forget Cal and Oregon either, both of whom the Huskies play twice from here on out. Another key to making the tournament is to upset better teams, like UCLA, Cal and Oregon. The remaining games are evenly split between home and away: seven at Hec Ed and seven on the road. And regardless of how many games they win or lose, if the Dawgs win the conference tournament they automatically make the March Madness bracket. In my opinion, Washington has an outside chance of making the tournament.

So midway through the season, I can say with confidence that I think the Huskies will finish higher than eighth place in the Pac-12. With Arizona around, they probably won’t take first in the conference but a top three finish is definitely feasible. In regards to the NCAA tournament, only time will tell.  

Washington Huskies Men's Basketball Season Preview

By Kevin Calderhead

Last year, Washington Men’s Basketball, having lost two key players to the NBA draft, posted a disappointing 18-16 record (9-9 Pac-12). The loss of Terrence Ross and Tony Wroten left a big hole that evidently was not filled effectively. As the Dawgs begin to practice, we must put last fall and winter behind and look to what is to come in this brand new season.

                

As in any college sport, seniors will graduate (hopefully). Three starters from last year will not return this season: point guard Abdul Gaddy, guard Scott Suggs, and center Aziz N’Diaye. Coach Lorenzo Romar seems to know how he is going to compensate for the loss of these players.

Let’s begin with point guard position. Abdul Gaddy was supposed to be the greatest point guard UW had ever seen. Gaddy was ranked the second best point guard in the country during high school. The only guy in front of him on that list was John Wall. Yeah, he was that good. Unfortunately, after a knee injury, Gaddy was never the same. He played well, but not great. His replacement, Nigel Williams-Goss, has the potential to be the Gaddy that never was.

Where do I start with this guy? He was the 19^th ranked recruit on ESPN, and his high school team, Findlay Prep, went 124-8 during his four years there. Williams-Goss played in both the McDonald’s All-American game and the Jordan Brand Classic. Even though he’s only a freshman this year, Romar says he is emerging as a leader. Let’s not forget about the other point guard on the Huskies’ roster. 6’2” sophomore Andrew Andrews showed last year that he can play a little basketball too.

Nigel Williams-Goss looks to fill the void left by Abdul Gaddy.

Getty Images

So that solves that problem. Moving on to filling N’Diaye’s spot.

Romar looks to use 7’ center Gilles Dierickx (Will we ever have a big man whose last name we can spell?) and 6-9 forward Perris Blackwell. Both are transfers that redshirted last season, due to NCAA regulations. Dierickx didn’t post great numbers at his previous school, Florida International, only 2.6 points per game and 2.2 rebounds per game in 14.9 minutes. However, having a player of his height helps immensely on defense, and if he can perform offensively as well he could be a key part of this Husky basketball team.

His counterpart from University of San Francisco, Perris Blackwell, is the offensive threat that the Dawgs need down low. Coach Romar wants his guards to feed Blackwell the ball, and with the Husky’s high-post offense he could be very successful. He posted 12.7 points and 6.1 rebounds in the 2011-12 season at USF.

Returning from last year are Shawn Kemp Jr., Jernard Jerreau and Desmond Simmons. Kemp showed signs of greatness in his 18 point and 6 rebound performance against Arizona State last year. Jerreau has yet to have a breakout game, but as a sophomore, can only improve from here on out. Desmond Simmons works the hardest out of any guy on the team, always fighting for rebounds and playing great defense. I think everyone overlooks Simmons, and I’m really not doing him justice. He’ll be one of the key players on this Husky team, like last year.

What the Huskies lost in Suggs was a great scorer and most importantly, the team leader. For this spot this year, all eyes go to senior guard C.J. Wilcox. Wilcox is the best scorer on this team, and not only will he need to be consistent in his performance, but he must emerge as a team leader. He was 2^nd team All-Pac-12 last year, had an honorable mention in 2012 and made the Pac-10 All-Freshman team in 2011. All last season, Wilcox was plagued by a stress fracture in his foot. After the season ended, he had surgery to repair it in May.

C.J. Wilcox is the most integral piece of this basketball team. He has the most experience of any of the other players on the roster. And he absolutely has to be the leading scorer if the Huskies want to win a substantial amount of games this season. Hopefully the surgery fixed the nagging foot injury, and he can perform as he is fully capable of.

CJ Wilcox looks to lead this Huskies team to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in three years.

The Husky Haul

Now the real question: Can the University of Washington make the NCAA tournament this year?

That all depends. The 2013-14 Huskies are a very young team. And if the pre-season media prediction, in which the Dawgs were picked to finish eighth in the Pac-12, is correct, then the answer is absolutely not. However, there are so many new faces that we haven’t seen play yet that there is no real way to tell. If the young players can prove that they can perform, then there is a chance that they can make the NCAA tournament. But honestly, it’s too early to say at this point.

I don’t think the Huskies will finish as low as eighth in the Pac-12, but I also don’t think that they will be in contention for first place in the Pac-12. Arizona and UCLA are too good of teams. So I’ll put the Dawgs at fifth place. But who knows, maybe the Huskies will exceed everyone’s expectations and be serious contenders in the Pac-12. Here are my final predictions for this year’s team:

Starting Lineup:

PG: Nigel Williams-Goss

G: C.J. Wilcox

F: Perris Blackwell

F: Desmond Simmons

G: Andrew Andrews

Leading Scorer

Is there really any question? If it’s anyone other than C.J. Wilcox, it’s likely that this season just didn’t pan out well for the Dawgs. I’m predicting he averages about 18 points per game, up from 16.8 last year.

Leading Rebounder

This is a tougher one. This one really depends on who Coach Romar plays and who he doesn’t. I’m going to say Perris Blackwell, with 7 or 8 rebounds per game, followed by Shawn Kemp Jr. with about 6.

Leading Assister

Nigel Williams-Goss. He’s going to get most of the playing time at point guard, so hopefully around 6 assists per game.

Breakout Player

I think Shawn Kemp Jr. is going to have a big year. Watch for him to throw down some big jams this year. Hopefully his dad has taught him a thing or two about bangin’ out.

Sixth Man

Andrew Andrews. He’ll be a great guard off the bench if Williams-Goss needs a break, or the Huskies run three guards. On that note, I don’t think we’ll see much of four guards on the court like we did with Wilcox, Ross, Wroten and Suggs.

Well those are my predictions. I’ll revisit these predictions at the end of the season to see if I’m completely right, or way off the mark.

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