UW Rides Sanford, Stuns Arizona

Mark Sanford and the Washington Huskies made sure a couple of Arizona Wildcats did not have a happy homecoming.

Sanford scored 18 of his 26 points in the second half, and Washington upset No. 10 Arizona 92-88 Sunday in a Pacific-10 Conference men’s basketball game.

Michael Dickerson and Jason Terry, both Washington state natives, returned home to Seattle and each scored 23 points in the loss.

“It’s fun to come back home for a game, but I wish we could have come away with a win,” Dickerson said. “You have to give Washington credit. They came out to play and hit almost all of their shots.”

Washington (12-5, 5-4 Pac-10) shot 59 percent, its best in 76 games since March 3, 1994, also against Arizona.

“That was a really good win for us,” Huskies coach Bob Bender said. “It’s just the end of the first half of the season and we finished with a winning record at 5-4. This is the time of the year that we have to show our greatest improvement. Now we need the finish the season like we’re capable of.”

Terry hit 10 of 12 shots. Dickerson made only 8 of 24, but his 3-pointer with 24 seconds left brought Arizona (13-5, 6-3 Pac-10) within 90-88.

Sanford then made two free throws with 16 seconds left for the final margin as the Huskies remained undefeated in nine home games this season.

Todd MacCulloch shot 8 for 9 for the Huskies. Sanford was 9 for 18 from the field and 8 for 10 from the foul line.

Sanford, the Huskies leading scorer at 16.4 points per game, passed the 25-point mark for the second consecutive game.

“We knew going into the game that we needed everyone to step up and contribute,” Sanford said.

Sophomore guard Donald Watts had 15 points and six assists. MacCulloch scored 14 of his 16 points in the first half.

Arizona scored the first seven points of the game, but Washington responded with sharp 60 percent shooting for the remainder of the half.

Washington 92, Arizona 88

Arizona (13-5) - Davison 2-7 0-0 4, Dickerson 8-24 5-6 23, Bramlett 3-4 2-2 8, Bibby, 6-11 1-3 14, Terry 10-14 1-4 23, Simon 3-13 1-1 8, Harris 4-7 0-0 8, Edgerson 0-3 0-0 0, Lee 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 36-85 10-16 88.

Washington (12-5) - Sanford 9-18 8-10 26, MacCulloch 8-9 0-0 16, Wooten, 2-6 2-2 7, Watts 6-10 1-2 15, Booker 4-6 2-5 11, Femerling 3-3 1-1 7, Thompson 2-3 2-3 6, Walcott 2-2 0-1 4, Luton 0-4 0-0 0. Totals 36-61 16-24 92.

Halftime-Washington 47, Arizona 39. 3-Point goals- Arizona 6-19 (Dickerson 2-4, Terry 2-5, Bibby 1-3, Miles 1-6, Lee 0-1, Washington 4-13 (Watts 2-3, Wooten 1-2, Booker 1-2, Thompson 0-1, Sanford 0-2, Luton 0-3. Fouled out-None. Rebounds-Arizona 46 (Dickerson 11), Washington 34 (Sanford 8). Assists-Arizona 19 (Bibby 7), Washington (Booker 7). Total fouls-Arizona 24, Washington 18. Technical Fouls-Arizona (Davison). A-7,113.