Montana @ Washington preview
Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion
Last Meeting ( Nov 22, 2019 ) Montana 56, Washington 73
Washington is off to a 1-4 start after losing its top three scorers from last year and having only one player -- Quade Green -- averaging in double-figure scoring so far this season.
The Huskies have an opportunity to improve against visiting Montana (1-4) on Wednesday night before returning to Pac-12 competition, in which they are 0-2 with losses to Utah and Oregon.
Green is averaging 17.0 points per game with the next player at 7.8 - RaeQuan Battle.
Entering this week, Washington ranked No. 299 nationally and last in the Pac-12 averaging 60 points a game. The Huskies are shooting 38.7 percent from the field and 26.9 percent from 3-point range.
"We're a young team," said Battle, one of the Huskies' seven sophomores. "We have a lot of new people that need to connect. We're getting there. We're playing together every day and our chemistry's just getting better."
Gone are Isaiah Stewart, Jaden McDaniels and Nahziah Carter, the three leading scorers from last year's team. Stewart and McDaniels are now in the NBA and Carter left the program two weeks ago after being suspended by the university following an investigation of two sexual assault allegations against him.
Washington coach Mike Hopkins was encouraged by the Huskies' grit coming back from a 15-point deficit in a 74-71 loss to visiting Oregon on Saturday.
"We've got good talent," Hopkins said. "We've got new talent. We've got new pieces and parts. There's no consolation. We're here to win, that's what it's all about. ... We've got to be more consistent. Get better chemistry."
Montana rebounded from four straight losses on the road to start the season with a 102-42 win over Yellowstone Christian College from Billings, Montana, a National Christian College Athletic Association team.
The Grizzlies were coming off two one-point losses at Southern Utah in Big Sky play sandwiched between a 76-62 loss at USC to start the season and 63-50 setback against Georgia on Dec. 8.
"To have confidence, you need to see that you have more points than your opponent on the screen from time to time and we just really needed that," Montana coach Travis DeCuire said following the win over Yellowstone.
Montana has three players scoring with an average in double figures -- Kyle Owens (13.8 points per game), Michael Steadman (11.0) and Brandon Whitney (10.8).
--Field Level Media