Washington holds off Sacramento State

Pondexter was two-for-two from beyond the three-point arc and made 8-of-11 shots from the charity stripe. He also pulled down nine rebounds and dished out four assists for the Huskies (4-0), who remain perfect on the season following a sweep at the Basketball Travelers Classic.

Spencer Hawes donated 14 points, while Jon Brockman added 13 points and nine boards in the victory.

Alex Bausley scored 19 points and had eight rebounds to lead Sacramento State (2-3). The Hornets were fresh off their most lopsided road win in 17 years, beating Denver 74-53 on Friday, but shot just 29-of-82 (35 percent) from the field and were just 4-of-21 on three-point shots.

Loren Leath added 17 points and Alonzo Young netted 13 off the bench.

With Washington holding a 48-38 lead to open the second half, both teams suddenly had trouble hitting their mark, combining for 28 missed attempts in just over nine minutes.

The Huskies eventually clawed to a 73-58 advantage with a little more than six minutes to play and Sacramento State never pulled closer than nine after that point.

Haron Hargrave hit a shot with 1:11 remaining and Young hit back-to-back layups before the final buzzer, but the outcome was never in doubt.

The Hornets started the game on a 23-12 spurt, capped by Young’s two-point shot just eight minutes in. Washington, however, kept it close in the opening minutes thanks to the strong play of Pondexter, who netted a couple of shots from beyond the three-point arc.

The Huskies finally pulled ahead at the 3:00 mark, as Brockman drained a shot to ignite an 11-3 run to close out the half.

With the game knotted at 35, Brockman hit the field goal and Pondexter followed suit after a Hornets foul. Hargrave hit a free throw at the other end for Sacramento State, but missed on his second chance and the Huskies put the next six points on the board. Davon Roberts then made it a seven-point contest with 35 ticks remaining, but Appleby hit a three-pointer with five seconds left to send Washington to the intermission with a 10-point lead.

Game Notes

Sunday’s game was only the second time these teams faced one another, with the first meeting coming on December 14, 1979. The Huskies won by a 94-57 score...The contest marked just the ninth time the Hornets faced a ranked opponent since Sacramento State joined the Div. I ranks in 1991-92...Washington is in the middle of a seven-game homestand and will face Eastern Washington on Friday...Sacramento State hosts William Jessup on Wednesday.