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Washington Basketball: 2019-20 takeaways from blowout win over USC Trojans

By J.D. Caldwell

SEATTLE, WA - DECEMBER 08: Washington Huskies students cheer in the game against the Gonzaga Bulldogs at Hec Edmundson Pavilion on December 8, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Mike Tedesco/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA - DECEMBER 08: Washington Huskies students cheer in the game against the Gonzaga Bulldogs at Hec Edmundson Pavilion on December 8, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Mike Tedesco/Getty Images) /
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SEATTLE, WA – DECEMBER 08: Head coach Mike Hopkins of the Washington Huskies (Photo by Mike Tedesco/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA – DECEMBER 08: Head coach Mike Hopkins of the Washington Huskies (Photo by Mike Tedesco/Getty Images) /

3. Defense will keep the Huskies in contention

Notwithstanding the disappointing loss at home to UCLA, the Huskies are still in contention in the Pac-12 with a 1-1 record.  After the first weekend of conference play, the Pac-12 sits with no team having two wins and no team having two losses.

Keeping the Dawgs in contention is their long 2-3 zone defense.  It is what carried them to the Pac-12 regular-season championship last season.

Against UCLA, the defense did not fail Washington despite reserve freshman Jake Kyman shooting the lights out, nailing seven three-pointers. The Huskies’ defense kept them in the game in the first half while the offense struggled to score 24 points.

The Mike Hopkins 2-3 zone has always been a challenge for opposing teams.  The Huskies slow opponents down stretching their possession length to the second-longest in the nation.  Washington is currently tenth in the nation in blocked shots, causing teams like USC fits.

Still, even with Kyman going off, the Huskies rank #67 in opponents’ three-point field goal percentage.  Part of this is due to Coach Hopkins introducing the man-to-man defense.  After using almost strictly the zone in past seasons at Washington, the Huskies are adjusting with the man-to-man as needed, with good success.

Next. Weekly Takeaways. dark

Washington will need a top-notch defense to contend with a high scoring offense like Arizona (#13 NET), who are ninth in the nation scoring 83.1 ppg.  After splitting their opening weekend in conference play, the Huskies are still in contention in the Pac-12.  Coming up, their defense will have to travel with Washington to the Bay Area to take on Stanford (#20 NET) and California (#183 NET) on Jan. 9 and Jan. 11, respectively.

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