Preview: Stanford MBB heads to the Emerald City to battle Washington
On Saturday at 3:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Networks and Cardinal Sports Network radio, Stanford men’s basketball will take on Washington on the road in Seattle. Stanford comes in at 10-4 overall and 3-1 in the Pac-12 while Washington comes in at 7-7 overall and 2-2 in the Pac-12.
Last time out: On Thursday, Stanford defeated Washington State 62-57 up in Pullman. A 23-0 run in the second half made the difference.
RECAP: Second half surge powers Stanford MBB past Wazzu
On Washington: The Huskies on paper are not a very good team and yet they sit at .500 on the season. Both overall and in the Pac-12. They’ve done a little bit better than expected, notching wins at Utah and at home against Cal on Thursday. Beating Cal at home was to be expected but winning at Utah is impressive considering how tough it is to get wins in Salt Lake City.
The Huskies are led by graduate student guard Terrell Brown, Jr. who is averaging 20.7 points and 4.1 rebounds per game on 45.4% shooting from the field, 22.7% shooting from 3-point range, and 78.8% shooting from the foul line. The only other Huskies players scoring in double figures on average is senior forward Emmitt Matthews, Jr., who is averaging 11.3 points per game. One player of interest for the Cardinal is Stanford graduate Daejon Davis, who is now playing for the Huskies as a graduate student. Davis is averaging 8.5 points per game and is playing more of a supportive role.
As a team, the Huskies are averaging 69.9 points per game on 39.6% shooting from the field, 30.6% shooting from 3-point range, and 67.8% shooting from the foul line. They also average 32.9 rebounds, 10.1 assists, 9.5 steals, 4.1 blocks, and 11.8 turnovers per game. They also average a -8.2 rebound margin and a +6.1 turnover margin.
Keys to the game: For Stanford, the first thing they need to do is dominate the Huskies on the boards. Stanford averages a +7.9 rebound margin per game, which is a near polar opposite of Washington’s -8.2 rebound margin. If Stanford dominates the glass like they have all season long, this should be a fairly easy win for them.
The second thing Stanford needs to do is take care of the ball. Turnovers have been an issue for Stanford all season as they average a -3.5 turnover margin per game. If Stanford is turning the ball over, this game could get interesting. If they’re taking care of the ball, it’s going to be really tough for the Huskies to win.
Lastly, Stanford needs to contain Brown. He’s the top scorer on this Huskies team by a mile and they cannot allow him to get hot. Stanford isn’t super reliant on one guy like the Huskies are on Brown. If Stanford slows down Brown, their depth should get them across the finish line.
Prediction: Stanford is starting to find a real rhythm right now. Spencer Jones, Jaiden Delaire, Harrison Ingram, Brandon Angel, and others are all doing their jobs really well. As I said above, they don’t need to overly rely on one guy. Everyone just needs to do their job. I think Stanford’s depth and balance will prevail in this one. Stanford 68 Washington 62 is how I see this shaking out.
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