Washington Huskies
Pac-12 (20-11, 11-7)
Coach Kevin McGuff has quickly turned around the Washington program. Rich in history, the Huskies were primed for a breakout year sooner or later. Building off their quarterfinal appearance in the NIT last season, Washington played very well for most of the season until faltering down the stretch.
Big Wins: 11/9 St. Mary’s (70-68), 12/5 San Diego State (59-58), 2/10 USC (61-58)
Bad Losses: 11/18 at Long Beach State (62-71), 12/15 UCSB (46-54), 1/11 at USC (72-81)
Coach: Kevin McGuff
Why They Can Surprise:
Besides senior Kristi Kingma, the backcourt is not particularly experienced, but they have done an amazing job of dictating tempo and avoiding turnovers. Only a handful of teams in the nation commit fewer turnovers per game than UW and most of those teams will slow down the tempo and have much fewer offensive opportunities than the Huskies. Sophomore point guard Jazmine Davis is hovering around a one-to-one assist-to-turnover margin, but she is the one creating plays. And it is very easy to forgive her turnovers since she leads the team with 19.4 points per game and knocks down 37.1 percent of her attempts from beyond the arc. Kingma is no stranger to shooting either. She connects on an impressive 2.7 three-pointers per game and can light up the scoreboard when her shot is falling. However, Kingma is a tough 5-11 wing who can do plenty of scoring even on those rare occasions when she is not feeling it from long range. The emergence of Mercedes Wetmore has played a huge part in the positive turnover margin. Wetmore is a strong defensive guard and an extremely efficient and effective ballhandler. Wetmore may not score much, but the Huskies have plenty of other options in that regard.
Why They Can Disappoint:
The frontcourt has talent. Talia Walton averages 13.7 points and 7.1 rebounds and Aminah Williams adds 9.1 points and 10.6 rebounds per contest. The problem is the lack of depth. Jeneva Anderson, a 6-0 senior, can fill in a few minutes, but Washington will lose out on their dynamic scoring threat. Walton will spend nearly as much time outside of the arc as she does inside of it on the offensive end and most teams have trouble stopping her dynamic scoring abilities. Williams too can at least hit the mid-range jumper. That lack of depth in the frontcourt is felt most on the glass. Walton and Williams put up good numbers on the glass, but that is about it. Those two can only do so much and this is one of the worst rebounding teams in the nation. Even the great turnover margin cannot make up the possessions lost due to the Huskies poor team rebounding. The depth concerns are not limited to the frontcourt as the entire starting five averages over 30 minutes per game. It is a very good starting five, but eventually that will catch up to the Huskies one way or another.
Probable Starters:
Jazmine Davis, Sophomore, Guard, 19.4 ppg, 3.2 apg
Mercedes Wetmore, Junior, Guard, 7.0 ppg, 3.6 apg
Kristi Kingman, Senior, Guard, 13.3 ppg, 2.1 apg, 4.7 rpg
Aminah Williams, Sophomore, Forward, 9.1 ppg, 10.6 rpg, 2.1 spg
Talia Walton, Freshman, Forward, 13.7 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 1.8 bpg
Key Roleplayers:
Jeneva Anderson, Senior, Forward, 0.7 ppg, 1.8 rpg
Heather Corral, Freshman, Guard, 4.5 ppg, 2.3 rpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 65.1 (110th in nation, 5th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 63.2 (212, 8)
Field-Goal Percentage: 35.4 (298, 11)
Field-Goal Defense: 37.3 (102, 6)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 8.1 (10, 1)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 32.9 (62, 2)
Free-Throw Percentage: 68.2 (197, 7)
Rebound Margin: -8.4 (332, 12)
Assists Per Game: 11.1 (263, 9)
Turnovers Per Game: 12.1 (6, 2)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2012 NIT First Round win over Cal Poly
2012 NIT Second Round win over Utah
2012 NIT Third Round win over Oregon State
2012 NIT Quarterfinal loss to San Diego
2010 WBI First Round win over Portland
2010 WBI Second won loss to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
2007 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Iowa State
2006 NCAA Round of 64 win over Minnesota
2006 NCAA Round of 32 Loss to LSU
2004 NIT First Round win over Pepperdine
2004 NIT Second Round loss to Creighton
*all team stats through 3/7
See All Women’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
