Notebook | Wolfinger gets aggressive against Stanford this time

PALO ALTO, Calif. — Given a second chance against Stanford, Joe Wolfinger came through.

It wasn't enough to get the Huskies a win, but a revived effort from Washington's 7-foot sophomore center helped keep Washington surprisingly close in an eventual 82-79 loss to the No. 8-rated Cardinal Thursday might.

"He did a tremendous job," said UW coach Lorenzo Romar after Wolfinger tied a career high with 12 points, hitting 5 of 10 field goals in 18 minutes. "He's a big body and he knocked down some shots, which he's pretty capable of."

It was the most action Wolfinger had seen since the last time UW played Stanford, when he was 0 for 4 and scored one point in 16 minutes.

"Last time I wasn't hitting my shots," he said matter-of-factly. "This time, I hit some."

He'd played sparingly since then, almost all in garbage time. But he knew he'd get some action Thursday as the Huskies looked for ways to defend Stanford's 7-foot twins, Brook and Robin Lopez.

Wolfinger admits he struggles defending quicker players but said the Lopez twins usually play "back to the basket and I can just stick my hands up."

Wolfinger eventually fouled out, but not before hitting 2 of 6 three-pointers and helping hold Brook Lopez to 10 fewer points than he scored in the first game against the Huskies.

Notes

• Huskies guard Tim Morris, who spent three years at Stanford before transferring to UW, was booed every time he touched the ball in his first game back at Maples Pavilion and briefly heard a chant of "traitor."

"I thought it would be more mixed," he said. "But I'm not surprised."

Morris had downplayed his return earlier in the week, saying he got the emotion out when he faced his former teammates in Seattle last month. But he admitted afterward that he was amped up early on in his return, and it showed as he twice threw the ball out of bounds in the first half, earning a seat on the bench. He played just seven minutes by halftime.

"I was trying to bring some energy," he said.

Morris finally got a measure of satisfaction when he stole a pass and raced for a dunk, adding a little double-pump at the end.

"That felt good," he said.

Those were his only two points of the game; he finished 1 for 3 from the field in 18 minutes.

• Forward Quincy Pondexter scored 19 points despite battling a cold that left him with a hoarse voice as he talked with reporters afterward. He hit 8 of 11 shots in 29 minutes, in scoring his most points other than 20 against Syracuse on Nov. 23.

"He was very aggressive," Romar said.

• Former Huskies center Todd MacCulloch, in town with the Philadelphia 76ers — he is an announcer for the radio broadcasts — attended the game with another former UW player, guard Chris Thompson. Both were on the 1998 team that advanced to the Sweet 16. The 76ers play Golden State tonight.

Bob Condotta: 206-515-5699 or bcondotta@seattletimes.com

WASHINGTON (15-14, 6-10 PAC-10)
min		fgm-a	ftm-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
Brockman	34	9-19	2-5	5-14	1	4	20
Wallace	10	1-2	0-2	2-2	0	4	2
Overton	19	0-2	1-3	0-0	2	2	1
Morris	18	1-3	0-0	3-4	2	3	2
Appleby	28	2-5	0-0	0-1	3	1	5
Smith	3	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0
Dentmon	23	5-9	1-2	2-3	1	4	12
B-Amaning	18	3-3	0-0	0-1	0	1	6
Pondexter	29	8-11	3-4	3-5	3	1	19
Wolfinger	18	5-10	0-0	1-2	0	5	12
	200	34-64	7-16	17-37	12	25	79

Percentages: FG .531, FT .438. Three-point goals: 4-13, (Morris 0-1, Appleby 1-4, Dentmon 1-2, Wolfinger 2-6). Team rebounds: 5. Blocked shots: 2, (Bryan-Amaning, Wolfinger). Turnovers: 14, (Brockman 3, Wallace, Overton 2, Morris 2, Appleby, Dentmon 2, Bryan-Amaning, Pondexter, Wolfinger). Steals: 5, (Overton, Morris, Dentmon, Bryan-Amaning, Pondexter).

STANFORD (23-4, 12-3)
min		fgm-a	ftm-a	or-t	a	pf	pts
Lopez	38	7-14	7-7	2-7	3	2	21
Washington	11	1-2	0-2	1-2	3	4	2
Lopez	20	4-8	2-4	2-5	0	4	10
Johnson	37	3-6	6-8	0-4	6	2	14
Goods	33	6-12	0-0	0-2	1	0	16
Fields	7	1-1	0-0	0-0	1	1	3
Shiller	6	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	2	0
Hill	23	2-5	3-5	1-3	3	2	7
Brown	2	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0
Owens	1	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0
Finger	20	3-6	3-4	0-1	1	2	9
Prowitt	2	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0
	200	27-54	21-30	10-28	18	19	82

Percentages: FG .500, FT .700. Three-point goals: 7-14, (Johnson 2-2, Goods 4-7, Fields 1-1, Hill 0-2, Finger 0-2). Team rebounds: 1. Blocked shots: 9, (Lopez 4, Washington, Lopez 3, Finger). Turnovers: 13, (Lopez 4, Lopez, Johnson 2, Hill 2, Finger 2, Prowitt). Steals: 3, (Johnson, Finger 2).

Washington	34	45	—	79
Stanford	41	41	—	82

Attendance: 7329. Officials: S. Thornley, D. White, B. Shelly.Technical fouls: Washington-None. Stanford-None.