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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

UW suffers third straight blowout

Abdul Gaddy shoots against Arizona’s Kevin Parrom, left, and Jamelle Horne. (Associated Press)
Percy Allen Seattle Times

TUCSON, Ariz. – The outcome was decided long before Arizona’s Derrick Williams’ tomahawk dunk in the final 15 seconds.

Still, the Wildcats forward’s acrobatic slam drew a huge applause from the few remaining fans and provided one last indignity to Washington in its 87-70 defeat Sunday. It also signified how far the 24th-ranked Huskies have fallen in a little over a week.

If given the chance, the defending Pac-10 champions would probably start this year over again.

Since defeating Oregon State on New Year’s Eve in the conference opener, the Huskies (10-5, 1-3 Pac-10) have began the decade with three consecutive blowout defeats.

They lost by 11 points to Oregon in a game that wasn’t as close as the score might indicate. They suffered a lopsided 17-point defeat at Arizona State on Friday and fell by 17 in front of 12,899 at the McKale Center.

It’s the first time Washington has lost three straight games in a season since finishing the 2007-08 campaign with a three-game losing streak.

And it’s the first time Washington was swept in Arizona since February 2002.

The Huskies, who were picked to win the conference, thought they were going to take the program to unprecedented levels this season. But this isn’t what they had in mind.

“I didn’t see that coming,” coach Lorenzo Romar said. “I knew we still had a ways to go, but didn’t know it would happen this way. We’ve got to come back, get settled down, get regrouped and get prepared for this next homestand.”

The first order of business: Fix the slow starts.

At Arizona State, Washngton went more than seven minutes before scoring a basket.

Against the Wildcats, the Huskies fell behind 8-0, missed their first five shots and didn’t score a point in the first 4:56.

Arizona led 37-27 at halftime and things might have been worse considering Quincy Pondexter and Isaiah Thomas were scoreless.

The second order of business: Fix the rebounding. The Huskies were the top rebounding team in the conference, but in the past two games they’ve been outrebounded 39-29 and 40-23, respectively.

“We got blasted on the rebounds today and that’s what made the difference,” said the 5-foot-8 Thomas, who led UW with five rebounds.

The third order of business: Fix the offense.

The Huskies knew Friday’s 68-51 defeat would be a low-scoring affair against defensive-minded ASU. However, Washington was held 10 points below its average Sunday by the worst scoring defense in the Pac-10.

Pondexter never rebounded from a slow start and finished with seven points on 2-for-5 shooting. Thomas, who also had a game-high five assists, scored all 18 of his points after the break.

“When we get down, we get in panic mode,” said Abdul Gaddy, who finished with a career-high 13 points. “We just kind of start playing rat ball. We need to just start coming together more and play more as a team.”

Arizona (8-8, 2-2) provided a clinic in team play. Six Wildcats scored in double figures, including Jamelle Horne, who scored 22 points. Nic Wise and Kyle Fogg added 14 each, Lamont Jones 13 and Kevin Parrom 10, and Williams 12.

Arizona 87, Washington 70

Washington (10-5, 1-3)—Pondexter 2-5 3-3 7, Breshers 0-0 0-0 0, Gant 1-3 2-2 4, Thomas 7-14 3-5 18, Gaddy 5-7 3-6 13, Overton 2-5 2-2 6, Bryan-Amaning 1-6 2-4 4, Trent 0-1 0-0 0, Suggs 1-3 3-4 6, Turner 4-8 1-2 12. Totals 23-52 19-28 70.

Arizona (8-8, 2-2)—Williams 3-6 6-6 12, Horne 8-14 1-2 22, Hill 0-1 0-0 0, N.Wise 3-7 7-9 14, Fogg 5-10 3-5 14, Natyazhko 1-1 0-0 2, Parrom 2-8 6-6 10, Jones 5-6 2-4 13, Lavender 0-0 0-0 0, Shumpert 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 27-54 25-32 87. Halftime—Arizona 37-27. 3-Point Goals—Washington 5-17 (Turner 3-6, Suggs 1-3, Thomas 1-6, Overton 0-2), Arizona 8-17 (Horne 5-8, Jones 1-1, Fogg 1-2, N.Wise 1-4, Parrom 0-1, Williams 0-1). Fouled Out—Hill. Rebounds—Washington 23 (Thomas 5), Arizona 40 (Williams 9). Assists—Washington 11 (Thomas 5), Arizona 12 (Fogg 4). Total Fouls—Washington 27, Arizona 23. A—12,899.