JIM HOEHN, Associated Press
SEATTLE (AP) — Noah Dickerson scored 28 points and pulled down 22 rebounds, both career highs, to pace Washington to a 79-69 win over stubborn Eastern Washington on Sunday.
Washington improved to 2-0 under first-year coach Mike Hopkins, the longtime Syracuse assistant. The Huskies have won 13 of 14 against their in-state rival.
Dominic Green, who missed all three of his shots in a scoreless first half, hit consecutive 3-pointers to put Washington up by 10 with 16:32 remaining. Neither team scored again until the 12:29 mark when Jesse Hunt’s 3-pointer pulled the Eagles within 48-41.
Ty Gibson’s 3-pointer made it 52-48, but the Huskies gradually extended the lead, going up 62-51 on Mattisse Thybulle’s 3-pointer with 7:37 left.
Bogdan Bliznyuk had 20 points and Luka Vulikic scored 10 for Eastern Washington (1-1), which made just 10 of 29 second-half field-goal attempts. The Eagles also missed 11 of 28 free-throw attempts.
Thybulle added 15 points and David Crisp 11 for the Huskies. Dickerson’s previous career bests were 27 points against USC and 17 rebounds vs. Seattle, both last season.
Crisp’s 3-pointer at the buzzer – the Huskies first after eight misses from beyond the arc – put Washington up 40-34 at the half. Dickerson, a 6-8 junior forward, had 20 points in the first half, making 6 of 7 from the field and 8 of 10 free throws, along with 11 of Washington’s 19 rebounds.
BIG PICTURE
Washington: The Huskies are a work in progress under Hopkins, who has installed the trademark Syracuse zone defense. Freshman guard Jaylen Nowell starts and Michael Carter III, another freshman guard, is a key reserve. Nowell had 32 points in Washington’s 86-82 opening win over Belmont, and 10 against Eastern Washington.
Eastern Washington: The Eagles also have a new head coach, Shantay Legans, an assistant the previous eight seasons. Non-conference road opponents include Stanford, UNLV and Utah.
UP NEXT
Washington faces Providence in the 2K Classic in New York on Friday, and then plays either St. Louis or Virginia Tech on Saturday.
Eastern Washington’s game against the Huskies was the first of 10 straight road games. The Eagles are at Stanford on Tuesday.
Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
