Aaaaarrgh. Alright, I'm finally at a place where I can talk about the Huskies losing in the 2nd round. A game they should have won. A game they could have won, had a couple of things happened differently.
And by a couple of things, I mean 4.
#1: Justin Dentmon plays. Oh wait, you say he did play? He has 2 steals in the box score to prove it? He played 27 minutes and scored 5 points? Sheer lunacy! In my mind, the most improved player in the Pac-10 didn't even make the bus down to Portland. The first half of the season he's a candidate for P10 POY, and the last bit, most glaringly the NCAA Tourney, he disappears. Disappears! What the eff, man? What was he waiting for? One of 2 senior leaders on the team, and all I can remember is him subbing out periodically and not doing anything. Certainly not taking shots, driving into the lane and creating opportunities, or driving into the lane and taking shots.
This drove me absolutely nuts. The Miss. State game he didn't do anything either, but it wasn't a big deal cuz MISSISSISUSState was in over their heads. It did matter during the P10 tourney, and the Purdue game, when his leadership and shooting could have carried the Huskies into the title game and sweet 16 respectively. Instead, 3 other players made 64 out of 74 total points. 3 people! If he starts shooting, we win! Simple concept! You're not going to play in the NBA dude, so make the most of the time you have left! Shoot the damn ball! Shoot it! Aaaaaarrgh!
#2: REBOUND THE BASKETBALL! REBOUND IT! I must say, I was screaming at the tele every time Purdue blocked out and got the rebound, which was pretty much every time the Huskies shot it in the first half, as their shooting percentage was around -6. So imagine my utter shock when the final box score read Purdue: 34 rebounds, and Washington: 34 rebounds. Wait, that's not the game I remember. We even had 12 offensive rebounds to their 10. Brockman and Pondexter combined for 28 boards between them, which is a win any other night of the week, any place in the country. I think the stat sheet must have read like this: 1st half UW, 0 rebounds, 2nd half UW, 34 rebounds. This brings me to my next point, which is thus:
#3: The tale of 2 halves. In the first half, we were out rebounded, outworked, and outscored. The Dawgs couldn't buy a basket, couldn't grab a carom, couldn't stop the Purdue starters. We were outscored in the paint, for god's sakes. That never happens. All of the stats were slanted Purdue's way, and still I believed we would come back and win, however ugly it might have been. Hell, you saw the AZ State game, yes? Down by 21, the Huskies came back to take the lead! Unfortunately they couldn't hit the broad side of a barn the last 5 minutes of that game, but it showed they weren't talentless quitters.
In the 2nd half, we outscored, out rebounded, and for the most part outworked their guys. Even with the horrible officiating, and by horrible I mean real way bad wrong. The zebras didn't call crap under the basket when our guys got mauled, then called ticky-tack fouls on the perimeter. At least they were consistent, with 3 Purdue guys at 4 fouls apiece by the end of the game. It probably helped us get back in it, to tell the truth.
In the 2nd half we scored 46 points, and lost by 2. That's 4 short of 50! And we still lost. We ended up with a better FG% and lost. Two guys with double-doubles, and still lost. How many other teams out there have had 2 starters hit double-doubles and lost? I haven't done the research, but I'm guessing none. I mean, has that happened to anyone all year? Decade? Whatever.
#4: Martel Webster and Spencer Hawes. Screw you guys, and especially you, Hawes. Had either one of those guys stuck around, I say it's a much different story. Remember the Brockman/Hawes tandem? It was a force to be reckoned with, but more so for the quick bits that showed they could be unstoppable together when healthy. It was a glimpse into a future that could have been. When S.H. jumped ship -in my mind, way too early- for the mad money, that set us back. Brockman didn't have the supporting cast until this year to make the team seriously competitive. Same deal with Webster. Bros before cash, you money grubbing NBA hoes. You heard me.
Hawes even admitted this in a recent interview, saying the Huskies would have won it all this year had he stuck around. Ifs, ands or buts. You can't live what could have been, but you can get seriously upset thinking about it. The only upside to this is that I wouldn't have to kill myself had the Dawgs lost to UConn in the round of 16 again. I think my face would have exploded.
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