No. 6 Arizona Basketball wallops Washington in Seattle

SEATTLE, WA – Fueled by a huge second half, No. 6 Arizona Basketball (19-3, 8-3) walloped the Washington Huskies (13-10, 5-7) by a 95-72 final. 

Following a physical win over Washington State on Thursday evening, No. 6 Arizona Basketball was back in action, hoping to close out their week with a sweep over the Washington Huskies.

Traveling to Seattle to take on a talented Huskies team, Arizona had to weather a hot start by Washington. And unlike their low-scoring affairs against UCLA and Washington State, the Wildcats’ offense was white hot in this one.

Shooting a combined 52.3 percent from the field, including 11-26 (42.3) from three, the Wildcats overcame a nine-point first-half lead from the Huskies to come away with the dominant, 95-72 win.

Overall, it was a combined effort in this one as the Wildcats had four players finish in double-figures, with Arizona’s big men Azuolas Tubelis and Oumar Ballo finishing with 25 and 21 points with 10 and 12 rebounds respectively.

Kerr Kriisa had the touch once again, scoring 18 points while connecting on 6-11 three-point attempts. The Estonian native also added with six assists to just one turnover.

Despite Washington pulling ahead early, No. 6 Arizona Basketball used a strong second-half surge to come away with a 23-point win.

Looking to finish its road trip on a high note, Arizona returned to action in Seattle, closing out the weekend with another significant challenge ahead!

And from the tip, the Wildcats felt the fight from the Huskies. Jumping out to an early 20-11 lead, Arizona would have to find its rhythm if they were going to prevent Washington from running away in this one.

Responding with a 12-3 scoring run, Arizona would tie the game at 23-23 with 7:46 to play in the first half, but unfortunately, Washington would find its groove again, pulling ahead 30-25 after Washington’s Keion Brooks slammed one home to energize the crowd.

Luckily, the Wildcats would not get rattled, closing out the half on a 13-6 run to pull ahead 38-36 at halftime.

Hoping to continue its offensive momentum in the second half, the Wildcats’ defense would need to step up, while the offense would have to continue to hit its shots.

Despite Washington opening the second half with an 8-4 run to lead 44-42, that would be the last time the Huskies would lead in this one.

Arizona subsequently responded with a 14-2 run to pull ahead 56-44 with 13:07 to play after Kriisa connected on yet another three.

The Wildcats’ offense would continue to hit its stride as they poured it on the second half, expanding its lead from 12 to as many as 26 with 2:08 to play.

Leading 91-65, Arizona would close out the game, cruising to the 95-73 win over Washington in Seattle!

With the victory, the Wildcats improve to 19-3 (8-3) on the season and will resume basketball action on Thursday when they return home to take on Oregon in McKale, followed by a Saturday showdown against Oregon State. Tip-off against the Ducks on Thursday is set for 8:30 PM MST.

Don’t forget to follow us at @ZonaZealots on Twitter and like our fan page on Facebook for continued coverage of Arizona news, opinions, and recruiting updates!