UW Women's Basketball | Huskies hang in for win

Washington women's basketball coach Tia Jackson prefers to view her team's potential with a glass-half-full perspective. On occasions Sunday, that potential bubbled close to the brim.

The injury-depleted Huskies broke ahead early, then held on late to defeat Arkansas State 69-59 in the championship game of the Husky Classic in front of 2,079 Sunday at Edmundson Pavilion, relying principally on a seven-player rotation to pick up their second straight win and improve to 3-4.

As with several of Washington's first seven games, Sunday's game was a tale of two halves.

Freshman guard Sami Whitcomb scored 16 of her team-high 19 points in the first half as the Huskies raced to a 42-23 halftime lead, closing the half on a 17-2 run. Washington's lead grew to 53-32 on a Whitcomb three-pointer, her fifth of the game, with 12 minutes left in the game.

Arkansas State (4-2), a Sun Belt Conference school that played in the Women's NIT last season, then took off on a 16-2 run over the next seven minutes, cutting Washington's lead to 55-49.

Back-to-back jumpers by Huskies freshman Katelan Redmon from inside the lane cooled the Indians' jets, and a tough inside basket (plus a free throw) by 6-foot-2 sophomore Laura McLellan put the Huskies ahead 64-54 with less than two minutes to play.

Arkansas State, which overcame single-digit halftime deficits in three of its wins, never drew closer than eight thereafter.

Jackson was pleased with Washington's ability to control the flow of the first half, leaning on good defense (Arkansas was 10 for 31 in the first half, just 32.2 percent) and Whitcomb's hot hand.

"It's awesome to get the lead early," Jackson said. "The ladies really stuck with the game plan. We knew Arkansas State was going to be an aggressive, driving team, so we wanted to limit that by going into our zone and playing a sagging man[-to-man defense].

"We executed it to perfection. I love the effort that the ladies put out there today."

The Indians often threw a full-court press at the Huskies in the second half (UW committed 21 turnovers, its fourth game above 20) and found a hot hand when junior guard Caroline Starr scored 14 of her 17 points in the final 15 minutes. Like Whitcomb, she finished the game with five three-pointers.

"We let their defense dictate our pace, and we wanted to just slow down and take control of the game," Jackson said. "We eventually did that. It took longer than I'd hoped, but we did it, we executed and we won."

Overall, how does Jackson view her team's progress?

"We are better than we were yesterday," she said. "That's how I approach every day. As long as we are progressing, we are in a good place."

Redmon and senior point guard Emily Florence each finished with 11 points for Washington. McLellan and reserve guard Sara Mosiman each scored 10. Heidi McNeill added eight. Whitcomb and Florence, both named to the all-tournament team (Whitcomb earning most valuable player honors), each recorded nine rebounds.

Notes

• Washington's next game is at home against UC Irvine at 2 p.m. Sunday.

• Jackson may have to scramble with her lineup in the weeks ahead. She said Sunday that freshman C Jess McCormack (high ankle sprain) and freshman F Mackenzie Argens (knee) will likely be sidelined two weeks, and maybe more. Senior F Andrea Plouffe (tendinitis) is not expected back until late December.

That was the same forecast for Mosiman, who in August had surgery to repair a stress fracture in her left leg.

"We weren't expecting to have Mosiman back until the Pac-10, and she came back to start our season," Jackson said. "So let's hope the magic our doctors are putting on these players [means] we can get them sooner than later."

• Ninth-year Arkansas State coach Brian Boyer liked what he saw of the Huskies: "They've got a good inside game, they've got a point guard who certainly knows the game, and they surround her with some players who can really shoot. That's the makings of a good basketball team."

ARKANSAS STATE (4-2)
min		fgm-a	ftm-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
Anderson	22	4-6	0-0	0-3	0	3	8
Taylor	30	1-6	0-0	0-4	5	3	2
Criner	28	5-10	1-1	2-2	1	4	12
Smith	23	1-8	0-0	1-1	3	3	3
Starr	29	6-11	0-0	1-3	2	1	17
Baker	6	1-4	0-0	0-0	0	0	2
Jefferson	15	4-8	0-0	3-6	2	3	9
Hiles	19	0-5	2-2	1-4	1	2	2
Scott	7	1-1	0-0	1-1	1	0	2
Schlup	10	1-2	0-0	0-0	0	2	2
Pospisil	11	0-1	0-0	1-2	0	2	0
	200	24-62	3-3	12-28	15	23	59

Percentages: FG .387, FT 1.000. Three-point goals: 8-24, (Taylor 0-1, Criner 1-3, Smith 1-5, Starr 5-8, Baker 0-1, Jefferson 1-3, Hiles 0-3). Team rebounds: 2. Blocks: 2, (Jefferson, Hiles). Turnovers: 17, (Anderson 2, Taylor 3, Criner 3, Smith 2, Jefferson 4, Hiles 2, Pospisil). Steals: 9, (Anderson, Taylor, Criner 3, Smith, Jefferson 2, Hiles).

WASHINGTON (3-4)
min		fgm-a	ftm-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
McNeill	23	3-4	2-2	2-3	1	3	8
Redmon	35	5-14	0-0	1-4	4	2	11
Florence	37	3-7	5-7	2-9	4	0	11
Augustavo	7	0-3	0-0	0-0	0	0	0
Whitcomb	33	5-12	4-6	0-3	2	2	19
McLellan	31	4-6	2-5	3-9	0	1	10
Bennett	11	0-1	0-0	1-1	0	1	0
Mosiman	23	3-5	4-4	1-3	2	3	10
	200	23-52	17-24	15-40	13	12	69

Percentages: FG .442, FT .708. Three-point goals: 6-19, (Redmon 1-4, Florence 0-2, Augustavo 0-3, Whitcomb 5-9, Bennett 0-1). Team rebounds: 8. Blocks: 3, (Redmon, McLellan 2). Turnovers: 21, (McNeill 3, Redmon 3, Florence 2, Whitcomb 6, McLellan 3, Mosiman 4). Steals: 10, (Florence 3, Whitcomb 6, McLellan).

Arkansas State	23	36	—	59
Washington	42	27	—	69

Attendance: 2,079. Officials: Gonzales, Russi, Moreno.